MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The United States is committing billions of dollars toward development in Central America and Mexico, as part of a plan to strengthen economic growth in the region and curb illegal immigration, the U.S. and Mexican governments said on Tuesday.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has been seeking to persuade U.S. counterpart Donald Trump to work with Mexico to develop Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, as well as Mexico’s poorer south to stem the flow of migrants.
However, Trump’s threats to slash aid to the region if illegal immigration was not contained have persistently raised doubts about how much the United States would stump up.
Speaking as the US State Department issued a statement setting out the commitments, Ebrard said that the Mexican government had pledged to find $25 billion to develop the south of the country during the next five years.
“The agreements established here mean more than doubling the foreign investment in the south of Mexico from 2019,” the minister told a news conference in Mexico City.
All told, the deal between the two presidents represented commitments of $35.6 billion for Central America and southern Mexico from next year, Ebrard said on Twitter.
