El Salvador

Landscape:

El Salvador is the smallest geographic country in Central America, about the size of Massachusetts. It has a tropical climate with arainy season from May to October and a dry season form November to April. The terrain is mostly mountainous with a narrow coastal belt and central plateau.

History:

El Salvador was originally inhabited by the Pipil Indians, descendants of the Aztecs, and the Pocomames and Lencas Indians. The Spanish conquest of El Salvador began in 1522 and was under Spanish rule until 1821, when El Salvador declared independence from Spain. In 1838, El Salvador became its own independent state separate from Mexico and other Central American nations. Following a period of democratic institutions in the 1970s, a

twelve year civil war broke out from 1980 to 1992. During this time the country was devastated and about 75,000 people died. Finally in 1992, the country signed peace accords, which ended the war, brought the military under civilian control, and allowed former guerillas to form a legitimate political party.

Economy:

Since the end of the civil war El Salvador’s economy has started to prosper. Poverty rates decreased form 66% in 1991 to 37.8% in 2009. Eventhough El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America, it has the largest economy in the region. GDP composition is made up of 11% agriculture, 29.7% industry and 59.3% services.

El Salvador has promoted an open trade and investment environment as they have recently privatized many of their major industries, such as telecom, electricity distribution, banking and pension funds. It is important for El Salvador to embrace fair trade practices with other nations, especially the United States, because 44% of their exports and 32% of their imports go to and come from the US.

You can help support the El Salvador’s economy through fair trade practices in the United States by going to www.peopleofhopecrafts.org and purchasing a unique hand crafted item today!