US embassy cable - 05ROME3980

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ROME 003980 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FROM AMBASSADOR TONY P. HALL, U.S. MISSION TO THE UN AGENCIES 
 
STATE FOR U/S R KAREN HUGHES, IO A/S SILVERBERG, DAS PDIBBLE, DAS 
RMILLER, DAS MLAGON, IO/EDA, IO/PPC, PRM A/S ADEWEY 
USDA/FAS FOR U/S JPENN, JBUTLER, MCHAMBLISS AND LREICH 
USAID FOR DA/AID FSCHIECK, AA/LAC AFRANCO , DAA/DCHA WGARVELINK 
DCHA/OFDA, DCHA/FFP, AID/LPA 
R, IIP, PA, WHA/CEN 
NSC FOR EABRAMS, JMELINE 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: EAID, EAGR, AORC, GT, CONGRINT, FAO, WFP 
SUBJECT:  AMBASSADOR TONY P. HALL VISITS GUATEMALA: CHRONIC 
MALNUTRITION WORSENED BY HURRICANE 
 
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Summary 
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1. Six weeks after Hurricane Stan swept through Guatemala, I 
visited the country from November 12 to 15 to assess the food 
security situation and efforts to restore the nation's 
infrastructure.  Damage to foodstocks and infrastructure has made 
emergency assistance challenging; reconstruction will be critical 
to both short and long-term assistance.  Compounding the disaster 
is Guatemala's chronic malnutrition -- the highest in Latin 
America -- though the Government of Guatemala (GOG) appears 
committed to alleviating poverty.  The damage caused by Stan will 
not only increase likelihood of hunger and poverty, but potential 
instability given the high level of crime and "conflictivity" in 
the border region, which suffered worse. Thus, the response to 
Stan provides an opportunity to reduce potential instability in 
this border area, as well as to increase our goodwill and promote 
democracy through continued support and development of 
agriculture resources. 
 
2.  During my visit, I made it clear that the U.S. will continue 
to support food-insecure Guatemala, and assist in the rebuilding 
of the nation's infrastructure.  In Guatemala City, I announced 
an additional U.S. donation of $2 million towards the GOG's World 
Food Program (WFP) emergency request of $22 million. 
 
3.  We should encourage greater coordination among the UN and NGO 
communities and with the government in order to avoid overlap and 
poor use of resources; and extol the leadership from USAID in its 
relationship with the GOG in assisting with this coordination. 
We must also emphasize to the donor community that the worst hit 
regions of the country will face a long and difficult winter if 
food aid doesn't arrive soon.  We must urge other donors to join 
us in meeting WFP's appeal. 
 
END SUMMARY. 
 
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Economic and Social Impact 
---------------------------- 
 
4. Accompanied by Public Affairs Officer Carla Benini and Special 
Assistant David Austin, I spent three days in Guatemala to 
examine local conditions and assess the food security situation 
with the help of the local US Mission.  We traveled to three 
departments, or provinces, within the country and met with 
several communities affected by food insecurity and malnutrition. 
 
5. It was clear that Stan has had a frightening impact on the 
forecasted harvest for November, nearly wiping out the maize, 
beans and rice crops in certain areas.  The GOG predicts that up 
to 1.5 million people will need food assistance through the next 
harvest in 2006.  Even prior to the hurricane, over 50% of the 
children of Guatemala were chronically malnourished (80% of the 
indigenous population), according to WFP data, representing the 
most severe chronic food crisis in Latin America.  On November 10 
the GOG made an emergency request to the WFP for an additional 
$22 million in food aid; the US has committed over $4 million in 
response to this request; 42% of the request has been fulfilled 
by the US and other donors. 
 
6.  In addition to losing the majority of their main crops, many 
people in the storm-affected areas also lost their land to the 
hurricane-triggered mudslides that roared through communities, 
carrying with them homes, crops, family members, and the arable 
land on which survivors would have been able to eke out a living. 
In a matter of hours, small creeks became wide rivers depositing 
large volumes of heavy mud and large boulders in the paths of the 
former creeks, where many impoverished communities had located. 
In some communities we visited over 50% of the homes were damaged 
or destroyed. 
 
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What We Saw 
-------------------- 
 
7.  We traveled to the department of Chimaltenango with USAID 
Mission Director Glenn Anders to visit a USAID project called 
AGEXPRONT that has organized and trained 25 farming families in a 
farming cooperative, and that has resulted in a six-fold net 
increase to their incomes.  This coop has reached out to another 
125 families in order to supply Guatemala's McDonald's chain and 
Pais supermarkets.  Additional income has built a school and 
children's health clinic. 
 
