GuatemalaHaving emerged from decades of civil war, Guatemala is now well-positioned to capitalize on its substantial natural resources and climatic advantages.
Although the country continues to face high levels of inequality and a poverty rate above 50 percent, Guatemala has maintained stable economic growth particularly in the increasingly profitable food and beverage industry. TechnoServe is strengthening the coffee value chain and helping existing agricultural businesses, with a view to generating jobs and incomes for poor rural producers. We are also running entrepreneurship training programs that empower men and women to create thriving businesses in a variety of sectors.
The MOCCA Program is a five-year initiative, funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food for Progress Program, aimed at helping more than 100,000 farmers to overcome the barriers limiting their capacity to effectively rehabilitate and renovate their coffee and cacao plants.
TechnoServe is working to increase revenues for 5,000 fresh produce smallholder farmers in Guatemala and Nicaragua by integrating the farmers into a more inclusive and profitable market system.
TechnoServe together with the Trade Facilitation Office of Canada, Global Affairs Canada, and Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons is implementing a four-year initiative to train 1,000 farmers in agronomic and sustainability practices in eastern Guatemala and improve their productivity by 25 percent.
In partnership with McDonald’s, TechnoServe implemented a four-year initiative to sustainably improve coffee farmers’ income and yields using climate-resilient practices.
Crece tu Empresa (CRECE) is an ongoing program since 2015 in Central America with the support of the Citi Foundation. The objective of the program is to support young entrepreneurs to promote the sustainable growth of their businesses, by helping them develop their skills and business competencies.
ITE 2.0 will assist 825 businesses in Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The three year program is expected to increase sales by more than 30%, equivalent to $41 million, and create more than 800 new jobs in different economic sectors.
Impulsa Tu Empresa aims to help small and growing businesses boost their growth through mentoring and business training. Since its launch in 2012, the program has increased the sales of over 1,500 businesses and helped create 1,600 new jobs in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Colombia, and Burkina Faso.
Youth face unique challenges in obtaining formal employment or becoming successful entrepreneurs. Crece Tu Empresa, TechnoServe's program in partnership with Citi Foundation, is working to address the challenge of youth unemployment in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Panama.
Read the 2021 TechnoServe Annual Report in English, French, or Spanish in the PDFs on this page. You can find Portuguese here.
Lessons learned from TechnoServe’s work with SGBs in Central America, based on research conducted by Emory University and the Impulsa Tu Empresa program.
In 2017, TechnoServe engaged ImpactMatters, an impact audit firm founded with support from Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), to review several projects within our portfolio. This impact audit reviews the Impulsa Tu Empresa program implemented in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua from 2013 to 2017.
