The document, which covers the period 2018-2023, warns that several countries are showing setbacks that bring them closer to levels of political instability experienced in the 20th century.
Tegucigalpa. – Central America and the Dominican Republic are experiencing a “democratic deterioration” in their political systems, according to the Seventh State of the Region Report 2025, presented this Tuesday in Honduras.
The study indicates that the region has become a “political laboratory,” where liberal democracies, hybrid regimes, and authoritarian governments coexist. The setback is more severe in Nicaragua and El Salvador, while Honduras and Guatemala present mixed and volatile conditions. Costa Rica, Panama, and the Dominican Republic maintain greater stability.
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Honduran sociologist Julieta Castellanos highlighted that Nicaragua and El Salvador show clearly authoritarian traits, and described Honduras and Guatemala as hybrid regimes, with practices that limit the press, civil society, and the independence of powers.
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The report also warns about the growing role of the armed forces in internal order tasks, despite the absence of external threats. Regional military spending almost doubled between 2010 and 2022, rising from $1.129 to $2.022 million, of which 33.2% corresponded to the Dominican Republic.
Castellanos criticized that in countries like Honduras, the allocation of high military budgets is not reflected in greater control of the territory or in the fight against drug trafficking, but rather in a co-optation of the military institution by governments.
