Fundacion Empresarial para el Desarrollo

The project is intended to solve Fepade's and Iseade's current infrastructure problems by building a campus in the outskirts of San Salvador. This will enable these two prestigious institutions to expand their professional training activities and will also help bring the Foundation's environmental management up to international standards. The IIC's role will cover the following areas:



Long-term financing for a sound educational institution: Fepade's activities are expanding, as evidenced by its revenue growth ($2.3 million in 2001, up from $1.9 million in 1997). This clearly reflects Fepade's position in the local educational market, as well as its soundness, considering that lately the Salvadorian economy has faced a very difficult situation, with two earthquakes plus a drastic drop in the prices of its main export products (coffee and bananas).



Education for all: Fepade's market niche is broad, given its variety of courses, seminars, and programs. While Fepade caters to the middle and working classes, Iseade trains and educates entrepreneurs. Thus, Fepade's educational services have a significant economic impact in El Salvador, starting with workers and going all the way up the corporate ladder. To date, Fepade and Iseade have trained more than 70,000 individuals.



Tailor-made education: In 1986, a group of national and international entrepreneurs from 47 enterprises, banks, and foundations in El Salvador created Fepade to support the Government's efforts in the education sector and provide training for their staff. So far, dozens of small, medium-size, and large financial and nonfinancial enterprises have become Fepade's customers. In 2001, 91% of the total number of class-hours was for tailor-made educational services (e.g., accounting and finance, quality control, management, and human resources seminars).



An institution that supports the Government's efforts in the educational area: In 1993, the Government of El Salvador created the Instituto Salvadoreño para la Formación Profesional (INSAFORP), an institution tasked with organizing and coordinating professional training courses and seminars all over the country. Fepade is one of the educational institutions that, through INSAFORP, participate in the training of Salvadoran workers.



Strengthening a high-quality educational program: In late 1980, Fepade decided to create and sponsor an institution for graduate studies in business administration. After researching and studying several executive master's programs, it decided to create the Universidad Superior de Economía y Administración de Empresas (USEADE), which in 1997 became Iseade in order to meet Salvadoran legal requirements. Four hundred twenty students have graduated from this school since its inception. Currently, Iseade has several exchange agreements with foreign universities such as Florida International University (U.S.), Instituto Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico), and Universidad Anáhuac (Mexico).



Strategic protection of the institution's financial foundations: On 14 March 1994, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) initiated a program with Fepade under which each institution would contribute US$1 million for the creation of an endowment fund. The endowment fund was intended to provide, long-term, the resources needed for Fepade's self support. The goals originally established for this program were amply met: currently, the balance in the endowment fund is US$12.3 million. The IIC's financing will enable Fepade to avoid tapping the endowment fund's resources to finance the construction of its educational campus, thereby maintaining its sound financial position.