Approximately 1.8 million people in Guatemala live in extreme poverty.
Children living in poverty in Guatemala face many barriers, such as limited education, malnutrition, violence and frequent natural disasters.
Compassion is working to release children from poverty by offering education, malnutrition monitoring and intervention, disaster relief and child protection.
Facts About Poverty in Guatemala
If you visit Guatemala, you might take in the incredible views from atop Tikal, one of the largest sites of ancient Mayan civilization. If you’re a brave and seasoned hiker, you might even climb Volcán Acatenango, one of the tallest volcanoes in Central America.
As you journey through Guatemala, you’ll experience rich heritage, unique traditions and beautiful people. And you’ll also see the realities of poverty that many of those people walk through daily.
The most recent data from the World Bank shows that more than half (56%) of people in Guatemala live in poverty. Around 9.66% of the population lives in extreme poverty, surviving on $3.00 a day or less.
This is the most severe form of poverty, depriving them of basic human needs like food, safe water, medical care and shelter.
Challenges Children Living in Poverty in Guatemala Face
Children living in extreme poverty in Guatemala face many unique challenges that damage their well-being — and their futures.
Lack of Educational Opportunities
Primary education (up to sixth grade) is free in Guatemala. However, the educational system faces significant challenges, especially for the those in poverty. For example:
Rural communities lack access to schools: In rural areas, many children don’t live near a school, meaning they’d have to travel to get an education. And for those living in poverty, travel comes at an unaffordable cost.
School means added expense: Although education is free in Guatemala, uniforms, school supplies and other resources are not. The additional cost often results in school being seen as a luxury instead of a need.
Language barriers keep children from learning: Guatemala is home to many indigenous communities. Families who live in them speak indigenous languages not spoken in schools, creating language barriers that prevent children from learning.
The Impact of a Lack of Education
Education equips children to grow into self-sufficient adults with the skills needed to provide for themselves and their families. It enables them to break the chains of generational poverty.
Without education, children struggle to obtain the confidence and skills needed to find quality work when they get older, keeping them trapped.
High Rates of Child Malnutrition
Guatemala has one of the highest rates of child malnutrition in the world. According to the World Food Programme, 46.5% of Guatemalan children under 5 are stunted or suffering from impaired growth and development. This is the highest rate of malnutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Impact of Malnutrition
Child malnutrition happens when a child is getting too little or even too much of the nutrients their body needs to sustain itself and grow.
Malnutrition can look like children getting so little food that they’re underweight or suffering stunted growth. It can even look like getting enough food but not the right food, leaving them without the vitamins and minerals their bodies need.
Undernourished children suffer damage to their physical and cognitive development. They also suffer weakened immune systems. Sadly, children who are malnourished are more likely to get sick and even die.
Frequent Natural Disasters
Guatemala is one of the most at-risk countries around the world for natural disasters. The country faces many different types of hazards due to its climate and geography, including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, tropical storms, landslides and floods.
The Impact of Natural Disasters
Sadly, these natural disasters are often deadly, shattering families and leaving children without support systems. For example, the 1976 Guatemala earthquake killed 23,000 people. And the eruption of Volcán de Fuego in 2018 killed at least 159 people.
Displacement, or being forced from home, is also common in the aftermath of these disasters. This is especially harmful for families living in poverty.
Families lose what little they have in an instant — their homes, their resources, their jobs. And without any savings to fall back on, displacement pushes them further into poverty.
Increased Risk of Violence
Violence, abuse and exploitation are common threats for children living in Latin America. According to UNICEF and PAHO, common forms of violence include armed violence, violent discipline, bullying and sexual violence.
For example, data released in 2026 shows that between 2015 and 2022, over 28,000 children died by homicide throughout Latin America.
The Impact of Violence
Violence has far-reaching impacts on every single child who experiences it. But for children in poverty, the impacts are often worse.
For example, a child who suffers physical violence may be left with serious injuries. However, living in poverty, they may also lack access to medical care, leaving them hurt.
What could have been a recoverable wound becomes a long-term disability or chronic pain. The hurt child may not grow as intended. They may not be able to attend school. They may not be able to get a job as an adult.
Sadly, one act of violence can keep a child trapped in poverty for years to come.
How Compassion Fights Child Poverty in Guatemala
At Compassion, we believe children are created in the image of God, bearing immeasurable dignity and value. They’re gifts from him, entrusted to us to love and protect. That’s why we actively work to release children from poverty in Jesus’ name.
Compassion partners with 240+ local churches throughout Guatemala to serve thousands of children living through the devastating impacts of poverty.
Equipping the Local Church to Care for Children’s Needs
Children in Compassion’s program are loved and cared for by a local church in their community. This care helps children fight back against the challenges of poverty in Guatemala. Each child receives:
Education: Children receive access to a quality education, empowering them to reach for their dreams and grow into thriving adults. This might look like tutoring, tuition support, uniforms, textbooks or other resources.
Malnutrition monitoring and intervention: Children are monitored for signs of malnutrition. If a child is malnourished, Compassion provides immediate care, such as therapeutic feeding and nutritious meals to ensure they have the nutrition to grow as God intended.
Natural disaster response: When disaster strikes a child’s community, Compassion steps in with emergency aid. This might include safe water, shelter, medical care and even trauma counseling.
Protection: Children are surrounded by loving adults trained in child protection who keep them safe from violence and abuse while teaching them to advocate for their rights.
Proof of Impact: Education for Children in Rural Guatemala
Compassion has been blessed to serve children throughout Guatemala for over 47 years. And in that time, we’ve witnessed countless lives changed through the love and care of local churches like Vida Cristiana Church.
Vida Cristiana, which means “Christian Life,” is a church in Yalicar, a rural and indigenous community. Here, children face many barriers to their education.
All the families in the community speak the Mayan Q’eqchi’ language. Within the local school, this language isn’t spoken — a gap that hinders the children’s learning. The local school’s conditions are also poor. It serves 175 children across just five classrooms, and there aren’t enough books or school supplies to go around.
Many parents also don’t understand the importance of education. Very few of the adults living in the community completed sixth grade. Most work as day laborers and expect that their children will do the same.
“The major obstacle for children is that their parents don’t support their educational development. Many think that studying until sixth grade is sufficient.” — Daniel, school director
Seeing the need for more learning opportunities, Vida Cristiana stepped in to fill it.
With the support of Compassion, Vida Cristiana launched their Community Learning Resource Center (CERCA), a place where children can learn through play. When children visit, they get to learn various subjects like communication and language, math, nature and science, art and culture and even Bible.
The difference the CERCA is making in each child’s school performance is noticeable. They’re reading more books and getting better at math. “Teachers say that children know about topics before they see them at school because they’ve learned about them at the CERCA,” says Suhany, the CERCA educational manager.
Parents are also beginning to see the positive changes within their children. They’re watching as their young ones are falling in love with learning and grasping new knowledge quickly. Inspired, parents are supporting the church’s efforts, knowing it will mean a different future for their children.
Because of the success of the learning center, Compassion Guatemala is working to replicate the church’s model in other villages in remote regions, opening new opportunities for education, development and growth.
Every child deserves an education that will open the door to a future free from poverty. And it’s churches like Vida Cristiana that ensure children get just that.
Although children living in poverty in Guatemala face many hardships, the work of Compassion and local churches is helping them rewrite their stories. With support, children can overcome the barriers of poverty and step into a future filled with opportunity.
