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The Vice President’s Plans Kamala Harris in order to boost investment in Central America add new efforts with the integration of at least .
The meeting was advanced by Reuters, but not all the details were given of the efforts that each company will make in the region known as the Northern Triangle, which includes the countries of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala .
The CEO and co-founder of Duolingo, Luis von Ahn, will be at the meeting at the White House this Thursday, as a “partner in this initiative,” confirmed a spokeswoman from the language platform to this newspaper.
Luis von Ahn He is of Guatemalan origin and is especially grateful for the opportunity to help economic growth and opportunities for families in Central America.
“I am proud join Vice President Kamala Harris’ call to act. As an immigrant from Guatemala who became a U.S. Citizen it is an honor to be summoned by the Vice President and a privilege to have this opportunity to advocate on behalf of my home country , “said von Ahn. “I believe that education is the best way to address the problem of stark income inequality, and at Duolingo we have always focused on making free, high-quality education available to everyone.”
The meeting will also be attended by the senior executives of the yogurt maker Chobani, the Nespresso unit of the food giant Nestlé, the financial companies Bancolombia and Davivienda, as well as non-profit organizations Acción and Pro Mujer, along with the Tent Partnership for Refugees and the Chan School of Public Health.
This new effort by Vice President Harris joins other actions with civil organizations and the governments of the three countries of the region, in addition to Mexico, to seek to reduce irregular immigration, after the crisis at the border earlier this year which led to the arrival of e more than 40, 000 unaccompanied children , according to latest official reports.
What will the language platform do
The platform will focus on programs of language teaching, both English and Spanish, taking into account that in the region there are indigenous groups that do not speak Spanish well.
“We announce the commitment to apply Duolingo’s expertise and resources in three key areas of education in the region: English language instruction, early childhood Spanish literacy, and English language “, advanced the company.
Luis von Ahn highlights the opportunity that he had in the United States to access high-quality education, which allowed him to create a growing business.
“Duolingo gave me the opportunity to gather a world-class team of the best minds in education and technology, ”he said. “I know that together we can achieve an even greater impact for the benefit of the peoples of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.”
The language app is used by more than 500, 000 people in the Northern Triangle, as anticipated, but the application will seek to make the content free and accessible to all , in addition to intensifying efforts in learning Spanish.
“ We are committed to develop Spanish as the next language in Duolingo ABC “, advances the company in reference to the free application to literate early childhood, that is, children between 3 and 7 years.
The fee waiver program for the Duolingo English exam will also be expanded in the three countries of the region, in order to help high-achieving, low-income students.