U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and the Partnership for Central America have secured more than $950 million in new private sector commitments in response to the Call to Action for Northern Central America.
Launched by Harris in May 2021, the Partnership for Central America is an independent organization that aims to address the root causes of migration by creating economic opportunity in the region. With these new commitments, the initiative has now gathered investment commitments surpassing $4.2 billion.
The Call to Action is facilitated through a public-private partnership between the U.S. State Department and the Partnership for Central America, in close coordination with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The Call to Action includes six focus areas intended to support the long-term development of the region, including:
- Promoting a reform agenda;
- Digital and financial inclusion;
- Food security and climate-smart agriculture;
- Climate adaptation and clean energy;
- Education and workforce development; and
- Public health access.
Approximately 47 companies and organizations are collaborating on the Call to Action across the financial services, textiles and apparel, agriculture, technology, telecommunications and nonprofit sectors to strengthen the region’s economic security.
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Among the companies that announced new commitments on Feb. 14, 2023 are:
- Target, which has committed to increase its spending by $300 million in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras by 2033. The retailer will deepen existing relationships with vendors and intends to expand relationships with vendors that have a presence in all three countries in the region;
- Columbia Sportswear Company, which has committed to purchase up to $200 million in products from the region, thus creating more than 6,900 jobs over the next five years;
- Nestlé, parent company of Nespresso and Nescafé, has committed to support more than 7,500 coffee producers in implementing regenerative agriculture practices, strengthening and further developing a supply chain of responsibly grown coffee and training coffee producers to create and establish productive businesses in collaboration with USAID and fellow Call to Action partner CoHonducafé;
- Nextil, which has committed to invest $40 million in two new production facilities in Guatemala to produce garments and elastic fabrics for the shapewear and sportswear markets. The facilities are estimated to create more than 1,300 direct jobs and 3,000 indirect jobs;
- Protela-Colombia, which has committed to invest $45 million in the construction of a vertically integrated textile manufacturing facility in Guatemala, expected to directly employ 400 people, to supply fabric for garment manufacturers in Central America; and
- Additional commitments from online learning platform Chegg, microlending platform Microwd, mobile and broadband provider Millicom, agricultural investor Root Capital and money transfer firm Viamericas.
