Luxembourg's development cooperation in El Salvador
Development cooperation relations between the governments of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the Republic of El Salvador began in 1993 following the signing of the Chapultepec Peace Accords, as part of the efforts to reconstruct the country after the 12 years of civil war (1980-1992). The general cooperation agreement [FR] was signed on 10 April 2002, facilitating the implementation of multi-annual programmes.
The first Indicative Cooperation Programme (ICP 2003-2006) [FR] made combating poverty and strengthening democracy in El Salvador the development cooperation relationship’s primary objectives.
Following a political decision related to El Salvador's good macroeconomic performance in the years before the global crisis, a consolidation programme (ICP II 2007-2010) [FR] replaced the first PIC, so as to pave the way for the medium term withdrawal of Luxembourg's development cooperation while maintaining activities to combat poverty up until 2010.
In May 2010, Luxembourg and El Salvador decided to extend the 2007-2010 consolidation programme until December 2011 with a third ICP (ICP III 2012-2015) [FR] being signed between the two parties on 29 November 2011 in the wings of the high-level Busan forum as a result of the adverse global economic situation that had jeopardised the progress made in El Salvador.
Its main objective was to help reduce poverty and promote sustainable development in El Salvador. The programme supported the five-year development plan produced by the Salvadorian government with planned interventions aligned with this plan's strategic objectives, especially those concerning the reduction in extreme poverty, well-being and social fairness as part of the "communities in solidarity" programme. Institutional and human capacity-building was these interventions' unifying thread.
Given El Salvador's extraordinary economic and social progress since the 1990s, it was decided that the partnership between the two countries had reached a sufficiently mature level to proceed to diversify relations beyond development aid. Accordingly, the years after 2015 were characterised by the evaluation and winding up of the bilateral social protection and aid effectiveness programmes.
The ongoing diversified cooperation is characterised by support for civil society, triangular aid and budget assistance for the "National development, protection and social inclusion plan (social plan)" in conjunction with El Salvador's social policy.