The United States has no interest in extending “Sembrando Vida” to Central America

Reforestation and climate change programs such as Sembrando Vida and migration are not linked, the United States responds to AMLO’s proposal.

(Lopez Doriga) April 22, 2021.- The United States Government is not interested in extending the Sembrando Vida program to Central America to link it with issues of work visas for migrants in the region.

This was pointed out by a senior United States official during a meeting prior to the Summit of Leaders for Climate, led by President Joe Biden, who also made it clear that they are not interested in mixing migration issues with environmental issues.

This is not a conversation about migration but a conversation about climate change, ”an argument said by officials regarding President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s proposal on the expansion of Sembrando Vida to Central America.

US Officials

“We are not focused on the interaction of themes. For us, the climate agenda must be considered by itself, on its own merits and how to advance it, “he said.

The senior official even pointed out that López Obrador’s proposal “does not sound like it was part of an extensive discussion in Mexico or between Mexico and the United States.”

“We definitely see value in natural solutions related to tree planting. If we look at the climate change agenda, the issue of reforestation is one of the priorities. Most of a third of global emissions come from land use change. The tree planting agenda has enormous value for the environment, “he said.

US Officials

López Obrador affirmed that during the climate change summit he will ask his US counterpart for the United States to give work visas to those who plant trees in southeastern Mexico and Central America.

“After three years and you have your cultivation, you already have your automatic right to a six-month work visa to the United States. And three years after obtaining your work visa, with good behavior, you already have the right to request your US nationality, ”exemplified the president in a video message recorded from his farm in Palenque, Chiapas.

During the virtual summit on the climate called by Biden, López Orador will propose “that the Sembrando Vida program be extended to Central America”, a project of his Government that provides aid to the farmers of the southeast for planting fruit and timber trees.

The president, who estimated that three million hectares could be cultivated in three years and generate 1.3 million jobs in Mexico and Central America, defended that this program “allows people not to be forced to migrate and helps the environment.”

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