El Salvador (Republic of El Salvador)

El Salvador Republic of El Salvador
Status	Independent State
Social and Moral Index	93rd best
Capital	San Salvador
Land Area	20 720km21
Location	North America, The Americas, Central America
Population	6.4m2
Life Expectancy	70.75yrs (2017)3
GNI	$8 296 (2017)4
ISO3166-1 Codes	SV, SLV, 2225
Internet Domain	.sv6
Currency	Dollar (USD)7
Telephone	+5038

1. Overview
2. El Salvador National and Social Development
3. El Salvador's Demographics and Migration
4. El Salvador's Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance
5. El Salvador's Health
6. El Salvador's Responsibility Towards The Environment
7. El Salvador's Modernity and Learning
8. El Salvador's Culture, Peace and Inequality
9. Religion and Beliefs
10. Links

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1. Overview

#spain

“El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms.”

CIA's The World Factbook (2013)₉

“Surf´s up in El Salvador, a tiny Central American nation finally emerging as a hot travel destination after a not-so-distant civil war and internal hardships kept it off the tourist radar. El Salvador is Central America´s smallest, most densely populated country, with the region´s largest economy and its fewest foreign tourists. Once only a trickle of headstrong surfers and foreign correspondents passed through its rigorous border posts, but now a new breed of traveler is pushing through in search of an authentic experience in an undervisited land.

El Salvador is a perennial tease. Glimpses of tropical paradise, lush tracts of pre-industrial national park lands, colonial splendor astride pristine volcanic lakes, searing colors and a fierce creative vision sit quietly in the shadows of an indomitable local pride. Here you´ll find a glorious coastline, a buzzing culture-clad capital, hard-core war tourism and small-town charm by the plaza-load.

Salvadorans themselves are increasingly content to return home from prolonged stints abroad, the once enviable rite of passage now cut short by global economics and a growing sentiment that home might just be where the fresh start is.”

"The World" by Lonely Planet (2014)₁₀

2. El Salvador National and Social Development

#economics #human_development #wealth

UN HDI (2021)11
Pos.		Higher is better Value11
1	Switzerland	0.962
2	Norway	0.961
3	Iceland	0.959
	...
122	Tajikistan	0.685
123=	Belize	0.683
123=	Morocco	0.683
125	El Salvador	0.675
126	Nicaragua	0.667
127	Bhutan	0.666
128	Cape Verde	0.662
129	Bangladesh	0.661
	The Americas Avg	0.75
	World Avg	0.72
q=191.

Gross National Income Per-Capita (2021)11
Pos.		Higher is better PPP $11
1	Liechtenstein	$146 830
2	Singapore	$90 919
3	Qatar	$87 134
	...
115	Jamaica	$8 834
116	Guatemala	$8 723
117	Namibia	$8 634
118	El Salvador	$8 296
119	Bolivia	$8 111
120	Uzbekistan	$7 917
121	Cuba	$7 879
122	Vietnam	$7 867
	The Americas Avg	$16 628
	World Avg	$20 136
q=193.

Social & Moral Development Index12
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank12
1	Denmark	27.0
2	Norway	29.9
3	Sweden	31.8
	...
90	Dominican Rep.	85.5
91	Kuwait	86.0
92	Grenada	86.3
93	El Salvador	86.5
94	Fiji	87.4
95	Belarus	87.7
96	Mongolia	87.8
97	Bolivia	88.4
	The Americas Avg	81.5
	World Avg	88.6
q=199.

The United Nations produces an annual Human Development Report which includes the Human Development Index. The factors taken into account include life expectancy, education and schooling and Gross National Income (GNI) amongst many others..

The Social and Moral Development Index concentrates on moral issues and human rights, violence, public health, equality, tolerance, freedom and effectiveness in climate change mitigation and environmentalism, and on some technological issues. A country scores higher for achieving well in those areas, and for sustaining that achievement in the long term. Those countries towards the top of this index can truly said to be setting good examples and leading humankind onwards into a bright, humane, and free future. See: Which are the Best Countries in the World? The Social and Moral Development Index.

3. El Salvador's Demographics and Migration

#birth_control #demographics #fertility #health #immigration #life_expectancy #longevity #migration #overpopulation #population #yemen

Population:

El Salvador's population is predicted to rise to 7.093 million by 2030. This rise is despite a low fertility rate, meaning, that this country is helping to alleviate problems with growing population in neighbouring countries by accepting immigrants, very likely as a requirement of maintaining an active workforce. This country has a fertility rate of 1.79. The fertility rate is, in simple terms, the average amount of children that each woman has. The higher the figure, the quicker the population will grow, although, to calculate the rate you also need to take into account morbidity - the rate at which people die. If people live healthy and long lives and morbidity is low, then, 2.0 approximates to the replacement rate (two new children for each set of parents who die), which would keep the population stable. If all countries had such a fertility rate, population growth would end. The actual replacement rate in most developed countries is around 2.1. The highest fertility rate ever detected in a single year was in Yemen in 1985, at 8.86.₁₃

Population2
Pos.		2018 Population2
1	China	1.4b
2	India	1.4b
3	USA	327.1m
	...
107	Lebanon	6.9m
108	Libya	6.7m
109	Nicaragua	6.5m
110	El Salvador	6.4m
111	Kyrgyzstan	6.3m
112	Turkmenistan	5.9m
113	Singapore	5.8m
114	Denmark	5.8m
	World Avg	39.0m
q=195.

