The overwhelming security results have positioned El Salvador as a model to follow in Latin America and other regions of the world in the fight against organized crime and gangs. Under the leadership of President Nayib Bukele, the country has experienced a drastic reduction in violence rates, after more than four decades marked by the siege of criminal structures.
The so -called “Bukele model”, which includes strategies such as the territorial control plan and the exception regime, has aroused the interest of Central and South America governments, as well as local authorities in the United States, which seek to replicate these measures to combat crime in their territories.
International interest
Argentina It was one of the first countries to send an official delegation. In June 2024, the Minister of Security, Patricia Bullrich, visited El Salvador on the instructions of President Javier Milei. During his visit, he toured the terrorism confinement center (CECOT) and held meetings with the Salvadoran Security Cabinet. In his social networks, Bullrich said Argentina is applying measures inspired by the “Bukele model” to face drug trafficking and organized crime.
Brazil has also shown a strong interest. At the end of 2024, a delegation of seven federal deputies, including Eduardo Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, visited the country. In addition to knowing the operation of the exception regime, they toured prisons and the National Public Security Academy. Deputy Bolsonaro praised the effectiveness of the model and its impact on crime reduction.
In Peru, both national and local authorities have shown willingness to adapt the Salvadoran experience to their contexts. The then president of the Council of Ministers, Alberto Otárola, described El Salvador as the country with less crime in the region, while delegations of municipal serene made technical visits to know the territorial control plan.
This week, the Governor of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema, together with his work team, is in El Salvador in an official visit to know thoroughly the security policies implemented by the Salvadoran government. The agenda includes meetings with security cabinet authorities and deputies of the Legislative Assembly.
Interest in the United States and Central America
The model has also captured the attention of authorities in the United States. In September 2023, Suffolk County Sheriff, Long Island, New York, Errol Toulon, visited the country and highlighted the safety advances that he observed since his first visit in 2018. Toulon expressed interest in applying some of the Salvadoran strategies in his jurisdiction.
In Costa Rica, the Minister of Justice and Peace, Gerald Campos Valverde, along with his vice minister, visited in April 2025 the penitentiary farm of Santa Ana. The objective was to know the “Zero Leisure” program, which allows those deprived of liberty in the phase of confidence to participate in productive processes. The Tico official praised the self -sufficiency of the Salvadoran prison system.
A new referent in security
The Minister of Justice and Security, Gustavo Villatoro, stressed that El Salvador has gone from being considered the most dangerous country in Latin America to become a reference in public security policies.
“The successful security strategies implemented by President Nayib Bukele have placed our country as a reference in the region, being inspiration for other nations,” Villatoro said.
The Salvadoran experience is generating a new narrative around the combat of organized crime, demonstrating that it is possible to significantly reduce the rates of violence through an integral and sustained approach in time.
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