-
El Salvador Airport Handles Over 5.2 Million Passengers in 2025, Signaling Sustained Growth
El Salvador’s International Airport San Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez closed 2025 with more than 5.2 million passengers handled, confirming a sustained growth trend in the country’s air travel sector, according to the Autonomous Executive Port Commission (CEPA). The figure includes arrivals, departures, transit, and connecting passengers, placing the airport close to the historic 5.29 million passengers recorded in 2024.
CEPA president Federico Anliker highlighted that the results reflect consistent progress despite fluctuations during the year. “We reached 5.2 million passengers, including arrivals, departures, and transit, which means we are maintaining sustained growth at El Salvador’s International Airport,” Anliker said during a press conference. The airport also registered 51,000 flight operations in 2025, a 5 percent increase compared to the previous year.
Beyond passenger traffic, the airport posted strong gains in cargo movement, with an 11 percent increase that brought total cargo close to 40 million kilograms. This growth reinforces the airport’s role as a regional logistics hub and supports El Salvador’s expanding trade and tourism activity.
December remained the busiest month of the year, underscoring the country’s growing appeal as a travel destination. CEPA reported 524,000 passengers during the holiday season, a 4 percent increase compared to December 2024. “We had more arrivals than departures, which reflects the significant increase in tourism in the country,” Anliker noted. Looking ahead, CEPA expressed optimism about continued growth in 2026, supported by rising travel demand and increased airport operations.
-
El Salvador’s Economic Performance Draws Praise From European Financial Press.
El Salvador’s economic outlook is gaining international attention after Spain’s financial newspaper El Economista highlighted the country’s stronger-than-expected growth and improved investment climate. The publication emphasized recent projections by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which now estimates that El Salvador’s gross domestic product will grow by around 4 percent in 2025.
According to El Economista, the Salvadoran economy is expanding faster than anticipated following several years of moderate growth. The IMF attributed this momentum to rising investor confidence, record levels of remittances, and a surge in both public and private investment. “The economy is expanding at a faster pace than expected, supported by higher confidence, strong remittance inflows, and robust investment,” the IMF stated through its mission chief for El Salvador.
The report also underscored the role of improved security and regulatory reforms in attracting foreign direct investment, positioning El Salvador as an increasingly competitive destination for international capital. Investment promotion agency Invest in El Salvador has capitalized on this momentum through outreach efforts in the United States, particularly in Texas and California, where it has presented new opportunities in manufacturing, logistics, fintech, tourism, and real estate.
President Nayib Bukele has publicly expressed confidence that economic growth could exceed IMF projections. “Our economy will grow above 4 percent this year,” Bukele said during a public event in December. The IMF, meanwhile, noted continued cooperation with Salvadoran authorities under its current financing program, highlighting progress on fiscal consolidation and social spending as key pillars supporting the country’s economic expansion.
-
Christmas Tourism in El Salvador Doubles Sales for Businesses in San Salvador’s Historic Centre.
Retail sales in San Salvador’s Historic Center increased by 100 percent in December, according to the Historic Center Authority of San Salvador (APLAN), highlighting the growing economic impact of holiday tourism in El Salvador. The surge was largely driven by the installation of the Christmas village during the final month of 2025.
APLAN director Adriana Larín said the increase was reported directly by business owners operating in the area. “They told me their sales increased by 100 percent compared to 2024,” she said during a radio interview. Larín explained that free access to the Christmas village helped draw large crowds, with attractions fully occupied from as early as 10:00 a.m. throughout the season.
Authorities noted that many new businesses prioritized opening before the start of the Christmas village, anticipating higher foot traffic. APLAN previously stated that free attractions played a key role in attracting both local and international visitors to downtown San Salvador, boosting commerce across the historic district.
Larín also reported that more than 4.5 million people visited the Christmas village between December 5, 2025, and January 1, 2026, representing an 80 percent increase compared to the previous year. The figure surpassed the 2.5 million visitors recorded during the 2024 holiday season. El Salvador’s Minister of Tourism, Morena Valdez, confirmed that the Christmas village and San Salvador’s Historic Center were the most visited destinations during the December holidays.
-
El Salvador Strengthens Digital Security and Youth Employment Through EU Global Gateway Strategy.
The European Union, in partnership with IDB Lab—the innovation arm of the Inter-American Development Bank—and the company NUMU, has announced a new initiative aimed at boosting youth employment and strengthening cybersecurity in El Salvador. The project represents a planned investment of more than $4.4 million and aligns with the EU’s Global Gateway strategy and the Team Europe Initiative “Digital Jobs”.
According to an official statement, more than $3.95 million of the funding will come directly from EU resources. The program, named CIBERLAMARR, seeks to enhance digital skills, create new job opportunities, and position El Salvador as an emerging reference point for digital talent in the region.
