A. M. 
The Assembly approved the incorporation of US$7.2 million to the budget of the entity in charge of granting authorizations for the sale of medicines, cosmetics, food and agricultural inputs in El Salvador.
The funds for the Superintendencia de Regulación Sanitaria (SRS) to start operating in El Salvador have been secured.
The regulation that allowed the creation of this agency, which is in charge of registering and certifying products for human and animal consumption, as well as granting authorizations for the commercialization of medicines, cosmetics, food, beverages and agricultural inputs, was approved in November 2023 and came into force last august 7.
For this reason, in the 20th plenary session, the deputies of the Legislative Assembly amended, with 57 votes, the Budget Law 2024, to incorporate US$7,269,060 to the special budget of the SRS.
Prior to the existence of the superintendency, its functions were exercised by the National Directorate of Medicines, the Superior Council of Public Health and the Ministries of Health and Agriculture and Livestock.
In the 2021-2024 legislature, the creation of the new agency was approved in order to centralize competencies in a single entity, update the institutional framework based on international norms and standards and provide an efficient service.
At the time, the parliamentarians explained that the purpose of the superintendency was to exercise technical, specialized, modern control and oversight with a focus on continuous improvement.
They added that the creation of the SRS would promote the business climate, competitiveness, foreign trade and the attraction of investments, but, above all, it would preserve the health of the population by guaranteeing the quality, efficacy, safety, availability, safety, accessibility and rational use of the products subject to regulation.
