Member since 2013
Prior to CoST: Public infrastructure in context
El Salvador faces ongoing issues of corruption. According to the 2020 Corruption Perceptions Index from Transparency International, it has a score of 36/100 and is ranked 104 out of 180 countries measured. Several corruption scandals, including the Odebrecht scandal, have implicated high-level government officials in El Salvador, and all three presidents from 1999 to 2014 have been charged due to corrupt practices.
Historically, public infrastructure in El Salvador has been notorious for issues surrounding corruption, mismanagement, and inefficiency, resulting in poor quality infrastructure and time and cost overruns. For example, a highway project linking San Salvador with the nearby municipality of Santa Tecla was initiated in 2005 and completed five and a half years behind schedule, at a cost of almost four times the original budget of $25.6 million USD.
However, notable strides have been made to combat corruption, including the creation of an independent commission in 2019 to tackle corruption, called the International Commission Against Impunity in El Salvador (CICIES), through a presidential decree. El Salvador is also a member of the Open Government Partnership, and the implementation of CoST was included in its 2014-2016 National Action Plan. The Law on Access to Public Information (Ley de Acceso a la Información Pública), introduced in 2011, is also a key tool for citizen participation in public procurement and budgeting.
CoST El Salvador: How it all began
El Salvador joined CoST in 2013, when a memorandum of understanding was signed between CoST and the Ministry of Public Works, Transport, and Housing to launch its membership. This committed the Ministry to publishing information on at least three high-profile construction projects over a 18-month period.
In the run-up to launch, the Ministry ran a series of workshops to develop the design and implementation of CoST El Salvador. These were attended by a range of representatives who drew on their diverse experience to support the Ministry in this respect. These representatives came from organisations such as the Salvadoran Chamber of Construction, USAID, and the Initiative for Social Democracy.
Multi-stakeholder working in El Salvador
CoST brings together stakeholder groups with different perspectives and backgrounds from across government, the private sector, and civil society. Through each member’s Multi-Stakeholder Group, these entities can guide the delivery of CoST and pursue infrastructure transparency and accountability within a neutral forum.
CoST El Salvador’s Multi-Stakeholder Group comprises representatives from nine organisations across government, the private sector, academia, and civil society. These organisations include the Salvadoran Chamber of Construction, the University of El Salvador, and the Social Transparency and Open Data Transparency Association.
Data publication
The data publication process ensures that data about the purpose, scope, costs, and execution of infrastructure projects is open and accessible to the public, and that data is published in a timely manner.
CoST El Salvador’s First Assurance Report was published in 2017 and measured levels of data publication against the CoST Infrastructure Data Standard (CoST IDS). The CoST IDS requires 40 datapoints to be published proactively (without request) across the project cycle, with 27 additional data points to be published reactively (upon request). However, after the first independent review (assurance) process, CoST El Salvador’s Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG) conducted a review to explore whether these indicators could be better adapted to El Salvador’s public infrastructure sector. The review concluded that requiring a total of 79 indicators to be published proactively would be more appropriate, and CoST El Salvador adapted the CoST IDS to reflect this.
Legal mandate on data publication
Legal mandates on data publication are powerful tools to encourage rapid data disclosure. A legal mandate was implemented in March 2019, requiring all procuring entities from central, municipal, and autonomous governments to publish information according to CoST El Salvador’s 79 indicators. With this mandate established, we expect to see publication rates continue to increase, as evidenced recently by the leap in rates between CoST El Salvador’s second and third assurance processes.
Online data platform
In October 2017, CoST El Salvador launched the ‘Single Information System on Public Infrastructure‘ (SUIP). This online platform offered Salvadoran citizens access to clear and concise data on public infrastructure projects. The SUIP was designed primarily with everyday citizens in mind. It presents information in a clear and accessible format and uses cloud technology to ensure that information is securely stored. By presenting information online through the platform, citizens can gain a better understanding of how public money is being spent and be empowered to hold decision-makers accountable.
SUIP was supported by the British Embassy in El Salvador and follows a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2017 between CoST El Salvador and the Institute for Access to Public Information (IAPI). The Memorandum of Understanding focused on furthering good practice in the implementation of public infrastructure projects using the CoST IDS.
