The Minister of Finance, Alejandro Zelaya, inaugurated the new El Amatillo border facilities, located in the municipality of Pasaquina, in the department of La Unión.
The official was accompanied by the Minister of Security, Gustavo Villatoro, and authorities from the General Directorate of Immigration and Immigration. With this project, the government of El Salvador seeks to speed up transit through this important border.
With this modern physical and technological infrastructure, it will be possible to reduce transit times from hours to minutes, reducing freight transportation costs.
“This is thanks to the effort and commitment, not only of the government institutions of President Nayib Bukele, but also the support of the United States, through FOMILENIO”, Samadhy Martínez, General Director of Customs of El Salvador.
The work will promote regional trade and allow a constant flow of means of transportation thanks to the integration of the different institutions that intervene in the border process. Its execution has given way to the generation of jobs, pointing to the east of the country as a strategic sector for economic development.
“This border precinct is one of the most important in the country. Only here operates 33% of all foreign trade operations on a regional scale. Without a doubt, this is a great legacy for our country. Not only in the customs issue, but in infrastructure as such,” added Samadhy Martínez.
The facility, built with the support of FOMILENIO II, has a fumigation area, bedrooms, an electrical station that will power the facilities, a video surveillance system, non-intrusive equipment, and a radio frequency identification system.
400,000 means of transport circulate through the El Amatillo Land Customs a year, representing more than $2 billion in merchandise value. This is a commitment to innovation, being the first border area that has an inter-institutional control model.
The inauguration of this customs office accompanies the economic strategy implemented by the government of the Republic to support the growth of the national economy, providing modern infrastructure and state-of-the-art technology to the border areas.
“This day is very important for us, this Customs is now the most modern; before, the staff could not rest for even 5 minutes due to the heat and because they did not have the spaces or adequate facilities,” said the Minister of Finance at the inauguration.
He also highlighted that this is the most important custom in the country in land matters and that it has been neglected for a long time. “Now we have more than 5 kilometers of new road and a management system that will streamline procedures.”
For his part, the president of the republic, Nayib Bukele, explained that land customs were abandoned by all previous governments, in which “more than 6 decades” were lost. However, he assured that now the recovery of all of them has begun, starting with El Amatillo, in La Unión.
“Now we will have all the technology, efficiency, security, and speed that we need to create jobs and increase trade to, step by step, develop our country,” said the president.