Factsheet Guatemala

Guatemala is a country of origin, transit, and reintegration of migrants. Home to 16.3 million people and marked by a violent past, Guatemalan society is still highly unequal and characterized by racism and discrimination. Moreover, the country is faced with severe and continuing socioeconomic challenges, including high poverty rates and lack of employment, frequent natural disasters such as storms and droughts, increasing social violence, and political instability. These factors, jointly with a desire to reunify with close family members, motivate boys, girls and their families to take the dangerous migratory route.