The initiative responds to the growing need to protect digital environments from cyberattacks while simultaneously expanding access to specialized training and employment. Through CIBERLAMARR, 600 people are expected to receive training and professional certifications, with job placement support for 300 young people, many of them women.
In addition, the program will provide expert support to 300 small and micro-sized enterprises, helping them improve their digital security and overall competitiveness. The European Union stated that the project “reaffirms its commitment to youth employment, inclusion, and the development of a safer digital environment in El Salvador.”
-
El Salvador Reaches 46.9% Financial Inclusion as Government Expands Access to Banking Services.
El Salvador continues to reduce economic gaps by expanding access to financial services, according to the National Survey on Financial Inclusion and Financial Education 2025, presented this Tuesday by the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador (BCR). The event was led by BCR President Douglas Rodríguez and Vice President Hazel González, within the framework of policies promoted by President Nayib Bukele to strengthen the country’s social and financial well-being.
“This valuable survey was developed as part of the initiatives driven by our President to strengthen the social and financial welfare of Salvadorans and represents a strategic update to the survey conducted by the Central Bank in 2022,” said Rodríguez. He stressed that the results go beyond statistics, noting, “Today, we are not just presenting figures; we are sharing strategic information that allows us to understand remaining gaps and the opportunities we have as a country to overcome them.”
The survey reveals that financial inclusion reached 46.9 percent in 2025, a sharp increase from 28 percent in 2022. Rodríguez added that economic growth during 2025 was influenced by the strength of El Salvador’s financial system, which helped energize sectors such as construction. He also highlighted the role of digital finance, stating that “Transfer 365 currently accounts for 95.3 percent of all financial transactions in the country.”
Ana Guadalupe Escobar, BCR’s Manager of Financial Stability and Public Policy, explained that the survey was conducted through a fully digital process. She reported that 46.9 percent of respondents said they have a savings account, with 57.6 percent of men and 38.1 percent of women reporting account ownership. San Salvador and San Vicente registered inclusion levels above the national average.
“Of those who said they had a bank account, 88.5 percent reported having made a deposit or withdrawal in the past 12 months,” Escobar noted. She also explained that 54.9 percent of loans are used for personal consumption, 18.3 percent for business purposes, and that 25.8 percent of respondents receive family remittances through formal financial channels, underscoring El Salvador’s continued progress toward a more inclusive financial system.
-
San Salvador Strengthens Urban Planning Efficiency as OPAMSS Invests in Technology.
The Metropolitan Area Planning Office of San Salvador (OPAMSS) is moving forward with a strategy focused on improving efficiency and streamlining administrative processes through institutional technological strengthening, according to projections for this year.
OPAMSS Director Luis Rodríguez explained that the initiative aims to simplify procedures and further optimize all processes carried out by the institution as part of broader efforts to modernize the capital city. “To enter a process of city modernization, we must equip ourselves with sufficient technological tools to carry out evaluations,” Rodríguez stated.
He detailed that work on acquiring new technology began in 2025 and that the necessary tools are now ready to be implemented this year. The objective, he emphasized, is to ensure that OPAMSS operates as a robust and efficient institution capable of supporting urban development.
“Internally, we see 2026 as a year to strengthen ourselves in technological matters and capitalize on alliances that President Nayib Bukele has been building with world-class companies,” Rodríguez underlined.
He added that agreements such as the one signed with Google in 2024 are key to supporting modernization efforts, not only within OPAMSS, but across El Salvador as a whole.
-
President Bukele Says Selective Crime Data Oversimplifies El Salvador’s Security Transformation.
President Nayib Bukele published a detailed statement this week responding to international commentary on El Salvador’s declining homicide rate, arguing that selective use of data has led to misleading conclusions about the country’s security transformation.
Bukele said El Salvador has historically suffered extraordinarily high murder rates dating back to the civil war of the 1980s, with violence levels that remained comparable to an active war zone for decades. “It’s striking how armchair experts rush to conclusions after looking at only a tiny slice of the data,” he wrote, adding that broader historical context is essential for accurate analysis.
According to the president, the last year unaffected by his administration’s security policies was 2018. After taking office in 2019 and launching the Territorial Control Plan on June 20 of that year, a sharp and sustained decline in homicides became visible starting in July. He noted that the downward trend continued through 2020 and 2021.
Bukele emphasized that crime did not fall to levels consistent with a safe country until the full-scale offensive against gangs and the implementation of the State of Exception in 2022. He stated that by 2023 El Salvador had become safer than the United States, by 2024 safer than Canada, and that in 2025 the homicide rate dropped an additional 30 percent, placing it below that of many European countries.
