Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia is in Honduras today with the State Department to discuss economic development and human rights issues with the country’s leaders, in addition to meeting with the Latin American LGBT leadership conference and port executives, his office announced today.

Specifically, Garcia will be a featured speaker at the Latin American LGBT leadership conference hosted by the Victory Institute and meet with U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Honduras James Nealon, with funding for the trip coming from the State Department’s budget, according to a release issued today. 

“This is a great opportunity for the City of Long Beach to strengthen our relationship with an important trading partner, and to discuss policies that advance economic development and human rights,” said Garcia in a statement. “I am looking forward to supporting the important work of our state department in advancing trade and equality.

This is the mayor’s first official State Department trip and his first official trip to Central America.

The final stops in his visit involve visiting Puerto Cortes (the highest-volume port in Central America), meeting with the Cortes Chamber of Commerce, visiting a youth outreach center and meeting with mayors from Honduras regarding municipal trends and policies.