El Salvador
![Rodrigo Garcia, 50, who is working with JDS to transform a piece of land through organic farming methods [Claudia Torres]](/var/storage/images/about-us/where-we-work/el-salvador/images/el-salvador-rodrigo-garcia-jds/1157238-1-eng-GB/el-salvador-rodrigo-garcia-jds_1column50_12space_landscape.jpg)
El Salvador is the smallest and most densely populated country of Central America where wealth is unequal and the psychological scars of a recent civil war run deep
Archbishop Oscar Romero is one of its most famous leaders. He was murdered in 1980 for speaking out against poverty and military repression.
In the 1980s and early 1990s, El Salvador was torn apart by civil war. The conflict was sparked by inequality: most Salvadoreans were living in extreme poverty while the wealthy elite stockpiled money and controlled the economy.
CAFOD spent £236,877 in El Salvador in 2010/11.
This injustice remains today. Many have little choice but to find work as migrant labourers in the USA. The scars of war have also contributed to one of the most violent societies in the world.
El Salvador’s geographical location makes it highly vulnerable to earthquakes and hurricanes. Hurricane Mitch hit Central America in 1998, killing over 11,000 people.
Our work in El Salvador stretches back to the late 1970s. Today, we focus on four key areas of development:
- sustainable agriculture – helping farmers to improve their crops, care for the environment, cut costs, and learn from each other
- reducing the risk of disasters – identifying areas at risk, helping communities to develop evacuation drills, planting crops to stop soil erosion
- HIV and AIDS – treatment and counselling for people with HIV, and raising awareness about prevention in parishes and schools
- creating peace – helping to heal the scars of civil war and build a more just society through legal aid, advocacy and human rights education
![Erasmo VaIiente, JDS team coordinator, running a workshop in Puentecitos on leadership training [Claudia Torres]](/var/storage/images/jds-erasmo-valiente/1174100-1-eng-GB/jds-erasmo-valiente_1column00_08space_landscape.jpg)
Erasmo Valiente works as a technical team coordinator for the Jesuit Development Service (JDS), one of our partner organisations in El Salvador |
 Archbishop Oscar Romero: 30 year anniversary 24 March 2010 marked the 30th anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador. Find out about his legacy and how this special day was marked. |
![Students at the Central American University (UCA) in El Salvador, using coloured sawdust to depict images of human rights and justice [Sarah Smith-Pearse]](/var/storage/images/about-us/where-we-work/el-salvador/images/uca-carpets/1157672-1-eng-GB/uca-carpets_1column00_08space_landscape.jpg) El Salvador: Festival highlights risks for migrants Thousands gather for the annual Festival of Migration to highlight the dangers faced by migrants - hosted by The University of Central America (UCA) with support from CAFOD |
 El Salvador: Murdered Jesuit priests receive highest honour We applaud the Salvadoran government’s decision to posthumously award six Jesuit priests murdered in San Salvador in 1989 the prestigious Order of José Matías Delgado on the 20th anniversary of their deaths |
![Ilaria Garcia [Marcella Haddad]](/var/storage/images/media_folder/cafod/images/international_images/latin_america_caribbean/honduras/ilaria_garcia/110657-1-eng-GB/ilaria_garcia_1column00_08space_landscape.jpg)
When Ilaria Garcia and her family lost all their crops during Hurricane Mitch in 1999, COMUCAP was on hand to help. Now Ilaria Garcia is member of a shampoo and soap making cooperative. |
Luis from El Salvador, Central America talks about his work at a project for young people caught up in gang violence.... |
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Just One World - the CAFOD blog |