He also highlighted a change in the nature of violent crime, explaining that around 90 percent of current cases are now linked to domestic violence or alcohol-related disputes. Bukele concluded that extortion, once affecting roughly 80 percent of Salvadorans, has nearly disappeared and that there are no longer unsafe areas in the country, asserting that El Salvador has moved from being the world’s murder capital to the safest country in the Western Hemisphere.
-
El Salvador Breaks Tourism Record With 4.1 Million International Visitors in 2025.
El Salvador reached a historic milestone in 2025 by welcoming 4.1 million international visitors, positioning the country as one of the most visited destinations in Central America. The figure represents the strongest tourism performance in the nation’s history and reflects a sustained increase in regional and international travel interest.
“2025 has been one of the best years for tourism in El Salvador since we began under President Nayib Bukele. These 4.1 million international visitors are historic figures, especially because our country has taken a positive turn and allowed us to receive visitors not only from the United States, but also from our Central American neighbors and other parts of the world,” said Eny Aguiñada, president of the Salvadoran Tourism Institute (ISTU).
According to ISTU data, Guatemala led international arrivals with 1.5 million visitors, marking a 13 percent increase compared to 2024. The United States followed with 1.3 million visitors, representing a 1.3 percent growth, while Honduras contributed 792,000 visitors, a 6 percent increase year over year.
“That is the top three of international visitors. Both our Guatemalan and Honduran brothers and sisters have enjoyed the country’s tourist destinations,” Aguiñada noted during a radio interview.
Tourism activity also surged at the end of the year, with 5.9 million national and international visits recorded in December alone across national parks, public beaches, and the Christmas Village. Among the most visited destinations were the Villa Navideña, the Port of La Libertad Tourist Complex, Sunset Park, Balboa Natural Park, and Puerta del Diablo Natural Park.
-
Flights, Passengers, and Cargo Rise at El Salvador International Airport in 2025.
El Salvador International Airport strengthened its position as a key regional aviation hub during the 2025 year-end holiday season, recording notable growth in passengers, flights, and air cargo movement.
According to data from the Autonomous Executive Port Commission (CEPA), the airport handled 217,115 passengers between December 20 and 31, 2025, including arrivals, departures, and connecting travelers. This figure represents a 4.5% increase compared to the same period in 2024, when 207,687 passengers were registered.
Passenger traffic during that timeframe included 74,499 departing travelers, 102,877 arrivals, and 39,739 passengers in transit to other international destinations. These movements were supported by 1,798 commercial flight operations, marking a 9% rise over the 1,646 flights recorded during the 2024 holiday period.
CEPA also reported that Los Angeles, Houston, and Washington were the most frequented U.S. destinations from El Salvador in 2025, highlighting strong air connectivity between the country and the United States. Overall, the airport connected travelers to 34 cities across 13 countries worldwide.
From January 1 to December 21, 2025, the terminal reached a milestone of 5 million passengers, reflecting a 7% increase in commercial flight operations over the previous year.
Cargo activity also showed positive results. Between December 20 and 31, 2025, the airport’s air cargo terminal moved 1,329,003 kilograms of goods, a 9% increase compared to the 1,217,988 kilograms recorded during the same period in 2024.
-
El Salvador’s Renewable Advantage: Sugarcane Biomass Provides 24/7 Power During the Harvest Season.
Ingenio El Ángel has announced a $10.3 million investment to strengthen its renewable energy generation during El Salvador’s 2025–2026 sugarcane harvest. The project includes the installation of a new 15-megawatt turbogenerator and upgrades to a high-pressure boiler, allowing the company to produce up to 183,000 megawatt-hours of renewable electricity during the current harvest season.
This investment coincides with the start of one of the most critical periods for El Salvador’s energy system. From November to April, when sugar mills operate at full capacity, bagasse — the residue from sugarcane processing — is used as fuel to generate electricity. This contribution becomes especially important during the dry season, when hydroelectric production declines due to lower river and reservoir levels.
Biomass plays a strategic role in the national energy mix by providing firm, continuous generation at a time when other renewable sources face limitations. According to the General Directorate of Energy, Hydrocarbons and Mines, biomass represents 7.22 percent of El Salvador’s energy matrix, delivering stable power 24 hours a day throughout the harvest and helping reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels.
In the case of Ingenio El Ángel, electricity is produced by burning bagasse in high-pressure boilers to generate steam that drives turbines. Part of the energy is used in the industrial process, while the surplus is injected into the national grid. Because bagasse is an agricultural byproduct, it does not compete with food production or require expanding farmland.
Beyond energy security, the project also brings environmental benefits. The 183,000 megawatt-hours expected to be generated during the 2025–2026 harvest will prevent more than 43,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Since launching its renewable energy strategy in 2011, Ingenio El Ángel has invested $127.4 million in clean energy projects, reinforcing biomass as a key pillar of El Salvador’s energy resilience.