Like El Salvador, Ecuador has wielded political power to purge its crime, a basic responsibility of government too many elites have forgotten. 

Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has been inspired by Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s effective assertion of state power over crime syndicates. Both countries were once among the most dangerous in the world due to their violent gang-related crime rates and seemingly incurable drug problems. Under their new regimes, however, both have become so safe that they are attracting foreigners.