From the U.S. Government Accountability Office, www.gao.gov Transcript for: U.S. Assistance Addressing Unaccompanied Child Migration Description: Audio Interview by GAO staff with Kim Gianopoulos, Director, International Affairs and Trade Related GAO Work: GAO-15-707: Central America: Improved Evaluation Efforts Could Enhance Agency Programs to Reduce Unaccompanied Child Migration Released: July 2015 [ Background Music ] [ Narrator: ] Welcome to GAO's Watchdog Report, your source for news and information from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. It's July 2015. In fiscal year 2014, more than 73,000 unaccompanied children trying to cross the border with Mexico were apprehended by U.S. officials. Nearly 3/4 of those children were nationals of El Salvador, Guatemala, or Honduras. These children face a host of challenges in their home countries such as extreme violence and persistent poverty. Those who make the journey to the U.S. can still face dangers including abuse and other crimes. A team led by Kim Gianapolous, a director in GAO's International Affairs and Trade team, recently reviewed U.S. assistance to El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to address unaccompanied child migration. GAO's Jacques Arsenault sat down with Kim to talk about what they found. [ Jacques Arsenault: ] 73,000 children were apprehended at the border in fiscal year 2014. This is just a staggering number. Why are so many children trying to cross into the U.S. from these countries, and what are some of the risks that they face at home? [ Kim Gianapolous: ] There are a number of reasons for unaccompanied alien children to try to come into the United States. There are some long-standing reasons that contribute to that as well as some more recent developments that have led to the increase in that number. First of all, the long-standing reasons include poverty, education and economic concerns, and violence. In fact, these three countries have among the highest murder rates in the world. The UN High Commissioner on Refugees did a 2014 study on unaccompanied alien children from Central America and Mexico. Half reported being affected by violence committed by gangs or drug cartels. And 1/5 were victims of domestic abuse. Some of the more recent developments that led to a significant increase in migration include the increased presence of child smugglers or what they call coyotes, perceptions of immigration law, and improvements in the U.S. economy. The children face several risks in traveling to the United States. First of all, they cross the desert for hundreds or even over 1000 miles by foot or on top of trains. And they could face robbery, extortion, rape, or even murder. [ Jacques Arsenault: ] So then what are U.S. agencies doing to try to address the risks that are facing these children in their home countries? [ Kim Gianapolous: ] Several agencies have programs in place. These programs cover a number of different areas including law, education, citizen security, economic development, and community development. In fact, in fiscal year 2014 alone, the four agencies of USAID, State, DHS, and the Inter-American foundation spent $44.5 million in El Salvador, $78 million in Honduras, and $88.7 million in Guatemala to address these issues. There's also been some assistance from the Central American Regional Security Initiative, or CARSI, to improve law enforcement and prevent crime and violence. Specifically with regard to migration, DHS and State have carried out several public information campaigns between 2013 and 2015 to dissuade residents of these three countries from traveling to the United States. [ Jacques Arsenault: ] So it sounds like a lot of programs and a lot of money is going toward it. So let me ask you, are the programs working? [ Kim Gianapolous: ] Well, U.S. agencies have taken steps to bring about lasting improvements in these countries with a goal of reducing migration. But we found that the agencies have limited information on the effectiveness of their programs. The agencies have identified challenges to and approaches for sustaining those programs, including the lack of accountability within government institutions, the lack of political will, low tax collection, poor market conditions, and limited private sector engagement. DHS has established categories of performance measures for its investigative units, but it has not established performance targets to gauge the progress of those units. DHS has also not evaluated all of its public information campaigns. In fact, they launched their information campaign in 2014 at the end of June, by which point migration levels had already peaked and reached record levels. State has not evaluated the effectiveness of its actual in-country information campaigns at all. And the public affairs officers we spoke with in the three countries expressed uncertainty and doubt about the effectiveness of those campaigns [ Jacques Arsenault: ] And finally, what would you say is the bottom line in this report? [ Kim Gianapolous: ] The increase of unaccompanied alien children from Central America has highlighted the crises that they and their families face. In a time of limited resources, U.S. agencies must target their resources effectively. Not having the best information regarding program effectiveness could lead to higher levels of migration to the U.S., which is not only costly in terms of U.S. taxpayer resources, but also is costly and dangerous for the migrants and their families. 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