The final allotment of a 322 vehicle donation made possible by a grant from the Howard G. Buffett Foundation was delivered to the National Civil Police (PNC) today. The donation of these new vehicles, valued at $8.2 million, was facilitated by the Embassy of the United States in El Salvador through the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL).
The U.S. Embassy works to keep Americans and Salvadorans safe by countering transnational crime, illegal drugs, and instability in the region. As part of this mission, the U.S. Embassy and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation are working together to support the continued professionalization and modernization of law enforcement in El Salvador.
The new vehicles will allow the PNC to increase public security patrols, improve the speed of investigations, and extend forensic services across the nation in order to enhance citizen security in El Salvador. Donations of this kind enhance the capacity of the Salvadoran government to fight dangerous criminal elements that are adversely affecting social stability and economic growth in El Salvador.
“This donation is part of a larger investment we hope to make to improve citizen security in El Salvador in the coming years,” said Howard G. Buffett, Chairman and CEO of HGBF. “We are pleased to be partnering with the PNC and the Embassy of the United States on this project, which we hope will contribute to the Government of El Salvador’s efforts to bolster the rule of law and improve security for all Salvadorans.”
Ambassador Manes said, “This support from the Buffett Foundation is an important example of how public entities and private organizations can meaningfully partner to develop the capacity of society’s most important institutions. These critically-needed vehicles will improve the PNC’s efforts to strengthen security in El Salvador for years to come. We are proud to work together in this outstanding initiative.”
PNC Director Howard Cotto thanked the HGBF and INL for its valuable donation of 322 vehicles that will strengthen investigations as well as violence and crime prevention tasks for special police units and territorial delegations on behalf of the National Civilian Police of El Salvador. He said, “We express our most profound gratitude to the Foundation and the Embassy of the United States in El Salvador and we are committed to efficiently use these resources for the benefit of the Salvadoran people.”
Established in 1999, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation is a United States-based private family foundation that invests its own private capital resources in projects that benefit the public good. The Howard G. Buffett Foundation has committed more than $1 billion since its inception to food security, conflict mitigation and public safety efforts, including $325 million in Latin America and $116 million in El Salvador. The Embassy of the United States thanks the Howard G. Buffett Foundation for its support of efforts to promote citizen security in El Salvador.
You can learn more about HBGF (http://www.thehowardgbuffettfoundation.org/) and INL (https://www.state.gov/j/inl/) on their websites.
