This webinar will be held in both English and Spanish. Translation from English to Spanish and vice versa will be provided.
 

Gangs like Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, are known for having complete territorial control over urban neighborhoods, with violence and extortion as their main activities. In countries with low state capacity, these activities can limit socio-economic development in those areas.

A particularly common and controversial policy, which governments have used in an attempt to limit the negative consequences of gang violence, is to broker a truce between gangs in order to reduce competition. In El Salvador, for example, cooperation between gangs appears to have reduced violence, but little is known about the effect on extortion, the main revenue source for gangs, and the impact on households.

In this webinar, Eduardo Montero (University of Michigan) and Mica Sviatschi (Princeton University) will discuss their research on how gangs affect the economic conditions in the areas where they rule, and the role of truces. Noah Bullock (Cristosal) will discuss the policy implications of this work. A 10-minute Q&A will follow the presentations.

We very much hope you will be able to join us. If there are others in your network who you believe would benefit from participating, please feel free to forward this invitation to them.