Several Sugar River UMC members have asked, “Why did we choose to focus our international mission
efforts on Guatemala?”
My first response is because it is a country in our hemisphere with great need. Describing that
need is the challenge. Fundamental issues in Guatemala exist on a scale not seen in the developed countries.
In Guatemala, the face of poverty and hunger is young, indigenous and rural. Guatemala, with the
fourth highest rate of chronic malnutrition in the world and the highest in Latin America and the Caribbean, faces a
serious challenge to reduce chronic undernutrition, currently at 49.3% among children under 5.
The situation is worse in rural areas of the country where the indigenous population is concentrated;
in the highlands of Guatemala (where Sugar River is focusing its mission efforts), seven out of ten children under 5 are
malnourished.
