Latin America & Caribbean
HIAS case managers and mental health officers talk about gender-based violence with Venezuelan migrants in La Isla Neighborhood in Barranquilla, Colombia, July 7, 2022. (Federico Rios Escobar for HIAS)
Overview
HIAS’ primary purpose in Latin America and the Caribbean is to protect and respond to the needs of refugees, asylum seekers, and other forcibly displaced people. We work in Aruba, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Guatemala, Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela, through more than 70 field offices, mainly in border and remote locations by providing legal protection, community mental health and psychosocial services, gender-based violence protection, economic inclusion support, and emergency response.
The region is experiencing the largest and most complex displacement crisis in recent history. It’s estimated that more than 20 million people have been forced to flee their homes because of conflict, violence, or persecution in the region, representing about one-fifth of the number of displaced people globally.
Cristina Garcia, Regional Director
Ignasi Calbo, Deputy Regional Director
HIAS in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Impact Stories
WATCH: Earning a Dignified Living
HIAS’ economic inclusion programs ensure that refugees have safe economic opportunities to earn sustainable income and rebuild their lives in dignity.
VIDEO: When people flee violence and persecution, they leave their whole lives behind and have to start over from scratch. Learn how refugees around the world are not only rebuilding their lives and careers, but also giving back to their new communities.
Learn about an entrepreneurship school in Perú
HIAS Peru’s entrepreneurship school welcomes gender-based violence survivors and women living at a greater risk of violence and helps them succeed economically and socially.
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A mural at HIAS Peru’s entrepreneurship school, which welcomes gender-based violence survivors and women living at a greater risk of violence to help them succeed economically and socially. (HIAS Peru)
An App That Helps Get Refugees into the Workplace
HIAS partners with SkillLab, which develops technology to help refugees integrate into local labor markets, to promote economic integration for refugees in Ecuador, Peru, and Panama.
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María Esther Gaona, at her home in Quito, Ecuador in 2021, is a beneficiary of HIAS’ graduation model approach program. (Isadora Romero for HIAS)
Statements
Supporting Our Response
HIAS’ work in Latin America and the Caribbean is supported by the following donors and partners.
HIAS is proud to be part of regional coordination mechanisms and fora.
LAC Intersectoral MHPSS Collaborative Group
Regional Network of Civil Organizations for Migration
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Fillipo Grandi joined HIAS Ecuador on World Refugee Day in Quito on June 21, 2021. (HIAS Ecuador)
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