Guatemala: Poverty and Great Need

Plagued by poverty and limited health care resources, Guatemala is a Central American nation with an alarmingly high disease burden:

• Impoverished families with limited access to health care suffer needlessly from preventable and treatable diseases.
• Nearly 1/3 of pregnant women don't get the nutrition they need to have healthy babies, contributing to high infant mortality rates.
• Chronic malnutrition afflicts nearly half of Guatemala's children under five, increasing their risk of serious developmental delays and diseases.  

Our Commitment

Since 1986, AmeriCares has delivered more than half a billion in aid worth of medicines and supplies to Guatemala, reaching hundreds of chronically under-resourced hospitals, clinics, nutritional centers, children’s homes, medical outreach brigades, and health care facilities in all areas of the country.  We deliver a wide variety of prescription and over-the-counter medicines, diagnostics, medical devices and supplies, and nutritional supplements help healthcare providers better serve their patients.

AmeriCares achieved this magnitude of support through our strong partnership with the Guatemalan Order of Malta, allowing us to respond to local health needs as well as the immediate demands of natural disasters, while developing sustainable programs that expand primary health care access for the long term.

While progress has been made, much more needs to be done to help the people of Guatemala live longer, healthier lives.