The Darien seeks to replace migrants with tourists

"He left from Falcon, Venezuela, with a small bundle on his back, several changes of clothes, two pairs of shoes, a waterproof pocket where he kept less than $300 and a university teaching certificate, a job that had earned him a monthly salary of less than $6. The sneakers he wore through the jungle that connects Colombia with Panama were given to a father who was traveling with three children because he had lost his boots en route."

"Donald Trump's return to the White House changed everything. The tightening of asylum applications, border restrictions and the hunt for migrants by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) discouraged practically 99% of the migrants who, just over a year ago, had been arriving in their hundreds of thousands. In 2023, this deadly route witnessed the passage of more than half a million immigrants of 70 different nationalities."

"The main challenge for the towns of Capurgana and Necocli on the other side of the Gulf of Uraba is to change the image of the Darien to one of lush beaches and mountains as opposed to thousands of terrified people, with mud up to their knees and their feet in tatters. The migratory dynamics have changed and we are gaining the trust of tourists, explains Yimy Leiter Aguilar Mosquera, secretary of Choco's department of economic development and natural resources."

Gabriel Pimentel first crossed the Darien Gap three years ago barefoot, departing Falcon, Venezuela, with minimal money, clothes, shoes and a university teaching certificate from a low-paying job. He gave his sneakers to a father traveling with three children who had lost boots en route. A return to the United States was followed by another crossing back to a more uncertain Venezuela after political changes in the U.S. Tightened asylum procedures, border restrictions and intensified ICE enforcement drastically reduced migrant flows, leaving primarily returnees and prompting coastal towns to pivot toward tourism promotion.

Read at english.elpais.com