El Salvador

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) provided support for two cross-border meetings in the Mesoamerican region during the past month. The Human Mobility Cross-border Committee “Grupo Tacaná” in Spanish, met on May 16-17, while the Cross-border El Salvador-Honduras Committee met on May 23-24. Representatives of non-governmental organizations, civil society, public institutions, and governments participated in these meetings.

Creativity and participatory work are the primary focuses in the communication for development (C4D) processes being implemented in Tapachula, México, Salcajá, Guatemala, San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and Ahuachapán, El Salvador as part of the joint efforts of IOM, local governments, and various actors to improve communities’ access to information about safe migration and local alternatives to irregular migration.

On May 23 and 24, 2019, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the International Labor Organization (ILO), and the regional team of researchers in charge of the study "Analysis of Labor Markets Information Systems in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras: towards a greater integration of labor migration" held their first meeting in San José, Costa Rica. This study is implemented by the Central American Institute for Social Studies and Development (INCEDES), at the request of IOM and ILO, under the framework of the labor migration component of IOM Western Hemisphere Regional Migration Capacity-Building Program funded by the US Department of State.

A series of video testimonials will allow you to hear the stories of people who participated in migrant caravans and voluntarily decided, for various reasons, to return to their countries of origin. In October 2018, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) created a special temporary program to assist the voluntary return of migrants stranded in Mexico or Guatemala who lack the necessary resources to return to their homes.   

On April 5, the Legislative Assembly of the Republic of El Salvador passed the Special Law on Migration. The objective of this law is to regulate matters relating to the movement of citizens and foreign nationals, including citizenship, naturalization, and expediting travel documents within a framework of respect for human rights, in accordance with the Constitution, laws, and international instruments. It likewise covers the organization and functions of the General Directorate of Migration (DGME).

The human mobility dimension of crises is growing more and more relevant as crisis produce more complex and larger-scale migration flows. However, the response of States and the international community to a migration crisis is often reactive. One of the challenges is to increase the capacities of decision makers to plan and develop contingency plans for large-scale human movements.

The communication pillar of the Regional Migration Program (Mesoamerica Program) of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) will be enhanced by contributions from the Ministry of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship of Canada. The objective of the collaboration is to expand the information people in northern Central American countries receive about regular migration pathways and the risks of irregular migration. 

In 2018, the Regional Migration Program: Mesoamerica-The Caribbean of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) selected four communities in Guatemala (Salcajá), Honduras (Cofradía), Mexico (Tapachula), and El Salvador (Ahuachapán) with the goal of implementing communication for development processes aimed at promoting positive behavioral change with respect to migration.  

The Regional Migration Program: Mesoamerica-The Caribbean of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) participated in three departmental forums during the month of March to commemorate International Women’s Day, organized in conjunction with the Puentes Project and World Vision. 

The forums were titled “Risks of Irregular Migration for Women and Girls” and panelists participated from the Program and other organizations such as UN Women, the Office of the Prosecutor for Human Rights, and the Attorney General’s Office.

The Secretariat against Sexual Violence, Exploitation, and Human Trafficking of Guatemala and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), with support from Lawyers Without Borders, held the first Regional Congress on human trafficking March 5-6 in Guatemala City, addressing the removal and trafficking of human organs and tissues. Experts and prosecutors from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Belize participated.