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María and her mother Adela (41) in the Polochic Valley in northern Guatemala.
Guatemala experienced four decades of civil war. Peace was declared in the late 1990s. Despite more hopeful times, significant challenges remain in the country.
Today, Guatemala has one of the highest rates of poverty and inequality in Latin America and one of the highest levels of child malnutrition in the world, affecting in particular the indigenous population in rural areas. Impunity and corruption are also very high. Large business projects have led to environmental destruction and land grabs, while attacks against community leaders are common. Violence against women is a serious problem in the country. Guatemala is also vulnerable to natural and climate related disasters.
Thanks to your support, Trócaire is helping communities in Guatemala to defend their fundamental freedoms and protect their land in the face of corporate greed. Our work helps to tackle violence against women and to support female survivors of abuse. We are also saving lives by supporting communities to prepare for and respond to disasters.
GuatemalaHuman Development Index:
Ranked 135 out of 191 countries
Malnutrition:
Highest rates in Latin America and sixth in the world
Poverty:
Half the population live in poverty
Child marriage:
30% of marriages before age 18
Guatemala still bears the scars of civil war. More than 200,000 people were killed in the conflict which ran from the 1960s to 1990s. The vast majority of those killed were indigenous.
Today, indigenous communities remain marginalised in Guatemala. At the same time, a powerful minority keep a firm grip on the country’s political and economic power.
The country is experiencing a closure of democratic and civil society spaces that is evidenced by an increase in the persecution and attacks to community leaders and their organisations, including journalists and independent media.
Private companies, with the support of the Guatemalan State, are taking over indigenous territories. Agribusiness, energy projects and mining have led to forced evictions and environmental destruction. Those who resist are often criminalised, attacked and murdered.
Progress has been made in the area of justice for survivors of sexual abuse during the civil war. However, violence against women remains a major problem in Guatemala. Deeply rooted beliefs about the role of women in society means that discrimination against women is pervasive.
Guatemala is exposed to recurrent disasters such as droughts, floods and hurricanes. Earthquakes, forest fires, erupting volcanoes, and landslides also pose a serious threat to life.
Trócaire began working in Guatemala in the 1980s during the worst moments of the civil war. We supported thousands of Guatemalans who fled the violence. Our country office was established in 2001.
Our work in Guatemala is focused on promoting access to justice, resource and land rights, women’s empowerment, humanitarian response and emergency preparedness.
| Title | Resource Type | Year | ||
|
Economías de Desposesión: Mujeres de Honduras y Guatemala en la Lucha Global por la Tierra |
Policy and Programmes | 15 December 2015 | Download |
|
Economies of Dispossession: Women from Honduras and Guatemala in the Global Scramble for Land |
Policy and Programmes | 04 April 2015 | Download |
|
Agroecology in Western Guatemala |
Policy and Programmes | 14 June 2018 | Download |
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