In an article published by an international media, the progress that El Salvador has achieved after the administration of President Nayib Bukele is highlighted.
According to The American Conservative, “Nayib Bukele is turning El Salvador into a Singapore.”
In his article he emphasizes the high levels of security achieved by El Salvador in recent years.
“Until recently, criminal gangs controlled large portions of this small Central American country of 6.3 million people, terrorizing locals. A study by the central bank and the United Nations Development Program in 2016 estimated that extortion payments amounted to up to 3 percent of GDP, and the total annual cost of gang violence, including loss of income of people deterred from working or investing, was a staggering 16 percent of GDP,” The Economist reported, cited by TheAmericanConservarive.
Bukele solved it. “More than 72,000 people have been arrested under the state of emergency requested by Bukele in March 2022 following an increase in gang violence. The special powers that Congress granted to Bukele suspended some fundamental rights such as access to a lawyer and being informed of the reason for the arrest,” AP reports.
The result, a surprising transformation. El Salvador is no longer the murder capital of Latin America and Bukele is now, by far, the most powerful and revered leader on the continent, the outlet explains.
The media also highlighted the recent inauguration of the National Library of El Salvador (BINAES).
“Now he has released a video of the new national library that would embarrass most Western countries. With mandatory early childhood education programs,” she pointed out.