Guatemala has made significant progress in achieving economic stability after decades of civil war, but the country still struggles with a high level of poverty. One of the major challenges limiting its economic and social development is chronic undernutrition that affects about half of the children under five. Thus, achieving zero hunger has become one of the government’s key objectives in its Agenda for Change.
IFPRI has been conducting research in Guatemala since the 1990s. Its research includes evaluations of commercialization of agriculture, trade and its impact on smallholder farmers, employment and income, and nutritional policies and interventions. IFPRI’s rigorous research in Guatemala has provided evidence to support the government’s decision-making; in addition, it helped bring about the culture of evaluation and evidence-based policymaking. German Gonzlez, Secretary of Guatemala’s Secretaria de Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutricional (SESAN) acknowledged this during IFPRI’s 40th Anniversary.
“It is worthy to note that with the support of IFPRI in Guatemala, [it] is helping generate capacity to evaluate and monitor using this type of impact assessment of predominantly quantitative approach. Today, we can ensure that…impact assessment has become a real tool to support decision-making with accurate data. We are promoting a culture of evaluation of public policies [and] actions that favor the processes of transparency and auditing.”
