WHITE HOUSE – Facing a surge of migrants flocking to the border, the Biden administration is fine-tuning requirements to its proposed $4 billion aid package to Central American countries to address what it calls the “root cause of migration.”
President Joe Biden’s national security adviser and coordinator for the southern border, Roberta Jacobson, said the aid would be subject to strict requirements based on anti-corruption efforts and good governance measures.
“I want to emphasize that the funds we’re asking for from Congress don’t go to government leaders,” Jacobson said during a briefing to reporters at the White House on Wednesday. “They go to communities, to training, to climate mitigation, to violence prevention, to anti-gang programs. In other words, they go to the people who otherwise migrate in search of hope.”
Responding to VOA’s question, Jacobson would not specify the details of those requirements.
“I think that’s something that we would want to discuss with the countries involved before we discuss it publicly,” she said.
Push factors
Jacobson said some of the money is slated for immediate humanitarian aid, but much of it is designed to mitigate the so-called push factors of migration — conditions that make people leave their home countries for a better life.
However, she acknowledged that ultimately, the U.S. may not be able to change conditions on the ground.
