Greetings from Honduras! I am here in Tegucigalpa with our CityLinks Program Director, Joseph Lombardo, and the Honduras Project Manager, Carlos Loria, to document the launch of the Honduras Pilot Partnership. We are delighted to announce that the city of Los Angeles, California is partnering with us in this project to lend its expertise in crime prevention, and their Deputy Mayor, Guillermo Cespedes, has also joined us for the week.

Today, we hosted a ceremony for a memorandum of understanding signing with the Minister of FHIS, the Honduras Social Investment Fund. During the next 10-12 months, we will work with FHIS to implement the CPTED methodology in several neighborhoods in La Ceiba and Choloma. The Vice President of Honduras, María Antonieta Guillen, spoke first and expressed her gratitude for USAID’s work in Honduras. She and the President have vowed to support FHIS related programs and appreciate the opportunity to learn from Los Angeles and their best practices in crime prevention. The government’s involvement and dedication to this project encouraged the media to film the entire ceremony, and as I am typing, I’m currently watching the event on the national government channel!

After Mr. Lombardo spoke briefly about the concept of the Honduras pilot, Miguel Edgardo Martinez, the Minister of FHIS, and the Deputy Director of USAID Honduras, Kurt Pope, articulated their confidence in the project.

I was able to speak briefly with the Minister and ask him about FHIS’s involvement in the Honduras pilot project. FHIS was created in the 1990s by the Honduran government and works in both rural and urban areas improving local infrastructure. They construct roads, schools, and bridges, and are usually the first ones on the scene when an emergency occurs. One of the goals the Honduran President wants to accomplish is decentralization of all projects and funds, and FHIS is working with municipalities to fulfill this objective. Through CityLinks, FHIS hopes to learn how to successfully implement the CPTED methodology and use it in other vulnerable communities. The participating neighborhoods will have the opportunity to lead the projects, creating more ownership and cohesion in the communities.

We are leaving Tegucigalpa in the morning to meet with the Mayors of La Ceiba and Choloma later this week…more updates to come!