Life Expectancy Higher is better11
Pos.		2021 Years11
1	Monaco	85.9
2	Hong Kong	85.5
3	Japan	84.8
	...
105	Tonga	71.0
106	Mongolia	71.0
107	Uzbekistan	70.9
108	El Salvador	70.7
109	Micronesia	70.7
110	Venezuela	70.6
111	Jamaica	70.5
112	Belize	70.5
	World Avg	71.28
q=195.

Fertility Rate 2.0 is best14
Pos.		202214
1	US Virgin Islands	2.00
2	Ecuador	2.00
3	Nepal	2.01
	...
30	France	1.79
31	N. Korea	1.79
32	Malaysia	1.79
33	El Salvador	1.79
34	Qatar	1.78
35	Bulgaria	1.78
36	St Vincent & Grenadines	1.78
37	Brunei	1.76
	World Avg	2.47
q=208.

Old-Age Dependency Ratio Lower is better15
Pos.		2016 Per 10015
1	Uganda	04.3
2	Mali	04.5
3=	Chad	04.7
	...
105	Suriname	16.2
106=	Grenada	16.2
106=	Brunei	16.2
108	El Salvador	17.3
109	Panama	17.7
110	N. Korea	17.8
111	Turkey	18.0
112	Vietnam	18.3
	World Avg	18.3
q=185.

• The Population of the Earth
• Abortion, Birth Control and Contraception

Migration:

Immigrants16
Pos.		2017 %16
1	UAE	88.4%
2	Kuwait	75.5%
3	Qatar	65.2%
	...
161	Tanzania	0.9%
162	Mozambique	0.8%
163	Jamaica	0.8%
164	El Salvador	0.7%
165	Laos	0.7%
166	Nicaragua	0.7%
167	Nigeria	0.6%
168	Algeria	0.6%
	World Avg	9.4%
q=195.

Emigrants17
Pos.		2010 %17
1	Dominica	104.8%
2	Palestine	68.4%
3	Samoa	67.3%
	...
27	Fiji	21.3%
28	Portugal	20.8%
29	Lesotho	20.5%
30	El Salvador	20.5%
31	Micronesia	19.7%
32	Belarus	18.4%
33	Eritrea	18.0%
34	Croatia	17.1%
	World Avg	11.5%
q=192.

4. El Salvador's Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance

#el_salvador #equality #freedom #freethought #gender #gender_equality #homosexuality #human_rights #international_law #mass_media #misogyny #morals #politics #prejudice #religious_tolerance #slavery #tolerance #women

Compared to The Americas (2025)18
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank18
1	Canada	14.7
2	Costa Rica	31.8
3	Uruguay	35.5
	...
22	Belize	73.4
23	Dominican Rep.	78.0
24	St Kitts & Nevis	79.1
25	El Salvador	79.5
26	Paraguay	80.8
27	Honduras	81.1
28	Suriname	81.5
29	Guatemala	81.5
30	Grenada	86.1
	The Americas Avg	71.80
q=36.

Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance (2025)18
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank18
1	Sweden	6.1
2	Denmark	8.6
3	Norway	9.0
	...
82	Micronesia	78.2
83	Armenia	78.5
84	St Kitts & Nevis	79.1
85	El Salvador	79.5
86	Philippines	79.6
87	Moldova	80.6
88	Palau	80.7
89	Paraguay	80.8
	World Avg	86.55
q=199.

The best countries in the world at ensuring human rights, fostering equality and promoting tolerance, are Sweden, Denmark and Norway₁₉. These countries are displaying the best traits that humanity has to offer. The worst countries are Somalia, N. Korea and Afghanistan₁₉.

21 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on supporting press freedom, eliminating modern slavery, supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms, its average Freedom in the World rating, commentary in Human Rights Watch reports, its nominal commitment to Human Rights, speed of uptake of HR treaties, opposing gender inequality, the rate of gender bias (from 7 indicators), the year from which women could participate in democracy, its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice, LGBT equality and freethought. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Baltic States and Europe₁₉, whereas the worst are Africa, The Middle East and Asia₁₉.

For more, see:

• " Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Human Rights & Tolerance:

Press Freedom Higher is better20
Pos.		202520
1	Norway	92.31
2	Estonia	89.46
3	Netherlands	88.64
	...
131	Lebanon	42.62
132	Congo, DR	42.31
133	Oman	42.29
134	El Salvador	41.19
135	Somalia	40.49
136	Libya	40.42
137	Guatemala	40.32
138	Sri Lanka	39.93
	The Americas Avg	55.99
	World Avg	54.65
q=179.

Slavery Lower is better21
Pos.		2018 % Victims21
1	Japan	0.03
2=	Canada	0.05
2=	Taiwan	0.05
	...
45	Ecuador	0.24
46=	Italy	0.24
46=	Morocco	0.24
48	El Salvador	0.25
49=	Portugal	0.25
50	Peru	0.26
51=	Guyana	0.26
51=	Jamaica	0.26
	The Americas Avg	0.25
	World Avg	0.65
q=167.

