UN Women strengthens partnerships in Guatemala to advance the rights of women and girls
Sixteen years after its establishment, UN Women continues to work toward a world where all women and girls can fully exercise their rights and reach their full potential on an equal footing. Achieving this vision requires the collective efforts of governments, feminist and women’s organizations, civil society, the private sector, academia, the media, and international cooperation partners. Through this collaborative approach, UN Women builds partnerships and bridges among those with the power to drive change, recognizing that gender equality is not the responsibility of a single actor, but a shared commitment. When women have access to opportunities, participate in decision-making, and can fully exercise their rights, entire societies benefit.
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Photo of women leaders from the National Women's Forum for Peace at a departmental meeting in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Photo: UN Women Guatemala/ Alejandra Chicas
In Guatemala, gender inequalities intersect with poverty, ethnicity, rurality, human mobility, and the increasingly visible impacts of the climate crisis, leaving thousands of women in situations of exclusion that limit the exercise of their rights and their participation in the country’s economic, social, and political life. Indigenous, rural, young, migrant, returnee, and women survivors of violence often face multiple and intersecting barriers that keep them from participating in the spaces where decisions about their present and future are made.
Leaving no one behind is not an aspiration, it is a way of working. For UN Women, this means not only working for women who have historically faced the greatest barriers to exercising leadership, accessing productive resources, participating in public life, or living free from violence, but also working with them as agents of change who transform mindsets and realities.
María José Carranza, an archer from Guatemala. Photo: UN Women Guatemala, Alejandra Chicas
Between 2022 and 2025, UN Women in Guatemala supported processes that strengthened the capacities of 1,675 women leaders to participate in and influence political and decision-making spaces; contributed to strengthening 123 women’s organizations and networks; supported 1,810 rural women entrepreneurs to expand their access to technical education and financial resources; advanced six gender responsive policies, strategies, and plans; and strengthened the capacities of 25 public institutions to integrate gender equality into their actions and services.
María Guadalupe, leader of the Mamá Maquín organization, during a meeting held in Huehuetenango, Guatemala. Photo: UN Women Guatemala, Alejandra Chicas
UN Women has also supported the strengthening of women’s organizations that play a critical role in defending human rights, building peace, preventing violence, and responding to humanitarian crises. These organizations represent one of the country’s greatest strengths: networks of women who, even in contexts of high vulnerability, continue to develop solutions for their communities and create more opportunities for other women to participate.
Leaving no one behind also means strengthening the capacities of public institutions. To this end, UN Women has provided technical assistance to advance public policies, national strategies, and institutional mechanisms that place gender equality at the center of sustainable development.
A woman leader participating in an activity aimed at strengthening women’s participation in decision-making spaces in Guatemala. Photo: UN Women Guatemala, Manuel Morales
From women’s financial inclusion to care systems, the prevention of violence against women in politics, and the strengthening of civic participation, these efforts seek to generate lasting change that benefits both the present and the future of women. Because when women thrive, societies thrive.
Sixteen years after its establishment, UN Women reaffirms its commitment to continue working alongside the women of Guatemala, their organizations, public institutions, the private sector, international cooperation partners, and the United Nations system to accelerate progress toward substantive gender equality.
Members of the Resilientes Theatre Group during a commemorative event held on the occasion of International Women’s Day. Photo: UN Women Guatemala, Manuel Morales
Because leaving no woman behind means ensuring that every woman can participate in the decisions, benefits, and opportunities that drive sustainable development in Guatemala. That is the mission of UN Women Guatemala.