As part of the project "Progress in Achieving Air Quality, Climate, and Health Goals in the Central American Region," a health benefits assessment of air quality improvement in the SICA region was conducted. To this end, the benefits in terms of preventable deaths were estimated for the SICA member states: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Dominican Republic. This estimate includes the following elements: a brief diagnosis of air quality and its health impact in the region, the objective of the health benefits estimate, the methodology applied, results, and discussion.

The results were estimated for the following scenarios: compliance with the WHO's Ambient Air Quality Guidelines for PM2.5 and compliance with intermediate targets 4 and 3 of these guidelines. These results contributed to supporting the proposals for the creation of ambitious ambient air quality standards for the region.