Personal, Civil & Economic Freedom Lower is better22
Pos.		2014 Rank22
1	Hong Kong	1
2	Switzerland	2
3	New Zealand	3
	...
55=	Armenia	55
55=	Macedonia	55
55=	Suriname	55
58	El Salvador	58
59	Ghana	59
60	Jamaica	60
61=	Haiti	61
61=	Fiji	61
	The Americas Avg	72.4
	World Avg	79.7
q=159.

Freedom in the World Lower is better
Pos.		2024 Score
1=	Norway	1.0
1=	Canada	1.0
1=	Cape Verde	1.0
	...
120	Madagascar	4.0
121=	Malaysia	4.0
121=	Ukraine	4.0
123	El Salvador	4.5
124=	Comoros	4.5
124=	Nigeria	4.5
124=	Togo	4.5
124=	Bangladesh	4.5
	The Americas Avg	2.7
	World Avg	3.7
q=205.

Nominal Commitment to HR Higher is better23
Pos.		2009 Treaties23
1	Argentina	24
2=	Chile	23
2=	Costa Rica	23
	...
71	Malta	18
72=	Tunisia	18
72=	Niger	18
72=	El Salvador	18
75	Mongolia	17
76=	Timor-Leste (E. Timor)	17
76=	Estonia	17
76=	Turkmenistan	17
	The Americas Avg	16.5
	World Avg	15.1
q=194.

HR Treaties Lag Lower is better24
Pos.		2019 Avg Yrs/Treaty24
1	Ecuador	2.15
2	Uruguay	2.25
3	Tunisia	3.65
	...
39	UK	6.62
40	Portugal	6.69
41	Bolivia	6.70
42	El Salvador	6.80
43	Rwanda	6.83
44	Sri Lanka	6.91
45	Syria	7.02
46	Uganda	7.03
	The Americas Avg	8.45
	World Avg	10.02
q=195.

Amnesty International's 2023-23 summary on human rights in El Salvador stated:

“Authorities declared a state of emergency resulting in massive human rights violations, weakening of the rule of law, as well as a continuous and serious deterioration in access to public information. Attacks against human rights defenders and journalists remained entrenched. Authorities failed to pass a law guaranteeing the rights of victims of crimes under international law committed during the armed conflict (1980-1992). The absolute prohibition of abortion remained in force.”

"The State of the World's Human Rights 2022/23" by Amnesty International (2023)₂₅

Gender Equality:

El Salvador has made some steps towards ending gender inequality but much more needs to be done.

See:

• "Religion Versus Womankind" by Vexen Crabtree (2007)

Gender Inequality Lower is better26
Pos.		202226
1	Denmark	0.01
2	Norway	0.01
3	Switzerland	0.02
	...
82	Kyrgyzstan	0.35
83	Jamaica	0.35
84	Mexico	0.36
85	El Salvador	0.37
86	Mauritius	0.37
87	Peru	0.37
88	Ecuador	0.37
89	Sri Lanka	0.37
	The Americas Avg	0.36
	World Avg	0.34
q=166.

Year Women Can Vote Lower is better
Pos.		Total Year
1	New Zealand	1893
2	Australia	1902
3	Finland	1906
	...
125=	Tonga	1960
125=	Cyprus	1960
125=	Gambia	1960
128	El Salvador	1961
129=	Rwanda	1961
129=	Mauritania	1961
129=	Burundi	1961
129=	Malawi	1961
	The Americas Avg	1947
	World Avg	1930
q=189.

Prejudice:

LGBT Equality Higher is better27
Pos.		2017 Score27
1	Netherlands	103
2	Belgium	90
3	Sweden	86
	...
52=	Bosnia & Herzegovina	35
52=	Georgia	35
52=	Nicaragua	35
52=	El Salvador	35
52=	Kosovo	35
57	Thailand	34
58	Bulgaria	33
59	Fiji	32
	The Americas Avg	26.1
	World Avg	12.6
q=196.

Freedom of Thought Lower is better28
Pos.		202128
1=	Belgium	1.0
1=	Taiwan	1.0
1=	Netherlands	1.0
	...
93	Australia	3.0
94=	Lesotho	3.0
94=	Switzerland	3.0
94=	El Salvador	3.0
94=	Serbia	3.0
94=	Cyprus	3.0
94=	Ivory Coast	3.0
94=	Spain	3.0
	The Americas Avg	2.7
	World Avg	3.0
q=196.

5. El Salvador's Health

#alcohol #birth_control #demographics #el_salvador #health #life_expectancy #longevity #mental_health #obesity #overpopulation #parenting #population #smoking #suicide #vaccines

Compared to The Americas (2025)29
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank29
1	Greenland	34.3
2	Curaço	49.7
3	Aruba	49.9
	...
29	Panama	95.6
30	St Lucia	96.0
31	Mexico	98.0
32	El Salvador	101.3
33	Peru	101.8
34	Guyana	106.7
35	Suriname	108.1
36	Venezuela	108.1
37	Belize	111.0
	The Americas Avg	92.66
q=44.

Health (2025)29
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank29
1	Monaco	14.3
2	Liechtenstein	30.1
3	Isle of Man	32.1
	...
122	Guam	99.3
123	Kyrgyzstan	100.5
124	Algeria	100.7
125	El Salvador	101.3
126	Palau	101.7
127	Peru	101.8
128	Turkmenistan	102.7
129	Palestine	104.6
	World Avg	96.74
q=212.

