Welcome to Suchitepéquez Department, Guatemala!
With FLOKI’s support, PoP was able to partner with a community in the Suchitepéquez Department to construct a new two-classroom structure and create a quality learning environment for hundreds of students and teachers.
You're Making a Difference Here
Why Guatemala?
In Guatemala, where 59% of the population lives below the national poverty line, socioeconomic status is one of the biggest barriers to accessing quality education (World Bank 2014).
The average length of schooling for a Guatemalan child is only four years and 19% of the population is illiterate (US Aid 2014; World Bank 2018).
Pencils of Promise works with 255 communities in Guatemala to ensure students overcome these, and other, barriers to accessing quality education. Currently, PoP is impacting over 47,000 students in Guatemala.
Suchitepéquez Department
Suchitepéquez, commonly called “Suchi” by locals, lies southeast of our headquarters in Quetzaltenango. Pencils of Promise expanded here in early 2012, with our regional office located in the capital of Mazatenango.
Suchitepéquez harvests a variety of fruits and coffee (and some of the best chocolate in the region), and the climate is much more tropical than the other areas in which we work due to its lower altitude and proximity to the Pacific Ocean. There are approximately 600,000 residents of the department, and the languages that are spoken here are Spanish, K’iche, Tz’utujil and Kaqchikel.
FLOKI'S Impact in Suchitepéquez Department
Las Marías, Patalul previously had four formal classrooms and one informal, temporary classroom. These structures were insufficient to meet the needs of the student population as the die-cut sheet roof was in urgent need of repairs and three grade levels did not have their own classrooms. Additionally, the existing toilets were unhygienic and out of working order for students and teachers. These conditions hindered learning, posing a hazard to student safety and engagement.
Over the last few months, PoP partnered with the community to build a new two-classroom structure, four toilets, one hand-washing station and repair the four existing classrooms. The community was committed to providing higher-quality education to its students and contributed 20% of the resources and labor required for construction. We officially broke ground in January 2022 and were able to complete construction by July 2022.
The new Las Marías, Patalul school will provide a high-quality learning environment where every child can reach their unique potential.
Dedication:
By floki, for the people
BREAK GROUND:
January 2022
EXPECTED COMPLETION:
July 2022
