The United States and Panama announced a $3 million project Wednesday to remove tons of solid waste abandoned in the Darién jungle by migrants in recent years. US Ambassador Kevin Marino Cabrera made the announcement during a graduation ceremony for new border and migration officers presided over by President José Raúl Mulino in Metetí, in Panama’s Darién province.
The funds will support Panama’s Ministry of Environment in clearing plastics, clothing, boats, tents and other debris left along former migrant routes through the biodiversity-rich reserve.
The project is possible because irregular crossings through the Darién have virtually stopped, officials said. Panama recorded more than 520,000 people passing through the jungle in 2023, the peak year. Crossings have since dropped by more than 99 percent under joint efforts by the Mulino and Trump administrations.
Cabrera said the initiative will also create jobs for local residents who will be hired to carry out the cleanup work. “We are collaborating with $3 million with MiAmbiente to clean up the disaster that was created by the failed open border policies,” Cabrera told those gathered. “We will be hiring local people to provide jobs to these communities and clean the areas where they live so they are healthier.”
Panamanian authorities have estimated that migrants left roughly 2,500 tons of waste in the Darién. The figure comes from earlier assessments by the Ministry of Security and has been cited in recent government briefings. The ambassador credited the sharp decline in migration to coordinated action between Panama and the United States. “When President Mulino won the presidency, many said it was impossible to close the Darién. We have shown that it is possible,” he said. “The Darién is closed.”
Mulino has made sealing the Darién a central goal of his administration since taking office. The jungle route, which connects Colombia and Panama, had become a primary path for hundreds of thousands of people heading north, mostly from Latin America and other regions.
The Ministry of Environment will lead the cleanup operation. No start date for field work was announced. The announcement came as Panama continues to strengthen border controls. At the ceremony, Mulino swore in 285 new agents for the National Border Service and 39 inspectors for the National Migration Service.
Officials said the reduced migrant traffic has also allowed security forces to focus more effectively on transnational crime networks that previously operated in the area. The Darién project marks the latest step in bilateral cooperation on migration and environmental recovery.
