Fighting (covid-19)-poverty in Guatemala - the work of CoCo

On Friday 13 March 2020, Guatemala reported the first case of corona in the country. On the same day, the president declared a state of emergency. And less than 24 hours later, Guatemala was in lockdown.

While we had a lockdown light in the first two weeks in which only public transport and traveling around the country was prohibited, this gradually became more restrictive.

After a complete lockdown for several days during which it was forbidden to leave the house from one day to the next - I mean this literally: the announcement of the absolute lockdown was announced on Thursday evening at 7 pm for the following day - we have now arrived at a lockdown only on weekends and a curfew during the week starting at 5 pm.

There is no foreseeable change at the moment because our official number of corona infections is increasing rapidly and a peak is not expected before mid-June, rather mid-July.

According to the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Cooperation, Guatemala with its 17million inhabitants is the poorest country in Central America.

It is probably also the country with the greatest differences in income distribution: 56% of the population here lives below the poverty line, 9% even in extreme poverty. Almost 20% of the population is undernourished and almost 50% of the children under 5 years of age have growth delays due to the poor nutritional situation.

At the beginning of the spread of Covid-19, we received first calls from acquaintances asking for support for their families as they had lost their sources of income.

Donations were quickly collected to provide the first families with care packages and hygiene products. But when we took a closer look, we realized how great the need for food really is.

The sudden economic collapse caused by the pandemic has affected thousands of families who are now dependent on help from others.

This was, after all, the reason why we founded CoCo - Colectivo Comunitario. Because only together can we help and only together can we provide support.

And because we have not been allowed to leave the capital city for weeks, we have initially concentrated on the poor quarters, the slums, in zone 18.

The situation in these slums is - excuse the expression - shitty to very shitty. There is neither a functioning water supply nor really electricity. There are no amenities like hot running water or even wifi. The houses in which the people live are huts. They are made of corrugated iron, wood and a few concrete block elements, which provide at least some stability.

The people who live there literally live in dirt. Together with chicken and other animals. They hardly have a roof and a house which consists of no more than two rooms. This is where they live. With their family of 4 to 8 people.

And they live mostly from hand to mouth. From one day to the next. Because they earn their money as day labourers, street musicians, window wipers at red lights or street vendors, or they work in handicrafts which are badly paid in Guatemala.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, most families have lost their already low income. And those who still have a job, at least theoretically, cannot work because they cannot leave their homes due to the fact that public transport is prohibited.

The hygiene conditions in zone 18 of Guatemala City are catastrophic. Education is insufficient and the crime rate is incredibly high. Shootings, murders, drug trafficking, rape, forced marriages, alcohol and drug consumption are common there.

Without prior notification and without cooperation with contacts in this zone, we would hardly get out of this area of the capital alive - although we provide help. Because the Mara 18 and the Mara Salvatrucha dominate the streets there.

And despite the government's promises to take care of the poor population, only a few aid packages have arrived in these colonies so far.

Therefore, in the past 5 weeks, we have tried to support as many families as possible.

Every week we visit at least 20 families. Two weeks ago, there were even 36 families! All in all, we have been able to supply more than 400 people with food in the past weeks.

With the lockdown at the weekends, we also had to change our plan. Instead of the weekends, we now go to the families during the week. This, in turn, sometimes makes things incredibly complicated. Because of us three girls - Mira, Frances and I, the founders of our organisation CoCo Colectivo Comunitario, two of us are fully working.

And because these people of course do not have an internet or newspaper to inform themselves, we also provide education. Education about hygiene measures. Education regarding current restrictions. Or we simply give emotional support.

Keeping your distance, not putting a hand on your shoulder, not giving hugs when tears flow out of gratitude, when the pain about the family history can be read in the eyes, when a little spark of hope appears on the face is not always easy.

It is especially not easy because we never know exactly what kind of a tragic fate is hidden behind the next door.

These are stories that get under your skin. These are stories of single women whose husbands are in prison for criminal acts. These are stories of people who earn no more than 1 Euro per day, day in, day out. These are stories of children who spend most of the time completely alone at home because their mother tries to sell a few cups of freshly squeezed orange juice on the street. These are stories of families who sell their belongings in front of their house in the hope of using the proceeds to buy a few kilos of rice.

These are stories that stir you up. That won't let you sleep at night. They show you how grateful you can be for the life you live over and over again.

Just last week a story happened, where the mere thought of it lets me shiver: One week before our supply drive, we usually visit the families we are going to supply to find out if there are other things needed besides food and our care package. Due to the absolute lockdown at the weekend, we were not able to visit the families on Saturday, so we had to schedule our supplies for the following Wednesday. When we arrived at one family, two family members were missing.

In conversation with the family, it turned out that the family had hardly any food left. In order to be able to guarantee the supply of the smallest members, the oldest generation of the household decided to stop eating. Two days before our arrival, they had died.

In the past weeks, we have been able to start collaborations that support us in our work. And we were able to animate volunteers who - like many others in this country - have lost their jobs due to the situation. We also urgently need this support.

But we want to do more! Help more people! Organize more food! And above all, we want to expand our areas in the capital. Because we know: There are other zones in the capital that are in desperate need of help.

Would you like to support us? Would you like to follow our experiences? - Then follow us on our different channels, which we update almost daily.