The Legislative Assembly of El Salvador approves by decree a declaration to celebrate “National Lempa River Day” every year.

Candelaria de la Frontera, Santa Ana, El Salvador, Central America, March 25, 2021. With 44 votes from the deputies of the different political parties that make up the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador (National Congress), ruling No. 110 was approved today, declaring the “National Day of the Lempa River.”

The initiative was presented on December 8, 2020, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and was spearheaded by the Tri-National Network for the Rescue of the Lempa River, which is made up of more than 30 civil society organizations, associations, and local governments from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.

Among the speeches, those of Congressman Julio Fabián stood out, who said, “Rescue measures must be promoted, not just one day, but 365 days a year. We must work to rescue the largest basin in the country.” Congressman Reynaldo Cardoza, who stated, “We celebrate the declaration of March 14 as National Lempa River Day, but we must go further. We have presented a bill, and hopefully we congressmen can support it and begin to discuss the true rescue of this great river we have in El Salvador”; as well as the words of Congresswoman Dina Argueta, who said, "It is a positive action to raise awareness. Many municipalities are affected by the pollution of the Lempa River. If the state does not take care to manage and protect the watersheds, which is where the water originates, the population will be affected."

Through the approval of this Declaration by the Legislative Body of El Salvador, actions can be developed to raise awareness and, above all, to act in favor of such an important resource as the Lempa River, which originates in eastern Guatemala, crosses western Honduras, enters through the municipality of Citalá, and flows into the Pacific Ocean in El Salvador. This is the most important river in the Central American Pacific basin and is facing a serious pollution crisis that currently puts the lives of thousands of people in this country and this Central American region at risk.

The Tri-national Network for the Rescue of the Lempa River was created on February 11, 2020, as an effort by several local entities from the three countries, which, through a broad call for participation, managed to form this Tri-national Network, whose mission is: “To promote social and political advocacy, as well as awareness-raising for the rescue, recovery, and conservation of the Lempa River and the natural life of its basin.” Its vision is: The Network's proposals are a call to citizens, civil society, businesses, local governments, central governments, and other state bodies to join forces to achieve medium- and long-term conservation goals for the Lempa.

Among the entities that make up the Network are the Rio Lempa Tri-national Border Community, the Heinrich Boell Foundation, Let's Doit, FUNDE, the Association of Eco-feminists, the Association of Cayaguanca Municipalities, AMICUERT, the Escazú Promotion Team, SOA, UNES, all from El Salvador; Igade and the Mocalempa Association from Honduras; and from Guatemala, the Eastern University Center of the University of San Carlos of Guatemala, among other entities from the three countries.

This effort has been supported by the European Union's EUROCLIMA + Program, implemented by GIZ, and in the context of the strategic alliance that the Trinational Association has with FONS CATALA and the Heinrich Boell Foundation, Central America office.