The SUIP platform ceased operations in 2022 due to budgetary constraints. Currently, CoST El Salvador is actively working to integrate and develop a new publication platform in collaboration with academic partners. These efforts aim to restore transparency in public infrastructure and enhance civic engagement through using accessible and open data tools.
Independent review of data
We promote accountability through the CoST independent review (assurance) of the published data by professional teams appointed by CoST national programmes. The teams identify key issues of concern related to the items listed in the CoST IDS and translate technical jargon into plain language. This enables social accountability stakeholders to easily understand the issues and hold decision-makers accountable.
CoST El Salvador has published three assurance reports. As mentioned above, CoST El Salvador’s First Assurance Report was published in 2017, followed by its second in 2018. The second assurance process assessed 20 infrastructure projects with a combined value of $58.6 million USD and found that an average of 38.5% of the data was published – 58% of it was published reactively, and just 19% was published proactively. The CoST team presented these findings at a launch event held at Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador in San Salvador, bringing together key representatives from the media, civil society, academia, government, and the private sector.
CoST El Salvador’s Third Assurance Report assurance process was held in 2019 and assessed 14 infrastructure projects from the transport, energy, education, and health sectors. With a combined value of $300 million USD, the assurance report showed an overall data publication/disclosure rate of 73.5%. However, concerns over time and cost overruns were also raised in the report, and cost increases have totalled US $6.4 million across the projects. In addition to launching the assurance report, Victor Jiménez, the CoST El Salvador programme manager, undertook a series of high-level media appearances to publicise the report’s findings.
CoST El Salvador Independent Review Reports
CoST El Salvador has launched four independent review (assurance) reports on public infrastructure projects. These studies assess the transparency and quality of information provided by the government institutions responsible for implementing public works. According to CoST El Salvador, the primary goal is to enhance efficiency and ensure value for money in public infrastructure through improved transparency and accountability. You can see the four reports in Spanish in the following links:
CoST El Salvador First Assurance Report (Spanish)
CoST El Salvador Second Assurance Report (Spanish)
CoST El Salvador Third Assurance Report (Spanish)
CoST El Salvador Fourth Assurance Report (Spanish)
Social accountability in El Salvador
CoST works with social accountability stakeholders such as civil society and the media to promote the findings from its assurance process so that they can then put key issues into the public domain. In this way, civil society, the media, and citizens can all be aware of issues and hold decision-makers to account.
Since 2018, CoST El Salvador has been training civil society groups and public officials, with a view to further citizen engagement in public infrastructure. This is an area where CoST El Salvador will continue to focus its efforts in 2020, partnering with other institutions, such as the Institute for Access to Public Information. These training sessions will primarily focus on the disclosure of the 79 indicators, as adapted from the CoST IDS.
CoST El Salvador has also designed a structured communications strategy for 2020, which will be employed to establish clear objectives for its public engagement. This includes increased participation in various media, such as radio, print, and television.
Infrastructure Transparency Index
CoST El Salvador has officially launched the Infrastructure Transparency Index (ITI), a tool designed to measure and enhance transparency in public infrastructure processes by evaluating the quality of information disclosed on infrastructure projects. Here is the Report.
The ITI is structured around four key dimensions: enabling environment, institutional capacity and processes, citizen participation, and information disclosure. This tool seeks to promote greater openness and strengthen accountability in the public infrastructure sector. The initiative, led by CoST El Salvador, is grounded in international best practices and lessons learned from global experiences.
The launch of the ITI in El Salvador is part of a broader global effort by CoST – The Infrastructure Transparency Initiative to foster transparency and civic engagement in public infrastructure. In El Salvador’s case, 43 projects from 23 public institutions were selected to establish the baseline measurement for the index.
The ITI is scored on a 100-point scale and aims to provide critical insights into the country’s challenges and opportunities for improvement in infrastructure transparency. The first ITI assessment in El Salvador yielded an average score of 36.77 points, with the dimensions of capacity and processes, as well as citizen participation, identified as the weakest areas according to CoST El Salvador.
Get in touch
CoST El Salvador
elsalvador@infrastructuretransparency.org
Useful Links
https://costelsalvador.org.sv/