The number of migrants and asylum seekers crossing the Darien Gap – the treacherous belt of jungle that connects South and North America – has fallen by nearly 41 percent in the past year.
On Thursday, Panama’s right-wing president, Jose Raul Mulino, announced the drop, hailing it as a success for the country’s efforts to curb irregular migration.
“We have achieved a 41 percent reduction in the flow of migrants crossing the Darien jungle,” Raul Mulino told the Panamanian Congress in a speech.
“We work every day to ensure that illegal immigration does not reach Panama City or the rest of the country.”
Panama has faced pressure to crack down on irregular migration in recent years as the number of migrants and asylum seekers traveling north hit a record.
In fiscal year 2023, the United States reported 2.48 million “encounters” with migrants and asylum seekers at its southern border with Mexico.
This was a new high for the US and led to a political backlash, with immigration featuring prominently in the country’s 2024 general election.
For example, President-elect Donald Trump — the winner in the 2024 presidential race — has vowed to pursue a “mass deportation” campaign after taking office on January 20.
Likewise, in Panama, 2023 broke records for migrants and asylum seekers navigating the Darien Gap.
Some 520,085 people passed through the dangerous jungle, known for its steep terrain, fast rivers and criminal networks.
But in 2024, Panama’s immigration authorities saw a sharp drop in the number of people risking their lives in the jungle. About 302,203 crossed the Darien Gap last year.
Similarly, the US has seen declining numbers on its southern border. In fiscal year 2024, US Customs and Border Protection documented 2.14 million irregular “encounters” with immigrants and asylum seekers, a 14 percent decrease.
November alone marked the lowest monthly number of irregular border crossings in the four years of US President Joe Biden’s term.
But the US has tried to curb irregular migration in recent months. Last year, Biden implemented tough measures that limit access to asylum for those who cross the US-Mexico border outside official channels.
Penalties included a five-year ban from the US and possible criminal prosecution.
Biden also threatened to suspend asylum applications entirely if the average daily number of irregular border crossings reaches 2,500 a day.
Critics warned that the measures could violate international and US humanitarian law, limiting the ability of asylum seekers to urgently flee persecution.
But supporters of the new policies argued that they were necessary to curb irregular migration.
The US has also pushed its allies in South and Central America to limit irregular migration to the north.
Panama and the US, for example, signed an agreement in July to “close the passage of illegal immigrants” through the Darien Gap, with the US offering to fund deportation flights and other logistics.
Approximately 1,548 migrants and asylum seekers have since been repatriated on US-backed deportation flights from Panama.
The US also established “Safe Mobility Offices” in countries such as Costa Rica, Guatemala and Colombia in an effort to prevent migrants and would-be asylum seekers from making the dangerous journey to the border.
Mulino revealed in December that at least 55 migrants and asylum seekers had died during the Darien Gap voyage in 2024 and about 180 children had been abandoned.
Given the inhospitable nature of the terrain, some bodies are never reported or found.
Critics point out that efforts to eliminate irregular migration often overlook the underlying issues that drive migrants and asylum seekers to make life-threatening journeys in the first place.
Last year, for example, about 69 percent of migrants and asylum seekers documented in the Darien Gap were from Venezuela.
There, human rights experts warn of government abuses, particularly in the wake of a contested presidential race that saw 2,000 arrested and 23 killed in post-election protests.
Venezuela has also suffered from economic turmoil that has left access to basic supplies such as food and medicine out of reach for many residents. About 7.7 million people have left the country.