The recent resurgence of the crisis at our southern border and the coronavirus pandemic that has made its way to every corner of this world have made one thing clear: We must recalibrate U.S. engagement in Latin America and recommit to bolstering our economic alliances across the region.
Beijing has been working feverishly to buy off our neighbors in Latin America through its Belt and Road Initiative—and it’s no secret: partnering with Beijing always comes with strings attached.
Over the past decade, Latin American countries have outsourced much of their manufacturing to China. While Latin American currencies increased in value because of the China commodities boom, many of these same countries chose to buy relatively cheaper Chinese goods, leading to less demand for, and a drying up of their own manufacturing base.
The secondary effect? Unemployment rates and an over-dependence on Chinese manufacturing.
We saw in our own country the consequences of offshoring our medical manufacturing to China when the coronavirus hit and we lacked medical capacity. Unfortunately, Latin American dependence on Chinese manufacturing has created mass unemployment on a regional scale.
In 2019, Colombia’s unemployment rate was at 9.7%. Uruguay’s was at 8.1%. Nicaragua’s was at 23.4%. In a category of its own, Venezuela’s unemployment rate was at a high of 44.3%. This mass unemployment is creating significant safety concerns across the region, as cartels have moved in to recruit the unemployed into the Latin American drug trade. These cartels have further destabilized an already-hurting region and it’s no wonder that the number of Latin American migrants coming to the U.S. has increased dramatically in recent years.