Demographic Facts

• Population: Around 13,000,000 (1)
• Around 52% of the population lives in rural areas
• 38% of the population consider themselves to be indigenous Mayan.
• Guatemala has 24 languages: 22 Mayan languages, Garífuna, and the official language, Spanish.
• About 40% of Guatemalas are under the age of 15. Over 60% of these children live in poverty.

 Poverty Facts 

• 51% of the population lives below the poverty line, meaning they lack the income to provide basic goods, services, and food for their families.
• About 16% of the population lives in extreme poverty, meaning they cannot even afford the food necessary to feed their family.
• 72% of those who live in poverty live in rural areas, and 83% of those who live in extreme poverty live in rural areas.
• 12% of the population (2) has an income lower than Q.6,574 per year, meaning they live on less than $2 (Q.15) per day 

 Health Facts 

• Guatemala has an infant mortality rate of 36% of which results from pneumonia, and 22% of which results from food or waterborne illnesses (2).
• According to the World Health Organization, nearly 50% of Guatemalan children are malnourished.

(1) Unless otherwise noted, all statistics are from the National Survey of Living Conditions (ENCOVI-2006) In Guatemala, produced by the National Statistics Institute, 2006.

(2)   Statistics from UNICEF / Panorama: Guatemala