The countries with the best overall approach to public health, in terms of both public policy and individual lifestyle choices, are Monaco, Liechtenstein and The Isle of Man₃₀. These countries are worth emulating. And, although often through no fault of the average citizen, the worst countries are S. Sudan, Angola and Nigeria₃₀.

21 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on its average life expectancy, its alcohol consumption rate, its fertility rate, its smoking rate, its suicide rate, its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance, the prevalence of overweight adults, its adolescent birth rate and its immunizations take-up. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Europe and The Balkans₃₀, whereas the worst are Africa, Micronesia and Melanesia₃₀.

For more, see:

• "Countries With the Healthiest Cultures and Health Policies" by Vexen Crabtree (2020).

Health:

El Salvador does relatively well in encouraging good health, compared to many other countries. El Salvador does better than average for its fertility rate₁₄, its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance₃₁, its smoking rate₃₂ and in its alcohol consumption rate₃₃ (one of the best in The Americas). El Salvador doesn't do so well in other areas. El Salvador does worse than average when it comes to its suicide rate₃₄, its immunizations take-up₃₅, its average life expectancy₁₁ and in its adolescent birth rate₃₆. The prevalence of overweight adults has increased by 14% during the last 40 years. Life expectancy in El Salvador improved by +10yrs in the 30 years from 1990, better than the global average of +7.9yrs. El Salvador is amongst only 41 countries who have seen their fertility rate drop by more than 4 since the 1960s. Its peak fertility rate was 6.69 in 1963.

Life Expectancy Higher is better11
Pos.		2021 Years11
1	Monaco	85.9
2	Hong Kong	85.5
3	Japan	84.8
	...
105	Tonga	71.0
106	Mongolia	71.0
107	Uzbekistan	70.9
108	El Salvador	70.7
109	Micronesia	70.7
110	Venezuela	70.6
111	Jamaica	70.5
112	Belize	70.5
	The Americas Avg	72.58
	World Avg	71.28
q=195.

Alcohol Consumption Lower is better33
Pos.		2016 Per Capita33
1	Bangladesh	0.0
2	Kuwait	0.0
3	Libya	0.0
	...
61	Kenya	3.4
62	Mauritius	3.6
63	Malawi	3.7
64=	El Salvador	3.8
64=	Gambia	3.8
64=	Israel	3.8
64=	UAE	3.8
68	N. Korea	3.9
	The Americas Avg	6.9
	World Avg	6.2
q=189.

Fertility Rate 2.0 is best14
Pos.		202214
1	US Virgin Islands	2.00
2	Ecuador	2.00
3	Nepal	2.01
	...
30	France	1.79
31	N. Korea	1.79
32	Malaysia	1.79
33	El Salvador	1.79
34	Qatar	1.78
35	Bulgaria	1.78
36	St Vincent & Grenadines	1.78
37	Brunei	1.76
	The Americas Avg	1.80
	World Avg	2.47
q=208.

Smoking Rates Lower is better32
Pos.		201432
1	Guinea	15
2	Solomon Islands	26
3	Kiribati	28
	...
53	Togo	250
54	Kenya	257
55	Mauritius	261
56	El Salvador	280
57	Comoros	289
58	Congo, (Brazzaville)	294
59	Bolivia	299
60	Bahamas	301
	The Americas Avg	457
	World Avg	819
q=182.

Suicide Rate34
Pos.		2013 Per 100k34
1	Haiti	0
2	Grenada	0
3	Egypt	0.1
	...
42	Argentina	15.6
43	Thailand	15.8
44	Australia	16.4
45	El Salvador	16.5
46	Kyrgyzstan	17.7
47	Netherlands	18.6
48	Luxembourg	19.3
49	Portugal	19.6
	The Americas Avg	13.57
	World Avg	20.93
q=91.

Food Aid, Health Contributions & WHO Compliance Lower is better31
Pos.		2017 Rank31
1	Sweden	1
2	Ireland	2
3	Denmark	3
	...
39	Portugal	39
40	Brazil	40
41	Iceland	41
42	El Salvador	42
43	Russia	43
44	Turkey	44
45	Mexico	45
46	Malaysia	46
	The Americas Avg	94.3
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Overweight Adults Lower is better37
Pos.		2016 %37
1	Vietnam	18.3
2	India	19.7
3	Bangladesh	20.0
	...
137=	Belgium	59.5
138	Lithuania	59.6
139=	Croatia	59.6
140	El Salvador	59.9
141	Dominica	60.3
142	Morocco	60.4
143	Ireland	60.6
144	Dominican Rep.	61.2
	The Americas Avg	57.4
	World Avg	49.0
q=191.

Children's Health:

Adolescent Birth Rate Lower is better36
Pos.		2022 Per 100036
1	Hong Kong	1.6
2	Denmark	1.8
3	S. Korea	2.1
	...
127	Mexico	53.7
128	Cape Verde	54.0
129	Papua New Guinea	54.3
130	El Salvador	54.5
131	Suriname	55.2
132	Comoros	56.1
133	Peru	56.1
134	Belize	56.6
	The Americas Avg	48.1
	World Avg	43.8
q=195.

