OREANDA-NEWS. Today the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a loan in the amount of $30 million to support the expansion of Ciudad Mujer, a women?s empowerment initiative in El Salvador. The loan represents an expansion to the US$20 million program approved by the IDB in 2011 to open five Ciudad Mujer centers in the country.

The goal of the project, led by the Ministry of Social Inclusion of El Salvador, is to improve the living conditions of women in terms of employment, sexual and reproductive health, and prevention and assistance of gender-based violence. The centers are strategic locations where 15 public institutions offer quality integrated services under one roof.

The new loan will extend services currently provided at the centers of Col?n (La Libertad), Usulutan, Santa Ana, San Miguel, San Martin and Morazan. In addition, this second phase will expand coverage of services to the departments of La Union, Sonsonate and Chalatenango; these are areas of intervention within the framework of Alliance for Prosperity in the Northern Triangle.

A significant number of children who migrate unaccompanied from the Northern Triangle to the U.S. mention violence and lack of economic opportunities as main reasons for leaving their countries of origin. Ciudad Mujer, through its module Ciudad Mujer Joven, will contribute to improving social and economic opportunities for youth at risk by preventing gender violence and fostering economic empowerment.

Since opening its doors, Ciudad Mujer has provided nearly 2.6 million services for 974,000 women. The project has become a model that is currently being adapted in countries such as Honduras, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Colombia, Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago.