Bolivian Marcela Escobari assumes the leadership of USAID for Latin America and the Caribbean

The Bolivian Marcela escobari assumed as deputy administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for Latin America and the Caribbean, after being confirmed in December by the Senate and after taking office during the Obama era.

“It is a privilege to have a leader like Marcela at USAID,” said the agency’s chief, Samantha Power, during the virtual swearing-in ceremony, celebrating Escobari’s return to address the “many challenges” facing Latin American and Caribbean countries. .

Power said Escobari’s number one task will be to spearhead USAID’s efforts to combat COVID-19 in a region that has suffered 30% of total global deaths from the virus.

In addition, it will focus on addressing the problems caused by the climate crisis, seeking to reduce emissions and improve the adaptation of communities to natural disasters.

Another of Escobari’s priorities will be to address the root causes that drive irregular migration to the United States, particularly from countries such as Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, as well as strengthen governance throughout the region.

“Marcela will be a critical voice in the defense of human rights and the mobilization of humanitarian aid for those persecuted by authoritarian regimes,” emphasized Power, underlining a “fading” of democracy on the continent, “from Nicaragua to Venezuela, El Salvador or Cuba ”.

Escobari, born and raised in Bolivia and with US citizenship, was nominated by President Joe Biden in April, but her confirmation in the Senate was delayed for months along with dozens of other foreign policy positions over political bids with the Republican opposition.

In announcing his appointment, the White House praised Escobari’s tenure during the Obama-Biden administration for his handling of the humanitarian and political crisis in Venezuela, his support for the Paz Colombia plan, and his work to combat poverty in Central America.

Escobari, who has an outstanding career at Harvard University, highlighted his “passion for development”, driven in Bolivia by his pediatric parents, and promised to address the “pressing issues” of Latin America and the Caribbean, hard hit by the pandemic, during his confirmation hearing in the Senate in July.

“Our ability to lend a hand, urgently and wholeheartedly, in partnership with our southern neighbors will largely determine the course of the region’s recovery,” he said at the time.

“I think the stakes are high: nothing less than the faith of the citizens of the region that liberal democracy, the rule of law and market-based economies can meet their most basic needs,” he said.