ILEA San Salvador

What ILEA San Salvador does

ILEA San Salvador is a binational government training institution established in 2005 through an agreement between the Ministry of Justice and Public Security of El Salvador and the Embassy of the United States in El Salvador, operating as part of the ILEA Global Network created at the initiative of former U.S. President Bill Clinton. The academy delivers professional law enforcement training to active-duty officers from approximately 28 Latin American and Caribbean nations, covering topics such as financial investigations, counter-narcotics, anti-gang operations, cybercrime, forensics, wildlife trafficking, VIP protection, crisis leadership, and transnational crime investigations. Training is delivered at physical facilities in Antiguo Cuscatlán, El Salvador — including classrooms, an events hall, and shooting ranges — supplemented by practical exercises conducted at locations such as the Changallo shooting range and El Salvador International Airport. In 2018 alone, the academy graduated 1,120 law enforcement agents from the region.

The institution is funded by the U.S. Department of State through the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) and is co-directed by representatives of both governments (currently Juan Henríquez for El Salvador and Brent Brown for the United States). Expert instructors and course content are contributed at no direct cost by major U.S. federal law enforcement agencies including the DEA, FBI, U.S. Secret Service, ATF, CBP, IRS, Diplomatic Security Service, and FLETC, with additional contributions from partners such as Chile's AGCI and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. Core offerings include the training programs themselves, the globally launched ILEA Alumni Portal (April 2021) for graduate networking, the Citizens Academy for civil society engagement (initiated 2017), and the Youth Violence Prevention Program. The institution maintains a small permanent staff of 14 employees.

The business model is government appropriations rather than commercial revenue: training is provided at no direct cost to participating officers or their home agencies, and there are no tuition fees, licensing arrangements, or third-party sponsorships disclosed. The end-customer base is exclusively government law enforcement agencies across Latin America and the Caribbean, while the funding counterparty is exclusively the U.S. government — a structure that yields high operational stability within policy continuity but creates single-funder concentration risk.

Name

ILEA San Salvador

Legal name

International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA San Salvador)

Website

https://sansalvador.ilea.state.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ILEA San Salvador is a binational government training academy, established in 2005, that delivers free professional law enforcement training to officers from Latin American and Caribbean nations on combating transnational crime, funded by the U.S. Department of State.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Law Enforcement Training

NAICS

Technical and Trade Schools (6115), Educational Services (61), Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Law Enforcement & Police Academy Training (EDAOAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Defensive Tactics, Use-of-Force & De-escalation Training (EDAOAMAM), Anti-Bribery & Anti-Corruption (ABAC) (EDABADAA), Investigations, Interviewing & Surveillance Training (BPAKAOAI)

Keywords

• Law enforcement training
• Professional development
• Transnational crime training
• Regional security cooperation
• Government training academy

Headquarters

HQ city

San Salvador

HQ country

El Salvador

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. U.S. Department of State Funding: ILEA San Salvador is a government-funded institution. The web portal is funded by the United States Department of State. Training programs are provided at no direct cost to participating law enforcement officers from partner nations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

ILEA San Salvador provides week-long and multi-week professional law enforcement training programs to active duty officers from Latin American and Caribbean nations, covering topics such as transnational crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking, counter-narcotics, financial investigations, cybercrime, wildlife trafficking, crisis leadership, forensics, VIP protection, and human rights. Courses are developed and delivered by expert instructors from U.S. federal law enforcement agencies including DEA, FBI, USSS, ATF, CBP, IRS, and DSS, in partnership with regional agencies and UNODC. Training is provided at no direct cost to participants nominated by their home country agencies.

Product overview

ILEA San Salvador operates as a training institution rather than a technology product company. Its core offerings consist of law enforcement training programs and educational initiatives provided to regional security professionals. The institution delivers specialized courses including anti-gang operations, financial investigations, cybercrime, human trafficking, counter-narcotics, wildlife trafficking, crisis leadership, forensics, and VIP protection. Supporting platforms include the ILEA Alumni Portal for graduate networking, the Citizens Academy for community engagement, and the Youth Violence Prevention Program for outreach.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ILEA Alumni Portal: Global portal for ILEA alumni to connect and access resources

Products and services

• ILEA San Salvador Training Programs Week-long and multi-week law enforcement training courses delivered at ILEA San Salvador facilities covering anti-gang operations, financial investigations, cybercrime, human trafficking, counter-narcotics, wildlife trafficking, crisis leadership, forensics, VIP protection, and human rights. Training is targeted at active duty officers from Latin American and Caribbean nations and is provided at no direct cost.
• ILEA Alumni Portal Global online platform for ILEA graduates across all regional ILEA academies to maintain professional connections, access resources, and engage with the alumni network.
• Citizens Academy A five-week community engagement program that opens the academy to civil society members, allowing them to learn firsthand about law enforcement work and operations.
• Youth Violence Prevention Program Community outreach initiative promoting violence prevention among youth through educational activities, cinema forums, and school visits.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully graduated 1,120 law enforcement agents from Latin America and the Caribbean in 2018 alone

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, regional and strategic.

