How COVID-19 is Affecting Guatemala

Click here to learn more about how Hope Renewed is working to provide clean water resources to La Limonada!

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the entire world over the last year, but impoverished communities (like those in Guatemala) have been hit even harder and contracted the disease at a much higher rate. These communities have been especially hard hit by this pandemic due to lack of information about the disease, inability to practice proper hygiene due to lack of clean water, and  unsafe working conditions. While much of the world starts to reopen and get back to normal, Guatemala continues its struggle against the deadly virus.

Here’s how COVID-19 is affecting Guatemala:

According to the World Health Organization, to date, Guatemala has over 240,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases, 7,823 deaths, and only 180,000 vaccines administered in a country with over 18 million people.

From World Health Organization

One issue in Guatemala throughout the pandemic has been government corruption, including fraudulent test purchases, irregularities with vaccine acquisition, and a fraud ring inside the health ministry. Over the last month, Guatemalans, including health workers, have protested, marched, and rallied against the government as a way of condemning the pandemic-related corruption and demanding vaccines. Just like with Guatemala’s education system, the health system is critically underfunded and understaffed. There has been a severe lack of proper PPE for health workers and medication for patients. 

Guatemala was also unprepared to roll out the vaccine. Due to vaccine inequity between countries and poor planning, Guatemala has only just started receiving vaccine doses. Unfortunately, before the country received the vaccine, the government did not properly prepare vaccination sites, personnel, or cold storage facilities. This has led to a very slow vaccination process. Currently, military personnel and health students have been brought in to help administer vaccinations in an effort to pick up the progress.

Another concern is that, most vaccination sites that are equipped for cold storage are located in urban areas, which affects who can receive vaccines. This means people living in rural or poor areas are having difficulty getting vaccinated. The number of vaccines Guatemala ordered that require cold storage drastically outnumbers the number of adults living in more affluent urban areas, so vaccines could go to waste while others, like the 60,000 people living in the urban slums of La Limonada, are unable to get vaccinated.

The vaccine registration process is also adding to the difficulty by requiring people to sign up online and receive updates via text message. Once again, this is especially difficult for rural communities that lack access to the internet and cell coverage. There is also a language barrier, with nearly 40 percent of Guatemala’s population speaking one of the many different indigenous dialects, which makes it difficult to share COVID-19 and vaccination information.

At Hope Renewed International we are trying to improve the lives of the most vulnerable communities in Guatemala and our work has never been more important than during the COVID-19 pandemic. We believe that by improving conditions and providing opportunities, Guatemalans can develop their God-given abilities and improve their communities, but they need our help to get there. The fight against COVID-19 is far from over in Guatemala, so find out how you can help us make a difference today!