Infant Immunizations 2011-2015 Higher is better35
Pos.		2015 Avg %35
1=	Hungary	99.0
1=	China	99.0
3	Uzbekistan	98.9
	...
99	Latvia	92.8
100	Romania	92.7
101	France	92.6
102=	El Salvador	92.4
102=	Swaziland	92.4
104	Palau	92.4
105	Vietnam	92.3
106	Denmark	92.3
	The Americas Avg	91.3
	World Avg	88.3
q=194.

El Salvador was amongst 49 countries in the 1990s who had an adolescent birth rate of over 100 (per 1000 girls aged 15-19) but from then to the 2000s, it was amongst the 10 countries that made the greatest improvements.

6. El Salvador's Responsibility Towards The Environment

#biodiversity #climate_change #deforestation #environmentalism #food #internationalism #meat #over-exploitation #the_environment #veganism #vegetarianism

Compared to The Americas (2025)38
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank38
1	Uruguay	43.2
2	Puerto Rico	47.1
3	Costa Rica	49.7
	...
7	Ecuador	65.6
8	Guatemala	66.1
9	Mexico	66.3
10	El Salvador	67.4
11	Brazil	70.2
12	Colombia	70.9
13	Argentina	78.5
14	Dominica	78.5
15	Cuba	79.4
	The Americas Avg	92.66
q=36.

Responsibility Towards The Environment (2025)38
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank38
1	Sri Lanka	34.9
2	Uruguay	43.2
3	Switzerland	45.0
	...
50	Mexico	66.3
51	Norway	66.9
52	Guinea	67.1
53	El Salvador	67.4
54	Bangladesh	69.7
55	Brazil	70.2
56	Maldives	70.5
57	Ivory Coast	70.8
	World Avg	84.93
q=199.

All countries' current and historical approach towards the environment is gauged via 21 datasets, including multiple decades of data on its forested percent change 2000-2020, its environmental performance, energy to GDP efficiency, its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment, the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population, reducing annual meat consumption per person and its score on the Green Future Index.

The countries that do the best (Sri Lanka, Uruguay and Switzerland) tend to have avoided the excesses of early industrial countries, and have not yet repeated the same mistakes of environmental destruction - at least, not on the same scale. The regions with the best average results per country are Central America, South America and Scandinavia. The worst are Eritrea, The Vatican City and Timor-Leste (E. Timor), and the worst regions Micronesia, Australasia and Melanesia.

For more, see:

• " Countries With the Best Environmental Records" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

El Salvador ranks 53rd in the world with regard to its responsibility towards the environment. This rank is derived from 6 data sets. El Salvador comes in the best 20 in the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population₃₉. It does better than average for energy to GDP efficiency₄₀, its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment and in reducing annual meat consumption per person₄₁. El Salvador doesn't do so well in other areas. El Salvador does worse than average in terms of its environmental performance₄₂ and in its forested percent change 2000-2020₄₃.

Environmental Performance Higher is better42
Pos.		201842
1	Switzerland	87.4
2	France	84.0
3	Denmark	81.6
	...
103	Suriname	54.2
104	Sao Tome & Principe	54.0
105	Paraguay	53.9
106	El Salvador	53.9
107	Fiji	53.1
108	Turkey	53.0
109	Ukraine	52.9
110	Guatemala	52.3
	The Americas Avg	58.8
	World Avg	56.4
q=180.

Energy to GDP Efficiency Lower is better40
Pos.		2022 Avg40
1	Rwanda	0.25
2	Chad	0.26
3	Tanzania	0.31
	...
41	Togo	0.74
42	Romania	0.75
43	Egypt	0.76
44	El Salvador	0.79
45	Guinea	0.80
46	UK	0.80
47	Pakistan	0.81
48	Comoros	0.81
	The Americas Avg	1.42
	World Avg	1.23
q=165.

International Accords on the Environment Higher is better
Pos.		Total Avg Rate
1	Sweden	83%
2	Canada	82%
3	Norway	81%
	...
64	China	64%
65	Malaysia	64%
66	Botswana	64%
67	El Salvador	64%
68	Iran	64%
69	Argentina	64%
70	Nicaragua	64%
71	Trinidad & Tobago	63%
	The Americas Avg	60.7%
	World Avg	57.5%
q=197.

El Salvador was one of the 19 countries that signed the Basel Convention on its very first day and one of only 5 countries to accept the Kyoto Protocol in its first few months; it was the very first country to enact the 1999 Rotterdam Convention on obtaining prior consent for transporting certain hazardous chemicals.

Rational Beliefs on the Environment Higher is better39
Pos.		2011 %39
1	Argentina	78.3%
2	Greece	77.6%
3	Brazil	77.1%
	...
12	Paraguay	68.9%
13	Mexico	67.0%
14	Nicaragua	67.0%
15	El Salvador	66.8%
16	Indonesia	66.5%
17	Japan	64.7%
18	Panama	64.6%
19	Peru	63.9%
	The Americas Avg	58.6%
	World Avg	39.9%
q=145.

Meat Consumption Lower is better41
Pos.		2021 kg41
1	Congo, DR	03.0
2	Burundi	03.5
3	Bangladesh	04.3
	...
78	Uzbekistan	42.3
79	Turkey	43.0
80	Vanuatu	43.4
81	El Salvador	43.9
82	Fiji	44.4
83	Congo, (Brazzaville)	46.0
84	Bosnia & Herzegovina	46.8
85	Chad	47.1
	The Americas Avg	70.3
	World Avg	52.5
q=185.

