El Salvador Archives

#SoyParte: Supporting El Salvadorian youth for a peaceful and sustainable future

Published on 06-02-2023

Reading time 3 mins

Harnessing the power and passion of young people is crucial if a country wants to lay the groundwork for a peaceful, just, and sustainable future. But this can only happen if young people from all backgrounds are equipped with the skills, knowledge, and networks to participate in the democratic and decision-making processes. In 2021 and 2022, NIMD El Salvador worked with local and international partners to help make this goal a reality with the #SoyParte (“I Belong”) project, a 20-month initiative providing in-depth training, technical support, skills development, and networking opportunities to young people from diverse backgrounds. Dialogue as a…

Shining a spotlight on violence against women in politics

Published on 21-11-2022

Reading time 4 mins

Every year, from 25 November to 10 December, the UN celebrates its 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. It’s a time to envision a brighter future free from violence for all women and girls, and step up our collective action to make that future a reality. As part of this, NIMD is shining a spotlight on violence against women in politics. Through our series of articles, we explore the crucial importance of creating an environment which supports and protects women in politics, and how we are striving towards that reality in El Salvador and Colombia. Violence against women in…

More women, more democracy: A campaign against violence against women in politics in El Salvador

Published on 21-11-2022

Reading time 3 mins

Every year, from 25 November to 10 December, the World celebrates the 16 Days of Action against Violence against Women and Girls. It’s a time to envision a brighter future free from violence for all women and girls, and step up our collective action to make that future a reality. As part of this, NIMD is shining a spotlight on violence against women in politics. Through our series of articles, we explore the crucial importance of creating an environment which supports and protects women in politics, and how we are striving towards that reality in Latin America. Our work in…

Annual Report 2021

Published on 19-05-2022

Reading time 1 mins

While 2021 was a challenging year for democracy worldwide, NIMD adapted to the fast-changing political environment with a flexible approach that put dialogue and promoting inclusive democracy across all levels of society at the heart of our global work. That is the message in NIMD’s 2021 Annual Report – Welcoming New Alternatives: Committed to Democracy, Flexible in Approach. The Report presents an overview of our work main results over the course of this demanding year.

El Salvador: ‘We need this broken moment to think about democracy’

Published on 29-11-2021

Reading time 4 mins

El Salvador has been experiencing a democratic decline following the election of Nayib Bukele as President in 2019. While his promises to tackle crime and corruption proved popular with many, his methods have raised concern. Bukele brought troops into Congress when lawmakers debated his proposals, replaced the constitutional chamber and the independent attorney general, and recently proposed a law imposing limitations on foreign funding for NGOs. Here, Juan Meléndez, Executive Director of NIMD El Salvador, reflects on the conditions in El Salvador that allowed Bukele to seize the narrative and come to power, and looks ahead to how the country…

NIMD concerned about new NGO funding law in El Salvador

Published on 15-11-2021

Reading time 1 mins

NIMD is following with concern developments in El Salvador, where a new draft law imposing limitations on foreign funding for NGOs has provoked concern about freedom of speech and led to disinformation about the activities of NIMD in El Salvador. The proposed new law, currently under discussion in parliament, bans funding from foreign organizations for loosely defined “political activities” by NGOs and civil society groups in the country. While we are still examining the exact detail and implications of the law, NIMD shares the view expressed by other civil society groups that the law could be used to silence critical…

La Batalla del Volcán: An exploration of conflict and peacebuilding in El Salvador

Published on 24-02-2021

Reading time 3 mins

In 2019 and 2020, NIMD El Salvador contributed to supporting and funding a project called La Batalla del Volcán (literally: the volcano battle). This mutlimedia project explores a crucial and decisive battle of the Salvadoran Civil War: the Ofensiva Hasta el Tope (literally: the offensive to the top). The project aims to keep history alive through a whole collection of stories, voices and viewpoints. It presents these stories in different ways... a documentary, short films, interviews, essays, video analysis and a museum exhibition. So La Batalla del Volcán is about learning from the past. It is about hearing and amplifying…

Interview: NIMD’s Democracy School for young people living with disabilities

Published on 03-12-2020

Reading time 3 mins

Every year, on 3 December, we celebrate the UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a day designed to promote the full and equal participation of people living with disabilities. To mark this day, we talk to Gabriela Escalante, a promising graduate of our Democracy School for young people living with disabilities, which we run in coordination with the Fundación Red de Sobrevivientes y Personas con Discapacidad (Network of survivors and people with disabilities foundation), the Fundación de Estudios para la Aplicación del Derecho (Foundation of studies for legal implementation) and IM Swedish Development Partner. Do you think the Democracy…

Takeaways from NIMD’s regional democracy school on migration

Published on 01-10-2020

Reading time 2 mins

This August and September, NIMD’s offices in Latin America came together to launch the first-ever NIMD regional Democracy School. Over five weekly sessions, the school brought together current Democracy School participants and alumni from across the political spectrum in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Colombia and Venezuela in an online environment. Beyond borders: the theme of migration This diverse mix of young leaders from political parties, civil society and academia explored the topic of migration, an issue which has (and still does) very much affected the region as a whole in recent years. Each week, the participants explored a different facet…

El Salvador: NIMD’s Democracy School for young people living with disabilities

Published on 03-09-2020

Reading time 2 mins

NIMD El Salvador is running a Democracy School for young people living with disabilities, in coordination with the Fundación Red de Sobrevivientes y Personas con Discapacidad (Network of survivors and people with disabilities foundation), the Fundación de Estudios para la Aplicación del Derecho (Foundation of studies for legal implementation) and IM Swedish Development Partner. The second yearly edition of the school was launched in August, with training taking place online due to COVID-19. Many of the participants also took part in the first edition of the school. As such, this year’s training sessions will provide an opportunity to build on…