The Plan of the Alliance for Prosperity in the Northern Triangle of Central America, signed by the end of 2014 by the presidents of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, and by the Vice-President of the United States, faces a challenge ahead: workers’ mobility.
The goals of the Plan are: to move forward towards regional integration, to promote economic development, to overcome violence and poverty and to diminish the negative effects of irregular immigration. Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador share migratory corridors, most of which have the U.S’s labour market as final destination.
The majority of Central American migrating workers end up in the U.S, where 84.5% of Central Americans come from either of the three countries that comprehend the Northern Triangle. In addition, there is a sub regional market.
The sub regional market has great potential for the economic development of the countries and for their process of integration. However, the market lacks regulations and has high levels of informality and labour insecurity. The absence of State regulations and supervision damages workers’ rights and enables the existence of different forms of abuse (human trade, child labour, people exploitation).
Other limitations are due to the lack of information, surplus of migratory registers, out of date databases, irregular mobility and absence of institutional measures that aim to organize flows.
A good alternative is to subscribe to regional agreements and conventions directed to workforce’s mobility.
In order to build a Region where Peace, Liberty, Democracy and Development prosper, people’s access to economic, social and cultural rights must be strengthened in every country of the region, particularly for migrating workers and regardless the origin of the person.
Source: Flacso