7. El Salvador's Modernity and Learning

#capitalism #charity #corruption #economics #education #extremism #happiness #health #human_development #inequality #intelligence #life_expectancy #modernity #morals #peace #politics #poverty #religion #religiosity #religious_violence #research #science #secularisation #social_development #technology #terrorism #the_internet

Compared to The Americas (2020)44
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank44
1=	Canada	21.8
2	USA	26.4
3	Argentina	38.2
	...
27	Jamaica	94.6
28	Paraguay	103.1
29	Suriname	106.6
30	El Salvador	109.2
31	Nicaragua	121.4
32	Guatemala	121.5
33	Guyana	122.5
34	Honduras	132.2
35=	Haiti	155.6
	The Americas Avg	81.34
q=35.

Modernity & Learning (2020)44
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank44
1	Finland	7.1
2	Belgium	12.9
3	Denmark	13.6
	...
120	Paraguay	103.1
121	Suriname	106.6
122	Gabon	108.2
123	El Salvador	109.2
124	Uganda	109.8
125	Ghana	110.3
126	Nigeria	111.1
127	Marshall Islands	111.1
	World Avg	86.31
q=190.

The most modern countries, with the best results from education, the highest levels of research, and with the easiest access to information on the Internet, are Finland, Belgium and Denmark₄₅. The worst countries are Eritrea, S. Sudan and Sierra Leone₄₅. Despite improves in global education, access to tertiary (adult) education is becoming increasingly unequal between the rich haves and the poor have-nots₄₆.

“Education, at all levels and ages, is the single most vital support for equality as well as being a country's most vital economic and social resource. [...] Every successful aspirant to modernisation and economic development, from Japan to South Korea, China to Chile, has got there with a big emphasis on education.”

Bill Emmott (2017)₄₇

15 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on Research and Development, Secondary Education, Length of Schooling, Intellectual Endeavours, Maths, Science & Reading, Religiosity, IQ, the percent of citizens with access to the internet, Freedom On The Internet, IT Security, IPv6 Uptake and digital quality of life. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Baltic States and Europe₄₅, whereas the worst are Melanesia, Africa and Micronesia₄₅.

For more, see:

• " Which Countries are Most Modern, With the Best Education and Internet Access?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Modernity and Education:

Research & Development Higher is better
Pos.		2016 % RDP PPP
1	S. Korea	4.2948
2	Israel	4.1148
3	Japan	3.5848
	...
119=	Honduras	0.0449
119=	Guatemala	0.0450
119=	Bahrain	0.0451
119=	Colombia	0.0451
123	Iraq	0.0352
124=	El Salvador	0.0350
124=	China	0.0351
126	Lesotho	0.0152
	The Americas Avg	0.47
	World Avg	0.84
q=126.

Secondary Education Higher is better53
Pos.		201853
1=	Luxembourg	100.0%
1=	Estonia	100.0%
1=	Austria	100.0%
	...
120	St Lucia	46.0%
121	Thailand	44.8%
122	Zambia	44.3%
123	El Salvador	42.8%
124	Namibia	41.1%
125	Syria	41.0%
126	Sao Tome & Principe	40.8%
127	Togo	40.5%
	The Americas Avg	63.0%
	World Avg	63.0%
q=169.

Length of Schooling Higher is better54
Pos.		2021 Years54
1	Australia	21.1
2	New Zealand	20.3
3	Greece	20.0
	...
118	Libya	12.9
119	Venezuela	12.8
120	Malawi	12.7
121	El Salvador	12.7
122	Nicaragua	12.6
123	Qatar	12.6
124	Maldives	12.6
125	Timor-Leste (E. Timor)	12.6
	The Americas Avg	14.2
	World Avg	13.5
q=193.

Intellectual Endeavours Lower is better31
Pos.		2017 Rank31
1	Ukraine	1
2	Czechia	2
3	Hungary	3
	...
118	Rwanda	118
119	Guatemala	119
120	Niger	120
121	El Salvador	121
122	Dominican Rep.	122
123	Oman	123
124	Chad	124
125	Brunei	125
	The Americas Avg	99.8
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Religiosity Lower is better55
Pos.		2018 %55
1	China	3
2	Estonia	6
3	Czechia	7
	...
74=	Bangladesh	80
74=	India	80
76	Iraq	82
77=	El Salvador	85
77=	Jordan	85
79	Palestine	86
80=	Uganda	86
80=	Chad	86
	The Americas Avg	65.4
	World Avg	54.3
q=106.

IQ Higher is better56
Pos.		200656
1=	Hong Kong	108
1=	Singapore	108
3	S. Korea	106
	...
97=	Egypt	81
97=	Honduras	81
97=	Nicaragua	81
100	El Salvador	80
101=	Guatemala	79
101=	Sri Lanka	79
103	Nepal	78
104	Mauritania	76
	The Americas Avg	85.3
	World Avg	85.6
q=138.

Technology and Information:

Internet Users Higher is better57
Pos.		201657
1	Iceland	100%
2	Faroe Islands	99%
3	Norway	98%
	...
121	Peru	41%
122	Guyana	40%
123	Grenada	39%
124	El Salvador	38%
125	Bhutan	37%
126	Mongolia	36%
127	India	35%
128	Kyrgyzstan	34%
	The Americas Avg	56.4%
	World Avg	48.1%
q=201.

