Earlier this week, Vice President Kamala Harris announced $1.2 billion in private sector investments focused on promoting economic opportunity in the Northern Triangle. HUGE is proud to be a key part of this major White House initiative through two of our Founding Members, Parkdale Mills, and Grupo Mariposa, who announced new commitments in the region as part of this agreement.
Parkdale Mills, a US company, will invest $150 million in Honduras to build a yarn-spinning facility, as well as provide support to an existing facility in Virginia. The world’s largest cotton consumer and a leading provider of spun yarns, Parkdale’s commitment is slated to create direct and indirect jobs in the relevant industries, in both Honduras and the United States. It will also provide customers within the region with additional sources purchasing yarn, reinforcing supply chains.
Additionally, Grupo Mariposa will provide the opportunity for 70,000 stores throughout the region to access credit and digital tools that will improve their administrative processes. Their investment will strengthen telemedicine programs, as well as expand education opportunities, and internet connectivity for 3,500 SMEs, reaching over 200,000 people throughout the region and increasing access for 2,000 remote communities. Grupo Mariposa intends to create more than 500 new jobs through a $10 million investment in their coffee footprint through small and medium-sized coffee producers.
Both companies and HUGE as an organization were directly mentioned during Monday’s “Call to Action” event convened by the State Department, the US Chamber of Commerce, and the Partnership for Central America, during which the Vice President made her announcement. Together with HUGE’s project inventory, this brings the total for private sector investment in the Northern Triangle region to $2.7 billion.
You can read more about the Vice President’s announcement here.