51.6% of diaspora enterprises are led by women

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By LatAm Reports Staff Writers

The United States brings together 29 percent of the businesses established by Salvadorans abroad.

 More than 2.5 million Salvadorans live outside El Salvador, of this portion only 0.04 % has started a business since 2022. /Prensa San Salvador Centro

51.69 per cent of the diaspora’s entrepreneurship are led by women, according to the Digital Observatory on Human Mobility, by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Chancellery notes that 1,124 ventures have been identified between 2022 and so far in 2024. Of this portion, 45.28 % have men as owners, while 3.02 % were not identified.

The United States brings together 29 out of every 100 ventures founded by the Salvadoran diaspora. In total, Salvadorans operate 328 businesses in that country, of which 46.3 per cent are headed by men and 44.21 per cent by women.

36.2 percent of these businesses established in the United States offer professional services, while 28.6 percent are food and drink.

For its part, in Mexico there is 13.52% of the businesses detected by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in Spain it is 9.52 %.

Italy, Belize, Costa Rica and Chile accumulate 31.32 per cent of the enterprises of the diaspora.

Salvadorans have also established businesses in Panama, Argentina, Colombia, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Peru and the United Kingdom.

The register indicates that 314 companies are concentrated in the food and beverage sector, making up 27.9 percent of the total. This sector is only surpassed by professional services, a work to which 401 Salvadoran businesses are dedicated, 35.68 per cent of the total.

Over the past two years, the distant brothers have promoted businesses in sectors such as commerce and distribution, gastronomy, manual handicrafts and textiles, consulting services, as well as construction, cosmetics and personal care.
Diaspora

The Foreign Ministry estimates that outside El Salvador there are 2.5 million people who make up the Salvadoran diaspora. That is to say, approximately 0.04 %, only 0.04 % has established some kind of business since 2022.

The observatory notes that 89.56 percent is in the United States, the largest portion of Salvadorans are grouped in the states of California, Texas, Maryland, New York and Virginia.

For its part, 1.99 per cent is in Mexico and 1.97 per cent in Canada.

North America accounts for 93.53 per cent of Salvadorans living abroad, second is Central America and the Caribbean with 2.9 per cent, and Europe with 2.83%.

In detail, Salvadorans live in Spain, Guatemala, Italy, Costa Rica, Belize, Australia and Sweden. The list is joined by Panama, Honduras, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Germany and Nicaragua, among many more.

This article has been translated after first appearing in Diario El Mundo