The new dynamics in U.S. immigration policy represent a challenge for Mexico and the region. In almost two months of the Donald Trump administration, nearly 25,000 Mexicans have been deported, a figure equivalent to 12.5 percent of the total number of Mexicans repatriated in all of 2024 (just over 200,000), experts said.
During the opening of the International Forum on Human Mobility and Social Security —organized by the Inter-American Conference on Social Security, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM)—experts indicated that there are currently more than 25 million migrants from Latin America and the Caribbean in North America.
IOM Deputy Representative Jeremy MacGillivray noted that the region is facing challenging times in this regard, and that in light of White House policies, flows to the United States have declined, making Mexico an alternative for many foreigners on international travel, although others say they are willing to return to their places of origin.
Increased enforcement and deportations will be a challenge for Mexico and the region. Mexican authorities reported just over 200,000 returns of their nationals to the United States in 2024, and nearly 25,000 have been recorded since January 20 (the day Trump took office for the second time), he explained.
In addition, he noted that according to data from the National Migration Institute, there were nearly one million encounters between Mexican authorities and foreigners in an irregular situation between January and August 2024.
Therefore, he said, it is essential to strengthen and increase legalization pathways in Mexico. Legal pathways better protect undocumented immigrants, reducing the risks of violence, exploitation, and abuse.
Raquel Serur, Undersecretary for Latin America and the Caribbean of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE), noted that human mobility is and will continue to be one of the most challenging phenomena of the 21st century.
He emphasized that the hemisphere's main destination country for migration coexists with the most unequal region in the world, which has fueled irregular migration.
