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                                                                                           Updated June 12, 2019

U.S. Strategy for Engagement in Central America: An Overview


Introduction
Instability in Central America is a pressing challenge for
U.S. policy in the Western Hemisphere. Several nations-
particularly El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras in the
Northern Triangle of Central America-are struggling
with widespread insecurity, fragile political and judicial
systems, and high levels of poverty and unemployment.

The inability of Central American governments to address
those challenges effectively has had far-reaching
implications for the United States. Transnational criminal
organizations have used the Central American corridor for a
range of illicit activities, including the trafficking of
approximately 90% of cocaine bound for the United States.
Central America has also surpassed Mexico as the largest
source of irregular migration to the United States. In the
first eight months of FY2019, U.S. authorities apprehended
nearly 445,000 unauthorized migrants from the Northern
Triangle at the southwest border (see Figure 1). More than
81 % of those apprehended were unaccompanied minors or
families, many of whom were seeking humanitarian
protection

Figure I. U.S. Apprehensions  of Northern Triangle
Nationals at the Southwest  Border: FY20  II -FY20 I 9


250,000
                                         Guatemalans
 200,000                                     rd ulduans

 150,000


100,000


*alvadorans


Strategy for Engagement in Central America and, with
congressional support, more than doubled aid to the region.

The Trump  Administration initially maintained the strategy
but adjusted it to place more emphasis on preventing illegal
immigration, combating transnational crime, and generating
opportunities for U.S. businesses. The Administration has
also sought to scale back funding for the initiative.
Although Congress has rejected some of the
Administration's proposed reductions, annual assistance to
Central America has declined by nearly 30% since FY2016
(see Figure 2).

The future of the Central America strategy is now in
question, as the Trump Administration announced in March
2019 that it intends to end foreign assistance programs in
the Northern Triangle. Some Members of Congress have
objected to the Administration's abrupt policy shift and
have introduced legislation that would restrict its ability to
transfer funds away from the region. The decisions made by
the 116th Congress could play a crucial role in determining
the direction of U.S. policy toward Central America in the
coming years.

Funding
Since FY2016, Congress has appropriated nearly $2.6
billion for the U.S. Strategy for Engagement in Central
America. The funding has been divided fairly evenly
between bilateral assistance programs focused on good
governance, economic growth, and social welfare and
Central America Regional Security Initiative (CARSI)
programs intended to prevent violence, reform justice-
sector institutions, and combat gangs and organized crime.
The State Department and the U.S. Agency for International
Development  have allocated the vast majority of that aid to
the Northern Triangle, including at least 75% of the funding
appropriated in FY2016 and FY2017.


0


      FY11     FY13     FY15     FY17    FYI9*

Source: CRS presentation of data from U.S. Customs and Border
Protection, U.S. Border Patrol Nationwide Apprehensions by
Citizenship and Sector in FY2007-FY2018; and U.S. Border Patrol
Southwest Border Apprehensions by Sector Fiscal Year 2019, press
release, June 5, 20 19.

Notes: FYI9* includes October 2018-May 2019.

In 2014, the Obama Administration determined that it was
in the national security interests of the United States to
work with Central American governments to promote
economic prosperity, improve security, and strengthen
governance. It approved a new, whole-of-government U.S.


https:/crsreports.conc -- -q

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