• Government of El Salvador - Ministry of Justice and Public SecuritycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2005Binational partnership establishing ILEA San Salvador through an agreement between the Ministry of Justice and Public Security of El Salvador and the Embassy of the United States of America in El Salvador. The academy is co-directed by representatives from both governments.
• Government of the United States of AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2005ILEA San Salvador is part of the ILEA network created at the initiative of former U.S. President Bill Clinton to fight transnational crimes including drug trafficking, criminality, and terrorism. Funded by the U.S. Department of State.
• Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDEA provides training courses and expert instructors for ILEA programs including Sensitive Investigative Units training, Tactical Security and Planning courses, and financial investigations courses conducted jointly with IRS.
• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFBI provides expert instructors for courses on organized crime investigations, public corruption, crime scene management, and forensic work. Conducts training programs for law enforcement officers from multiple Latin American nations.
• United States Secret Service (USSS)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerUSSS provides training courses on Protection Details, Protective Security Details, cryptocurrency investigations, and computer and network intrusions. Delivers week-long courses with practical exercises for VIP protection.
• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerATF provides training on International Post-Blast Investigations, explosives handling, small arms trafficking, and arson investigation. Conducts practical exercises at the Changallo shooting range.
• Customs and Border Protection (CBP)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCBP provides training on International Border Interdiction, air cargo interdiction, and wildlife border inspection. Conducts practical exercises at international airports including El Salvador International Airport.
• Internal Revenue Service (IRS)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerIRS provides training courses on financial investigative techniques and asset forfeiture. Conducts joint training with DEA on Inter-institutional Cooperation in Financial Investigations.
• Diplomatic Security Service (DSS)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDSS provides training on Personnel and Facilities Security, Overseas Protective Operations, and personal and facility safety. Trains officers on infrastructure protection and risk management.
• Chilean Agency for International Cooperation (AGCI)regionalImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAGCI provides training on Public Corruption and Ethics in Law Enforcement. Represents Chile's contribution to regional law enforcement professionalization efforts.
• United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)strategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerILEA San Salvador coordinates with UNODC to hold conferences on topics such as the impact of COVID-19 on organized crime structures. Collaborates on regional security initiatives.
• National Civil Police of El Salvador (PNC)regionalImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPNC provides local law enforcement expertise for anti-gang training courses and supports academy operations in El Salvador.
• Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC)majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFLETC provides specialized training programs including Leadership in Crisis situations training for emergency management officials.
• Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerINL provides funding and programmatic support for ILEA operations. INL Washington issued a Certificate of Appreciation to ILEA San Salvador in 2021. INL Mexico Director visited the academy to learn about its operations.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC): U.S. interagency training organization that operates as both a domestic training provider and a partner-supplier of instructors to ILEA San Salvador (e.g., the Leadership in Crisis course). Compares as the broader U.S. federal counterpart.
• INA (Interpol Global Academy / Training Directorate): Interpol's training arm delivers international law enforcement training to member countries. Comparable audience (police officers from multiple nations) and curriculum topics (counter-narcotics, financial crime, cybercrime).
• CEPOL (EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training): European Union's law enforcement training agency that delivers training to member and partner-state officers. Comparable mission and training-portfolio scope to ILEA San Salvador, but operating in a different geography under EU auspices.
• UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) Training Branch: UN agency that delivers law enforcement capacity-building globally, including in Latin America. ILEA San Salvador explicitly coordinates with UNODC on regional security initiatives, making it a directly comparable multilateral peer.
• ICITAP (DOJ International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program): U.S. DOJ program that builds partner-nation investigative capacity through training and advisory work. Adjacent to ILEA's mission and frequently co-delivers or complements ILEA courses overseas.

Direct peers

• International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) Gaborone: Sister ILEA academy serving Southern Africa, with the same curriculum, partner-agency model, and U.S. State Department funding. Directly comparable training institution and network member.
• International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) Budapest: Sister ILEA academy serving Central/Eastern Europe, operating under the same binational U.S.-host-country model and funding structure. Identical core mission of professionalizing partner-nation law enforcement.
• International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) Bangkok: Sister ILEA academy under the same U.S. Department of State network, delivering law enforcement training to Asia-Pacific officers. Directly comparable mandate, funding model, and partnership roster with U.S. federal agencies.
• International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) Roswell: Sister ILEA academy (U.S.-based) that trains senior law enforcement managers from ILEA regions. Same network, funding mechanism, and instructional model.
• International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) West Africa: Newest ILEA academy serving West Africa, with the same binational U.S.-host-country structure and training mandate. Part of the same global ILEA network as San Salvador.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/ilea
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ilea-san-salvador

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ILEA San Salvador