8. We visited an impoverished community in Chimaltenango that had 
been severely affected by landslides and rain from Stan.  NGO 
partner "SHARE" is offering assistance in partnership with USAID 
to provide P.L. 480 food commodities and funds for the 
reconstruction of water and sanitary infrastructures.  While 
traveling through the department we saw hundreds of mudslides 
that had wiped out roads, bridges, and poor communities. Three 
Peace Corps Volunteers from Chimaltenango briefed us on the 
problems of malnutrition in their area that pre-dated Stan. 
 
9.   On November 14, my team and I traveled to the department of 
San Marcos, where we visited two sites hit by mudslides and met 
the local citizens who had lost their homes, families and/or 
land.  As we flew to San Marcos from Guatemala City by helicopter 
we could easily see the extent of the damage to crops.  In San 
Marcos we visited two food distribution sites, one GOG project, 
and one WFP site where US wheat and maize were being distributed 
in 50kg bags. 
 
10.  Prior to leaving the department of San Marcos we met with 
Bishop Alvaro Ramazzini, who is president of the Bishops' 
Secretariat of Central America and Panama and has spoken out 
 
SIPDIS 
against US trade policies.  I spoke about America's history of 
generosity to the people of Guatemala our recent giving to 
Hurricane recovery and assistance, and mentioned US humanitarian 
assistance even to nations that have shown animosity towards the 
US, underscoring that US aid is meant to help people and not to 
influence policy. 
 
11. On November 15 I traveled to Jutiapa with FAO country 
director Ian Charrett to visit two FAO agriculture technical 
development projects to alleviate severe poverty and increase 
nutrition through simple agriculture diversification.  These 
programs are developed through the local village leaders and 
district mayors thereby strengthening grass roots democratic 
processes, successfully linking humanitarian assistance with 
democratic support. 
 
12. Meetings with GOG officials in Rome and Guatemala City were 
encouraging. Minister Andres Botran, Secretary Hugo Beteta and 
Vice President Eduardo Barillas displayed an extraordinary 
commitment to the issues of hunger, poverty and agricultural 
development -- unmatched in my experience with developing nation 
governments. Further US investment in Guatemala - both for 
reconstruction as well as longer-term agricultural development -- 
would be money well spent. 
 
----------------------- 
Press Coverage 
----------------------- 
 
12. US Mission Guatemala helped organize a press conference 
following our visit to San Marcos.  About 30 journalists were 
present, including five television cameras.  Represented media 
outlets included CNN Espanol, wire services and Guatemala's major 
dailies and weeklies.  The delegation also hosted Reuters TV and 
the New York Times during field visits and conducted a phone 
interview with Cox News Service out of Mexico City. 
 
 
13. Coverage was overwhelmingly positive in Guatemala and 
throughout Central America.  Front-page headlines of increased US 
assistance were on three of the four major papers. Several papers 
used the story of additional US aid as a jumping off point for 
general think pieces on the hunger issue.  We also heard there 
was pickup by BBC of the Reuters TV coverage. 
 
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CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 
----------------------------------- 
 
14. This visit focused primarily on food insecurity prior to and 
after Stan.  Infrastructure development and a strategy for 
implementing within reconstruction a plan for diversified higher- 
valued agriculture, and its subsequent multiplying affects on the 
rural economy will be key components of a long-term solution to 
hunger in Guatemala. 
 
15. There are currently many players assisting victims of 
Hurricane Stan.  Improved coordination of aid will insure the 
proper amount and kind of assistance will reach the most needy 
recipients. 
 
16. Local infrastructure is in need of repair if economic 
development is to progress to the point beyond subsistence 
agriculture.  In addition to food assistance, a plan for bringing 
access to these communities is critical for their ability to 
improve their own destiny.  FAO and USAID projects in Guatemala 
have shown that the farmers in this country can succeed when 
given training and access to markets. 
 
17. The GOG should consider a focused campaign on improving 
girls' education.  Improved school attendance among girls, 
especially within indigenous populations, would contribute to 
lowering malnutrition rates. 
 
18. In the short term, so long as donors provide adequate, in- 
time assistance, the combination of existing GOG and related 
USAID, WFP, FAO, and NGO assistance efforts appear adequate to 
avert famine.  US assistance to GOG (over $250 million) has been 
critical to stabilizing civil society for the past five years, 
and the current government has shown their commitment to 
democratic principles and fighting hunger. 
 
19. We should support the GOG's request to WFP and alert the 
donor community regarding any remediable shortfalls for the 
procurement and distribution of necessary food assistance for the 
coming 12 months. 
 
BRAKEL