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El Salvador
>> Regional Overview >> El Salvador Overview Program Data Sheet
519-001
USAID MISSION: El Salvador
PROGRAM TITLE: Economic Growth, Agriculture, and Education (Pillar: Economic Growth, Agriculture, and Trade)
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE AND NUMBER: Expanded Access and Economic Opportunities for Rural Poor Families, 519-001
STATUS: Continuing
PLANNED FY 2002 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $6,020,000 DA
PRIOR YEAR UNOBLIGATED AND FUNDING SOURCE: $0
PROPOSED FY 2003 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $15,527,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1997 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2004Summary: USAID's program to expand access and economic opportunities for rural poor families includes a mix of technical assistance and training to:
- promote the adoption of policies that will generate new resources and stimulate economic activity;
- expand financial services for micro and small scale businesses;
- help small-scale farmers to access new technology, adopt better practices, and marketing services;
- improve basic education services educating rural residents; and
- small grants to communities and NGOs to improve rural infrastructure.
To strengthen economic activity especially in rural areas, USAID will work within the framework of the Agency's new Partnership for Prosperity initiative for Central America and Mexico for market-led growth in the region to reduce poverty.
Inputs, Outputs and Activities: FY 2002 Program: FY 2002 DA funds will be used to improve the environment for business development and stimulate growth of micro and small businesses. The FY 2002 program will help El Salvador to: 1) improve tax and customs compliance and collections through technical assistance to the Ministry of Finance; 2) promote and regulate private energy investments through technical assistance to the Ministry of Economy and the energy regulatory authority, SIGET; 3) modernize the regulatory environment to expand access to financial resources for small and micro-enterprises while improving market access, technology, and financial services for 12,500 new small and microenterprise clients; 4) deliver resources to 3,000 farm families to provide for increases in employment, production, and exports; and 5) develop rural infrastructure in communities to improve access to markets. FY 2002 DA funds also will be utilized to improve El Salvador's human capital base. In cooperation with the Office of the First Lady of El Salvador, USAID will finance a technical assistance program to strengthen the capacity of the Salvadoran Institute for the Protection of Minors (ISPM), the entity responsible for early childhood education, to reach rural families at risk. USAID will also finance a pilot for a national campaign to broaden awareness of the importance of early childhood education for children from ages up to six. USAID will assist the Ministry of Education's (MOE) school directors and teachers in approximately 40 pilot schools to implement basic education reforms in the classroom, leading to improved student performance.
Planned FY 2003 Program: USAID intends to use FY 2003 DA funds to stimulate economic activity among productive sector enterprises and to assist the GOES' ongoing efforts to generate more funds for public investment by promoting improvements in tax and customs administration. USAID intends to 1) help the Ministry of Economy and the energy regulatory authority expand access to rural electrification as well as effectively regulate private energy investments; 2) increase by 11,800 the number of small and microenterprises that have access to credit resources and institutionalize the capacity of microfinance institutions in country to service the credit requirements of micro and small businesses; 3) promote increases in rural employment and incomes by helping small-scale farmers gain access to regional and global markets; and 4) finance rural infrastructure development (farm-to-market roads, irrigation works, bridges) to set the stage for an expansion of rural enterprises. In addition, with FY 2003 DA funds, USAID will strengthen the ISPM's management capacity, in order to launch a national campaign to promote early childhood education for children up to six years of age for rural families-at-risk. USAID also intends to continue assisting MOE school directors and teachers to work together to implement reforms in the classroom (e.g., related to curriculum, testing, and teacher instruction) that will improve student performance and skills.
Performance and Results: The focus of USAID efforts continues to be rural poverty reduction, where the share of rural citizens living in poverty had declined since 1992 by eleven percentage points to 54% only to rise back by 3% in the wake of the 2001 earthquakes. Under USAID programs, there are
now more than 40,600 active micro and small business borrowers and almost 67,000 small-scale farmers had been reached with agricultural, technological, and marketing services. These activities have contributed to higher rural incomes and employment. USAID financed ten community infrastructure projects (rural roads, water systems, bridge and school), benefiting almost 16,000 people and increasing their access to rural markets and public services. Educational reforms were adopted by the Ministry of Education (MOE) based on policy research conducted with USAID support, resulting in a new program for 200 schools to improve quality, relevance, and classroom instruction.
The Government of El Salvador's share of education expenditures has increased significantly since 1995, reaching 3.1% of GDP. Three out of every 10 tax dollars now go for education. End products envisaged for USAID work on this SO include a vibrant micro-finance credit system; a significant segment of farmers in our focus areas reached with agricultural, marketing, and technological services; rural households with access to electricity; and a GOES convinced of the need to focus on early childhood education.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USAID activities are implemented through several prime contractors and grantees DevTech, PA consultants, Barents Group, Development Alternatives Inc, Development Associates, Enterprise Works Worldwide (EWW), Cooperative League of the United States in El Salvador, and Technoserve. USAID also has a university linkage with the Metropolitan Community College of Omaha, Nebraska. GOES counterparts include the Ministries of Finance, Agriculture, Economy, Education, and Public Works and ISPM. Other partners include Catholic Relief Services, Save the Children, National Secretariat for Families, the Managerial Foundation for Educational Development, and the InterAmerican Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture.
US Financing in Thousands of Dollars
519-001 Expanded Access and Economic Opportunities for Rural Poor Families CSD DA ESF Through September 30, 2000 Obligations 10,002 41,441 39,162 Expenditures 4,056 27,105 39,065 Unliquidated 5,946 14,336 97 Fiscal Year 2001 Obligations 700 6,779 0 Expenditures 2,469 7,577 0 Through September 30, 2001 Obligations 10,702 48,220 39,162 Expenditures 6,525 34,682 39,065 Unliquidated 4,177 13,538 97 Prior Year Unobligated Funds Obligations 0 0 0 Planned Fiscal Year 2002 NOA Obligations 0 6,020 0 Total Planned Fiscal Year 2002 Obligations 0 6,020 0 Proposed Fiscal Year 2003 NOA Obligations 0 15,527 0 Future Obligations 0 0 0 Est. Total Cost 10,702 69,767 39,162
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Last Updated on: May 29, 2002 |
