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Stopping illegal immigration is one of President Trump's top priorities. That's why one of his administration's first big attention-getting moves in the name of cutting government - dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID - could actually work against that goal. That's because some of the agency's programs discourage migrants from heading to the U.S. Reporter John Otis has more.
JOHN OTIS: At this public school in the Colombian city of Cucuta, 80% of the students are Venezuelan migrants.
MARCOS PENARANDA: (Speaking Spanish) Colombia (speaking Spanish) Venezuela.
OTIS: To make them feel at home, school principal Marcos Penaranda tells me that he starts each day by playing both the Colombian and Venezuelan national anthems.
UNIDENTIFIED TEACHER: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: Cucuta is just a stone's throw from the border with Venezuela. Amid a decade-long economic crisis in that country, the city has filled up with Venezuelan migrants, and so have its schools. Many migrants were forced to drop out of school when they fled Venezuela and fell too far behind to be admitted to traditional Colombian schools. But that had been changing thanks to the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID.
CINDY NAVARRO: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: School psychologist Cindy Navarro tells me about a U.S.-funded program called Juntos Aprendemos, or Together We Learn. She says it trains teachers to deal with the special needs of migrants. Many have little knowledge of Colombian culture or history. Some are illiterate. Others are years older than Colombian students.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: But thanks to the USAID program, more and more Colombian schools are admitting Venezuelans, including 1,600 migrant students in Cucuta.
(Speaking Spanish).
NAILE NAVAS: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: Naile Navas tells me about her 11-year-old daughter who lost four years of schooling after they fled Venezuela. With their future in limbo, she considered taking her family to the U.S.
NAVAS: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: But eventually, her daughter was admitted to the school here in Cucuta. She's thriving, and Navas has decided that they will stay put. Now, however, Together We Learn and several other U.S. programs that help Venezuelans gain a foothold in Colombia have been canceled. It's the result of President Trump's decision to close USAID, which he claims - without evidence - is rife with waste and fraud. Analysts say that it's easier for Trump to target USAID than domestic programs. That's partly because there are a lot of misconceptions about overseas aid.
BRIAN NICHOLS: When you ask in surveys, people would say, oh, we spend about 25% of the budget on foreign assistance. And then when you tell them the true number is less than 1%, people are surprised and shocked that it's so low.
OTIS: That's Brian Nichols, who was the top U.S. diplomat for Latin America during the Biden administration. He points out that foreign aid can address problems before they reach the United States.
NICHOLS: Should we be waiting for the next pandemic to arrive in the United States, or should we be spending money to address health concerns outside our borders so that it doesn't get to us?
OTIS: Over the years, USAID has helped disarm Colombia's Marxist rebels and paramilitary death squads. It helped set up the country's first-ever war crimes tribunal. Other programs sought to reduce deforestation in the Amazon jungle and prevent drug trafficking gangs from recruiting children. Together We Learn was one of 5,300 USAID programs canceled last month. A State Department spokesperson told NPR that the axed programs were inconsistent with U.S. national interests and priorities.
MARIA FERNANDA AYALA: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: Back in Cucuta, Maria Fernanda Ayala, the city's deputy education secretary, says U.S. aid is key because she can barely cover basic costs, like school lunch service and patching holes in classroom walls.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: (Speaking Spanish).
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: (Speaking Spanish).
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: (Speaking Spanish).
OTIS: Some teachers, like Nelly Lemus, were shocked to hear that the U.S. has unplugged its program for Venezuelan migrant students.
NELLY LEMUS: Ay, really?
OTIS: Yeah.
LEMUS: Oh, my God. No. Terrible for us.
OTIS: However, Trump can be erratic. So she's hoping that he'll change his mind and that U.S. aid will continue to flow.
LEMUS: Please don't forget my students. Don't forget my school.
OTIS: For NPR News, I'm John Otis in Cucuta, Colombia. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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