Guatemala fails to recover from the impact of hurricanes Eta and Iota: report

SAN SALVADOR – After the Hurricanes Eta and Iota will hit Central America in 2020, Guatemalans are still dealing with problems of housing, poverty and food insecurity, says the humanitarian organization Refugees International.

through the report ‘Two years after Eta and Iota: displaced and forgotten in Guatemala’the organization maintains that several families in Chiquimula, in the eastern zone of Guatemala, still “remain in a state of displacement or are at risk of displacement.”

“The Guatemalan government has not stepped forward to meet their needs, and neither has the international community,” the organization says.

The department of Chiquimula is an area called “Corredor Seco” where droughts are common. Despite this, several communities were hard hit by the hurricanes that hit the country in 2020 and Tropical Storm Celia in 2022.

In the area there are crops of corn, melon and watermelon, among others, but the hurricanes caused “bad harvests”, says Refugees International. “This triggered food insecurity.”

“Half of the people interviewed by Refugees International have not been able to return to their homes. These communities tend to rely on a combination of patchwork efforts (from municipalities, NGOs, community support and remittances) to put together a semblance of recovery,” she explains. the organization.

The report maintains that Guatemala lacks comprehensive data on displacement due to weather events. This is because the government does not recognize internal displacement.

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