A surge in migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border has become the first big test for President Joe Biden’s migration policy. It’s also giving new urgency to a $4 billion aid package that he has proposed to tackle the root causes of migration from Central America. But just “throwing money at problems does not solve them,” says former Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solís, citing problems on the ground such as corruption and democratic backsliding. On this week’s episode of the AQ Podcast, Solís offers his ideas on how Washington can work with regional leaders and ensure efforts don’t come up short.
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Guests:
President Luis Guillermo Solís is a former president of Costa Rica and the interim director of the Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center at Florida International University.
Brian Winter is the editor-in-chief of Americas Quarterly.
Supplemental Reading:
- Can More U.S. Money Really Help Central America’s Northern Triangle? by Luis Guillermo Solís
- It’s Not Just El Salvador. Democracies Are Weakening Across Central America. by Patricio Navia and Lucas Perelló
- The Pandemic’s Big Winner? Organized Crime, an AQ special report
