From Ecuador’s El Encuentro and Paraguay’s Minga Guazú to projects still under construction or stalled before completion, these prisons reveal how governments across the region are reshaping their security strategies.
But history offers an important warning. Across Latin America, overcrowded prisons have often become spaces where criminal organizations recruit, organize, and expand their power.
In this analysis, we explore the rise of the region’s megaprison boom, the strategy behind CECOT, and the challenges of exporting El Salvador’s security model.