IPv6 Uptake Higher is better58
Pos.		2017 Ratio58
1	Belgium	55.4
2	Germany	41.8
3	Switzerland	35.1
	...
87=	US Virgin Islands	0.0
87=	Mauritius	0.0
89	Botswana	0.0
90=	El Salvador	0.0
90=	Kenya	0.0
90=	Cameroon	0.0
90=	Kyrgyzstan	0.0
94	Cambodia	0.0
	The Americas Avg	3.36
	World Avg	3.82
q=176.

Digital Quality of Life Higher is better59
Pos.		202459
1	Germany	77.9%
2	Finland	76.9%
3	France	73.9%
	...
105	Nepal	30.3%
106	Venezuela	30.1%
107	Zambia	30.1%
108	El Salvador	30.0%
109	Cambodia	29.4%
110	Honduras	28.5%
111	Burkina Faso	27.0%
112	Tanzania	26.9%
	The Americas Avg	44.7%
	World Avg	48.4%
q=121.

8. El Salvador's Culture, Peace and Inequality

#capitalism #charitability #charity #corruption #culture #economics #equality #extremism #happiness #health #human_development #inequality #life_expectancy #morals #peace #politics #poverty #religious_violence #social_development #terrorism

Compared to The Americas (2020)60
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank60
1	Canada	23.1
2	Barbados	46.9
3	Costa Rica	47.3
	...
18	Dominican Rep.	84.9
19	Guyana	84.9
20	Suriname	85.4
21	El Salvador	85.5
22	Mexico	87.2
23	Peru	87.3
24	Ecuador	88.1
25	Bolivia	88.8
26	St Vincent & Grenadines	89.2
	The Americas Avg	79.19
q=33.

Culture, Peace & Inequality (2020)60
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank60
1	Denmark	11.2
2	Norway	13.9
3	Netherlands	14.4
	...
99	Dominican Rep.	84.9
100	Guyana	84.9
101	Suriname	85.4
102	El Salvador	85.5
103	India	85.6
104	Algeria	86.2
105	Turkey	86.8
106	Georgia	87.1
	World Avg	78.12
q=180.

This is the final pillar of the Social and Moral Development Index; it has 22 datasets, including multiple decades of data on World Giving Index, resisting corruption, overall happiness, Creativity and Culture, Open Trading, Aid and Development, its Global Peace Index rating, Peacekeeping and Security, Refugees and UN Treaties, the impact of terrorism, Inequality in Life Expectancy, Income Inequality (Gini Coefficient) and Multidimensional Poverty.

For more, see:

• "Which are the Countries for International Contributions, Creativity, Peace and Inequality?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

National Culture:

World Giving Index Higher is better61
Pos.		2022 %61
1	Indonesia	68.0
2	Kenya	61.0
3	USA	59.0
	...
84=	Mauritius	37.0
84=	Lithuania	37.0
86	Panama	36.0
87=	El Salvador	36.0
87=	Saudi Arabia	36.0
89	S. Africa	35.0
90=	Ivory Coast	35.0
90=	Congo, (Brazzaville)	35.0
	The Americas Avg	43.7
	World Avg	39.6
q=125.

Corruption Higher is better62
Pos.		2022 Points62
1	Denmark	90.0
2=	Finland	87.0
2=	New Zealand	87.0
	...
115	Nepal	34.0
116	Ukraine	33.0
117=	Mongolia	33.0
117=	El Salvador	33.0
117=	Zambia	33.0
117=	Algeria	33.0
117=	Angola	33.0
117=	Philippines	33.0
	The Americas Avg	42.97
	World Avg	42.98
q=180.

Happiness Higher is better63
Pos.		2024 Score63
1	Finland	7.7
2	Denmark	7.5
3	Iceland	7.5
	...
34	Singapore	6.6
35	Romania	6.6
36	Brazil	6.5
37	El Salvador	6.5
38	Spain	6.5
39	Estonia	6.4
40	Italy	6.4
41	Panama	6.4
	The Americas Avg	6.31
	World Avg	5.58
q=147.

Creativity & Culture Lower is better31
Pos.		2017 Rank31
1	Belgium	1
2	Netherlands	2
3	Estonia	3
	...
96	Mongolia	96
97	Madagascar	97
98	Bolivia	98
99	El Salvador	99
100	Nicaragua	100
101	Russia	101
102	Vietnam	102
103	Armenia	103
	The Americas Avg	80.2
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Open Trading, Aid & Development Lower is better31
Pos.		2017 Rank31
1	Ireland	1
2	Denmark	2
3	Sweden	3
	...
55	Swaziland	55
56	Luxembourg	56
57	Mali	57
58	El Salvador	58
59	Senegal	59
60	Kyrgyzstan	60
61	Qatar	61
62	USA	62
	The Americas Avg	100.5
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Peace Versus Instability:

Global Peace Index Lower is better64
Pos.		2023 Score64
1	Iceland	1.12
2	Denmark	1.31
3	Ireland	1.31
	...
119	Saudi Arabia	2.26
120	Honduras	2.27
121	Egypt	2.27
122	El Salvador	2.28
123	Nicaragua	2.29
124=	Uganda	2.30
124=	Zimbabwe	2.30
126	India	2.31
	The Americas Avg	2.13
	World Avg	2.07
q=163.

