The United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinkenvisited a migration center in Bogotá on Tuesday to show his support for the care program for the Venezuelan migrant population, which Washington considers an example for the region.
The leader of US diplomacy, on tour in South America, made the tour together with the mayor of Bogotá, claudia lopezby the facilities of the migratory center, located in the center of the Colombian capital.
It is one of the centers Integrate, which promote the socioeconomic inclusion of the migrant and returnee population from Venezuela. These centers complement the offer of the Government of Colombia to help the migrant population, and receive support from the United States, through USAID, which has invested some 40 million dollars in care for this population.
During his visit, Blinken spoke with Asmeliz Gómez and Cristian Hernández, a family of Venezuelans who left their country seven months ago with Alan, their nine-month-old baby. They are beneficiaries of Temporary Protected Status (TPS)a program that grants them a work permit in Colombian territory for ten years.
Asmeliz, 23, told this newspaper that her family comes from a small town called La Victoria, in the state of Aragua. “We migrated because we wanted a better quality of life for the baby”.
We recognize that the unprecedented irregular migration in our hemisphere is a shared responsibility that requires regional coordination. We are working side by side with Colombia in the spirit of the LA Declaration on Migration and Protection. pic.twitter.com/lP8qbLabdt
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) October 4, 2022
She and her husband currently have a women’s jeans business and she assured that her family has obtained many benefits through Intégrate. “They have collaborated with us with the residence permit, which opens the doors for the child’s education, health and having a decent job,” said the young woman.
Colombia, according to official figures, hosts more than 2.5 million Venezuelans, of which more than 500,000 (more than 20% of the estimated total) are in Bogotá, like Asmeliz and her family. Of that total, the District estimates that 88% intend to remain in the city.
The Intégrate centers are located in the nine cities with the highest number of migrant and returnee populations: Barranquilla, Bogota, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cartagena, Cucuta, Medellin, Santa Marta and Riohacha. As USAID explains, its objective is to concentrate the offer of services in a single place to facilitate the beneficiary migrants and refugees with a rights-based approach.
In the case of Bogotá, there are three Intégrate: one at the SuperCade Suba, another at the SuperCade Engativá and one more at the SuperCade CAD, where Blinken was this Tuesday.
Also present at the event Juan Carlos Viloríavice president of Venezuelans in Barranquilla, who spoke with Blinken about the importance of the efforts of the District administration and the cooperation of the United States for the integration of the migrant population.
“We highlight how the funds from the United States are strengthening institutional capacities (…). Civil society, especially refugees and migrants, also want to be part of the solution, and that is why we are ready to work together,” said Viloria.
‘We are not going to have a lost generation of Venezuelans’
In statements to the press, the United States Secretary of State stressed that thanks to TPS, 1.5 million Venezuelans “can work, send their children to school, be productive and contribute to society”. “We are not going to have a lost generation of Venezuelans,” she stressed.
The leader of US diplomacy explained that “never in the history of the world” had there been so many people migrating from their homes, a phenomenon that the American continent is experiencing especially.
In this sense, he said that initiatives such as the migration center, which is co-financed by the United States Agency for Development (Usaid), are an example of “hope” to meet this challenge.
We see an example of extraordinary generosity and also of long-term planning
“Here in Colombia and Bogotá, we see an example of extraordinary generosity and also of long-term planning (…) What we have seen today can become a model for many other places in the world to follow,” said Blinken.
For her part, the mayor of Bogotá said that “Bogotá has the honor of being the city in all of America that has received the most migrants in recent years.” “It has been a challenge, yes; but also a blessing,” said López, who added that these citizens are “new Bogotanos” and not just “migrants”.
The migration crisis is one of the main issues that the leader of US diplomacy is addressing on his tour of Colombia, Chile and Peru.
The United States funds initiatives for countries in the region to welcome migrants and refugees passing through their territories, in order to stop the arrival of people at the US border.
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