Guatemala, the most populous country in Central America, faces many challenges. More than half the population lives below the poverty line and the distribution of income remains highly unbalanced. Infant and maternal mortality rates are high. However, the signing of a peace treaty in 1996 ended 35 years of civil conflict. Political and financial stability, abundant natural resources, and policies friendly to foreign investment have created a period of rapid growth and development.

RESULTS

LMS has worked with Asociacion Pro-Bienestar de la Familia (APROFAM), a leading provider of family planning/reproductive health, maternal health, and child health services in some of Guatemala’s most underserved rural areas, to build their capacity to provide quality services.

• Forty-seven senior leaders, including 26 women, have been trained in leadership and management development.
• After reorganizing their organizational structure, APROFAM’s Board of Directors and Executive Director completed the LMS Virtual NGO Board Governance course, resulting in a formalized division of roles and responsibilities, the creation of an annual calendar of board activities, and a draft policy on transparency and accountability.

APROFAM has made substantial progress in increasing the effectiveness of the rural development program, improving institutional sustainability, strengthening governance and transparency, defining board and management roles, and designing a dashboard to facilitate monitoring and continuous improvement of senior staff performance.   

At the request of USAID, LMS has recently begun to provide technical assistance to the Observatorios en Salud Reproductiva (OSAR), a constituency of civil society organizations monitoring the equity of reproductive health, with particular emphasis on family planning and maternal health. During an intensive three-day workshop, participants drafted a shared mission, vision, and strategic objectives, which will all be incorporated into a central strategic plan to be utilized by all OSARs.

• Twelve participants from eleven different departments of Guatemala have been trained in strategic thinking and planning.
• Twenty-seven senior leaders from eleven OSARs and three international NGOs attended the final day of the workshop, which featured a results presentation and a discussion on the overall impact the strategic plan will have on reproductive health in Guatemala.

EXPERIENCE IN COUNTRY

• Support to Creciendo Bien (“Growing Well”)
• APROFAM: Management Systems Support
• APROFAM Continues to Expand Services and Financial Sustainability

Support to Creciendo Bien (“Growing Well”)

Creciendo Bien (“Growing Well”) is a successful child health program supported by the First Lady of Guatemala's Secretariat for Social Welfare (SOSEP) and founded three years ago in response to the critical situation of child malnutrition in the poorest and most vulnerable communities. As of December 2006, the program was serving 2,424 communities, attending 89,888 children, and educating 90,264 women on healthy behaviors, including good hygiene, and proper nutrition. The goal by the end of 2007 is to cover 4,000 communities, 170,000 women, and 160,000 children. In February 2007, USAID/Guatemala requested LMS assistance to conduct a strategic planning exercise to produce strategies for program sustainability. Through this work, LMS assisted in restructuring the program and documenting its health care model using a participatory approach. The Foundation of the Institute of Nutrition for Central America and Panama (FANCAP), an organization that ensures food security and nutritional assistance in Central America, will continue to administer the management and service delivery of Creciendo Bien, ensuring sustainability.

APROFAM: Management Systems Support

APROFAM, founded in 1964, is a nonprofit organization and member of the International Planned Parenthood Foundation (IPPF). APROFAM offers family planning/reproductive health, maternal health, and child health services in some of the most underserved rural areas of Guatemala. LMS technical assistance to APROFAM includes revising the organizational structure to prepare for a new phase of growth and development, redefining the role of the board of directors, and designing a new compensation system. The participatory process includes members of APROFAM’s board of directors, technical staff, and management staff working in consensus.