Usulutan Department

Usulután Department spans El Salvador's central-eastern Pacific coast, its agricultural economy producing cotton (historically), grain, and livestock. The Jiquilisco Bay mangrove system—largest in El Salvador—provides ecosystem services (fish nurseries, coastal protection) while supporting artisanal fishing that sustains coastal communities. This natural asset attracted conservation attention while creating development constraints.

The civil war's 1980s violence displaced populations throughout the department; some areas remain sparsely settled decades later. Agricultural production recovered unevenly, with some zones returning to cultivation while others converted to pasture or scrub. The pattern reflects how conflict-induced displacement can permanently alter settlement and land use.

Usulután city serves as departmental capital and regional market center. The Tecapa-San Miguel volcanic complex creates fertile soils inland while coastal lowlands support different agricultural systems. Like neighboring departments, emigration has accelerated—remittances fund consumption that local production cannot support. Whether Usulután can develop sustainable fisheries and tourism around Jiquilisco Bay—without degrading the mangroves that make both possible—poses the central development challenge.