Indigenous Peoples and Poverty Reduction: A Case Study of Guatemala

The present case study is part of a larger research project undertaken for the Inter-American Development Bank, concerning the issue of indigenous peoples and poverty reduction in Latin America. In introducing the Guatemalan study, it is important to clarify its scope and objectives. It aims both to broaden the knowledge of IDB officials themselves regarding the complex issues to be addressed in reducing the poverty of indigenous peoples in a country like Guatemala; and also to prepare the ground for a future dialogue between IDB officials and the Government of Guatemala on this same subject. Given this dual objective, the study of necessity contains more background information than for a document prepared exclusively for the Government of Guatemala. At the same time, the main focus is on policy concerns rather than a descriptive account of the poverty facing indigenous peoples in Guatemala.