Construction is currently happening in Juárez, where large tent shelters are being built in anticipation of a possible surge of Mexican nationals being deported as U.S. President Donald Trump plans mass deportations.

Work on these temporary shelters began on Tuesday, January 21, with state workers installing scaffolding for the tents near the Rio Grande opposite El Paso. By Thursday morning, the tents were beginning to take shape.

Similar temporary shelters are being established in nine cities across Mexico along the U.S.-Mexico border.

This initiative is part of the “Mexico embraces you” program launched by President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo’s administration, aimed at supporting those deported by the Trump administration. The announcement for this plan was made on January 20, just days before the presidential inauguration in the U.S.

The construction of these facilities is urgent, preparing for any potential large-scale deportations from the U.S.

“There are two that will be finished tonight,” Sheinbaum Pardo mentioned on Thursday during her morning news briefing. “The others are expected to be ready by Saturday.”

The center is being built on a site referred to locally as El Punto, located just east of the Paso del Norte border crossing, a site previously visited by Pope Francis in 2016.

According to a government news release, the tents will be equipped with potable water, garbage disposal, and generators. These shelters are designed to provide temporary housing, food, medical attention, telephones, and job placement assistance for returning Mexican nationals.

Additionally, the program is facilitating transportation for deportees by providing 189 buses that will take them back to their hometowns.

These shelters are designated specifically for Mexican citizens; Enrique Serrano, head of the Chihuahua state’s State Population Council (COESPO) and former mayor of Juárez, clarified that “foreign nationals will be taken care of by the National Institute of Migration.”

‘Remain in Mexico’ and humanitarian assistance

On Monday, President Donald Trump discontinued the CBP One app, which had allowed a daily limit of migrants to enter the U.S. legally to seek asylum during the Biden administration.

The following day, the administration revealed it would reinstate the Migration Protection Protocols (MPP), a policy from Trump’s first term that required non-Mexican asylum seekers to stay in Mexico while their cases were processed in the U.S.

Mexico’s approval is necessary to re-implement this policy before any asylum seekers are sent back to Mexico. President Sheinbaum Pardo has indicated her probable acceptance of the initiative, also known as “Remain in Mexico.”

While the shelters in Juárez will not be serving non-Mexican migrants, there are at least three federally operated shelters in the city dedicated to providing humanitarian assistance. President Sheinbaum Pardo stated on January 21 that Mexico would still offer humanitarian support to migrants from other nations who are waiting at the border.

“There is humanitarian assistance for those who arrive at our northern border,” Sheinbaum Pardo said. “Just yesterday it was -7℃ (19°F) in Chihuahua. How could any government leave someone in such frigid temperatures?”

Mexico has also pledged to assist any migrants wishing to return to their home countries.

The flow of migrants reaching the border at El Paso is currently at its lowest levels in history, with the El Paso Sector observing a 63% reduction in Border Patrol encounters, according to data from Customs and Border Protection. This decline is partly due to Mexican policies keeping migrants from further northward movement near the border with Guatemala.

Jeff Abbott reports on the border for the El Paso Times and can be contacted at: @palabrasdeabajo on Twitter or@palabrasdeabajo.bsky.social on Bluesky.