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El Salvador: Money from Washington

Tuesday, June 18, 2013


Nearly 100,000 people died in El Salvador during the 1980s civil war, which pitted leftwing rebels of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front against government forces, backed by the United States.

It may be time for reconciliation.

Last week, the US government said that would give $91 million in development aid to a Salvadoran government, made up partly of former enemies.

Funds will comes from the Partnership for Growth program.

El Salvador also expects to get money from another US source – the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

The news is a boost to Salvadorans in general, and especially to President Mauricio Funes, a moderate leftwinger elected in 2009.

Funes has for years been Central America's most popular president.

Now, Washington also seems to like him and his government, even though Fune’s supporters include some hardline former rebels.

The only problem: it’s taking time for the money to create jobs in El Salvador, which continues to be the region’s weakest economy.