Peacekeeping & Security Lower is better31
Pos.		2017 Rank31
1	Samoa	1
2	S. Africa	2
3	Tunisia	3
	...
131	Syria	131
132	Belarus	132
133	Portugal	133
134	El Salvador	134
135	Macedonia	135
136	Armenia	136
137	Dominica	137
138	Cape Verde	138
	The Americas Avg	82.3
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Refugees & UN Treaties Lower is better31
Pos.		2017 Rank31
1	Austria	1
2	Germany	2
3	Netherlands	3
	...
144	Rwanda	144
145	Chad	145
146	Central African Rep.	146
147	El Salvador	147
148	Bahamas	148
149	Marshall Islands	149
150	Burundi	150
151	Zimbabwe	151
	The Americas Avg	91.5
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Impact of Terrorism Lower is better65
Pos.		2019 Score65
1	Togo	0.00
2	Mongolia	0.00
3	Swaziland	0.00
	...
10	Slovenia	0.00
11	Costa Rica	0.00
12	Romania	0.00
13	El Salvador	0.00
14	Bhutan	0.01
15=	Trinidad & Tobago	0.02
15=	Uzbekistan	0.02
17	Qatar	0.03
	The Americas Avg	2.16
	World Avg	2.78
q=150.

Economic Inequality and Poverty:

Inequality in Life Expectancy Lower is better66
Pos.		201966
1	Iceland	2.40
2=	Singapore	2.50
2=	Hong Kong	2.50
	...
96	Palestine	12.00
97	Solomon Islands	12.10
98	Cape Verde	12.20
99	El Salvador	12.50
100	Suriname	12.80
101	Vietnam	12.90
102=	Syria	13.00
102=	Morocco	13.00
	The Americas Avg	12.03
	World Avg	14.59
q=184.

Income Inequality (Gini Coefficient) Lower is better67
Pos.		2023 %67
1	Slovakia	24.1%68
2	Slovenia	24.3%68
3	Belarus	24.4%69
	...
108	Malawi	38.5%70
109=	Samoa	38.7%71
109=	Kenya	38.7%68
111	El Salvador	38.8%72
112=	Gambia	38.8%69
112=	Laos	38.8%73
114	Bulgaria	39.0%68
115	Tuvalu	39.1%74
	The Americas Avg	44.0%
	World Avg	36.5%
q=167.

Multidimensional Poverty Lower is better75
Pos.		2018 Severity75
1	Armenia	.001
2	Ukraine	.001
3	Serbia	.001
	...
36	Indonesia	.028
37	Syria	.029
38	Tajikistan	.029
39	El Salvador	.032
40	Iraq	.033
41	Suriname	.041
42	Mongolia	.042
43	Peru	.053
	The Americas Avg	.045
	World Avg	.154
q=101.

9. Religion and Beliefs

#belief #buddhism #christianity #god #hinduism #islam #judaism #religion #religiosity #secularisation

Religiosity (2018)55
Pos.		Lower is better %55
1	China	3
2	Estonia	6
3	Czechia	7
	...
74=	Bangladesh	80
74=	India	80
76	Iraq	82
77=	El Salvador	85
77=	Jordan	85
79	Palestine	86
80=	Uganda	86
80=	Chad	86
80=	Niger	86
83	Kenya	87
84=	Mozambique	87
85	Congo, DR	88
86=	Nigeria	88
86=	Nicaragua	88
88	Djibouti	89
89=	Ghana	89
	World Avg	54.3
q=106.

Disbelief In God (2007)76
Pos.		Higher is better %76
1	Vietnam	81
2	Japan	65
3	Sweden	64
	...
82=	Venezuela	1
82=	Peru	1
82=	Guatemala	1
82=	El Salvador	1
82=	Panama	1
87	Somalia	0
88=	Sri Lanka	0
88=	Burundi	0
88=	Burkina Faso	0
88=	Brunei	0
88=	Botswana	0
88=	Syria	0
88=	Sierra Leone	0
88=	Thailand	0
88=	Togo	0
88=	Benin	0
	World Avg	9.9
q=137.

Data from the Pew Forum, a professional polling outfit, states that in 2010 the religious makeup of this country was as follows in the table below₇₇:

Christian	88.2%
Muslim	0.1%
Hindu	0.1%
Buddhist	0.1%
Folk Religion	0.5%
Jewish	0.1%
Unaffiliated	11%

The CIA World Factbook has slightly different data, and states: Roman Catholic 57.1%, Protestant 21.2%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.9%, Mormon 0.7%, other religions 2.3%, none 16.8% (2003 est.)₇₈.

The International Humanist and Ethical Union produced a report in 2012 entitled "Freedom of Thought" (2012)₇₉, in which they document bias and prejudice at the national level that is based on religion, belief and/or lack of belief. Their entry for El Salvador states:

“The constitution and other laws and policies protect freedom of religion or belief; however, Article 296 of the penal code imposes criminal sentences of six months to two years on those who publicly offend or insult the religious beliefs of others, or damage or destroy religious objects. If such acts are carried out with and for the purpose of publicity, sentences increase to one to three years in prison. Repeat offenders face prison sentences of three to eight years.”

"Freedom of Thought" by IHEU (2012)₈₀

Links:

• A List of All Religions and Belief Systems
• Secularisation Theory: Will Modern Society Reject Religion? What is Secularism?