Washington, Mar 11, 2022 (AFP) – The United States promotes refugee resettlement programs and opportunities for mobility in the context of employment for migrants in America, initiatives that are expected to be consolidated in a new framework for collective management of migration in the region, anticipated Friday (11 ) is a White House employee.

“Our goal is to sign the Regional Declaration on Migration in June in Los Angeles, when the United States will host the Americas Summit,” Katie Tobin, senior immigration adviser to President Joe Biden, told reporters.

“We will work with governments and other strategic stakeholders in the coming months to develop this framework,” he added, noting that Colombia, Canada and Mexico had pledged support.

On Thursday, Biden called for a new regional migration agreement, as he welcomed his Colombian counterpart Ivan Duque, whom he credits for accepting some 1.8 million Venezuelans and granting them temporary protection status to facilitate their social integration.

Biden said the new approach would “dramatically expand” access to resettlement and other legal avenues for migration, as well as “aggressively pursue” traffickers.

“As President Biden said, the challenge of hemispheric migration cannot be solved by one country or across one border. We have to work together,” Tobin said.

He explained that one way to strengthen the division of responsibilities and reduce illegal migration is to offer “a safer and more humane way” through the resettlement of refugees.

“We will look at how the United States and other governments can provide a channel for Venezuelan refugees through formal resettlement programs,” the US official said.

Venezuela, ruled by socialist Nicolás Maduro since 2013, is experiencing a political, social and economic crisis that has forced more than six million people to flee the country in recent years, most of them for neighboring countries. Colombia received the most, followed by Peru (1.2 million), Ecuador (508,000) and Chile (448,000), according to the United Nations.

Mobility in the workplace through legal channels is another aspect to consider, Tobin said, noting that labor shortages in countries such as the United States, Canada and Mexico can be an opportunity for those leaving the country to look for work.

“We will seek to engage other governments in the region to see how we can work together to create formal channels for opportunities for temporary workers,” he said.

Tobin noted that the Americas region is facing a historic migration crisis, with an estimated 7 million people displaced between Venezuela and elsewhere.

The United States noted that 1.7 million people entered illegally from Mexico between October 2020 and last September, an all-time high. Most are from El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.

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