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Primera Joya face similar challenges to other poorcommunities in Guatemala. Even though they have the motivation, theylack the resources to overcome their situation. This program endeavorsto improve community well-being through these key strategies:strengthening community participation, enhancing education throughAmountrequested: $231,623PRIMERA JOYA SUSTAINABLECOMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PHASE IProject OverviewLocation:In-countryPartner (ICP): Caritas ArquidiocesanaSummary:Guatemala, the most populated country in Central America, is home to approximately17.6 million people and has a Human Development Index value for 2021 of 0.627— whichpositions the country at 135 out of 191 countries and territories, and in Latin America, isthe third worst after Haiti and Honduras.Guatemala has one of the highest poverty rates in the region, both in terms of income Primera Joya, Guatemala Department, GuatemalaBeneficiaries:94families, around 470 people Duration ofthis phase:15 months Palencia Municipality.Click the circles forthe community’s exact location. Background and ContextTo carry out this proposal, Food For The Poor(FFTP) and Caritas Arquidiocesana conducted aseries of assessments to understand the community'sneeds, challenges and assets. This was followed byco-design sessions with the ICP to propose andagree on the project actions or activities to addressthose concerns. Our methodology includedquantitative and qualitative data collection methodsand techniques, such as surveys, communityparticipatory tools, reviews of previous projectreports and technical studies (e.g., topography).GuatemalaA woman from Primera Joya (on theright) presents during the participatorydata collection activities.12&Palencia Municipality,teacher and parent capacity-building, improving food security through workshops,diversification initiatives and technical training, promoting access to health servicesand improving sanitation habits as the first phase of the project.

Consume fruits daily oralmost dailyCrops are considered one of the mostimportant resources owned by thecommunity. However, and from a multidimensional perspective. The country's Multidimensional Poverty Index is61.6%, which significantly rises when considering vulnerable populations in rural areas.According to the Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC), the COVID-19pandemic has further worsened the situation. Guatemala faces a concerning problem of chronic malnutrition, with 49.8% of thecountry's children affected. Surprisingly, even the family members of those afflicted oftenfail to recognize the severity of this issue.Around 50% of the employed population aged 15 and over do not have any degree ofstudies or, at most, have completed primary school.This rural community is located around 17 miles (1 hour and 45 minutes) from the capitalof Guatemala. It has an approximate population of 1,500 people. Primera Joya is part ofPlan Grande, one of Palencia’s (a municipality administrative division larger thana community).Around 80 years ago, the Gonzales and Adornes families founded Primera Joya. Below are some characteristics of Primera Joya and their residents who participated inthe data collection process:Permanent employmentPrimera Joya17%40%Single income source4.6members per family 69%are under 30 years of age$149Monthly average incomeper householdInformal labor (73% agriculture) 75%1%12%Save money64%Believe they would not getcredit35%Consume vegetables daily oralmost daily10%Consume meat (cow, chicken,pork, goat, seafood, etc.) dailyor almost daily3Food security and nutritionEconomic empowerment45Lives under $1.90 poverty line91%aldeas

Report having water inside oftheir household perimeter.However, Have a lot of trust forcommunity leaders57%67Minutes away from thecommunity is the closesthealth center with frequentservice, while the hospital is 2hours and 54 minutes away.The community has been exposedmainly to landslides due todeforestation.The most frequent symptomsexperienced by children and adults inthe community were viral andbacterial indicators such as cold-likesymptoms, diarrhea and otherstomach-related illnesses.HealthSocial developmentEnvironmental risks66%Household heads did notcomplete any formal education(25%) or only have a few yearsof primary school (41%)76%95%Burn their garbage25%Dispose wastewateraround their houseThe primary risk households identifyis not having a proper wastemanagement disposal system.Some of the primary challenges theyface in continuing their education stemfrom a lack of motivation (43%) and nothaving a formal option for the grade theyneed (28%). Water, Sanitation and HygieneEducation38%Children and young peoplebetween the ages of 5 and 16 didnot attend schoolUse water filter forpurification78%59%Have water less than four daysa week. Furthermore, aroundhalf of them have water lessthan six hours a day.69%Households do not have to orcan afford school fees and schoolsuppliesPrimary health risk identified is theshortage of medical professionals andmedical supplies.8%Households report havingsignificant illness83%Have some or a lot oftrust for neighborsParticipants identified a weak communityorganization as their primary weaknessduring the participatory activities. This isalso linked to the absence of communityspaces.

Caritas initiated the relationship with the community in 2007 through a food securityproject. Since then, and with FFTP, the organization has implemented a housing projectand a family garden project. The following timeline shows the main projects Caritas and FFTP have implemented inthe community, as well as the number of families (in parenthesis) that benefited fromthose projects.Caritas Arquidiocesana in Primera JoyaCaritas Arquidiocesana and FFTP projects in Primera JoyaAlthough Caritas and FFTP have implemented a few interventions in Primera Joya, theywere isolated projects which did not necessarily tackle poverty in all its dimensions orbenefit all families who needed support. This proposal will support this community inovercoming its challenges through an integrated approach. Primera Joya has a highpotential for Sustainable Community Development (SCD) as the communities havedemonstrated commitment during the implementation of previous projects and highparticipation in the assessment process.Our StrategyFor FFTP and Caritas Arquidiocesana, the best solution to address the concerns anddifferent dimensions of poverty in communities like Primera Joya is to approachdevelopment holistically through SCD projects. Within these projects, we addressvulnerabilities, build on existing assets and promote sustainability. Our projects integratematerial or physical interventions and include social and spiritual components based onthe unique situation of each community. The strategic areas we cover are education,health, food security and nutrition, economic empowerment, water, sanitation andhygiene (WASH), community empowerment and governance, and family and personalsocial development. It is important to note that each community’s poverty experiencemight look different, thus requiring other resources to move out of it.2007Housingproject (94)Caritas’ first projectwith communityInternational FoodRelief Partnership(IFRP)Funded by USAID and FFTP,still active to this date.2021 20232022Familygardens (23)

Market Opportunity Assessment Economic empowerment Community empowerment andparticipationHealth and/or nutrition and foodsecurity initiativesWASH initiativesInfrastructure projectsMarket Opportunity Assessment Economic empowerment Community empowerment andparticipationHealth and/or nutrition and foodsecurity initiativesWASH initiativesSpiritual initiativesInfrastructure projectsYearsMonitoring,Evaluation andLearning (MEL)PHASE IBuilding Foundationsfor DevelopmentPHASE IIWalking Toward Sustainable andResilient Communities Caritas and FFTP use participatory methodologies that focus on meeting basic needswhile promoting self-management, citizen participation and empowerment. Themethodology is transformative, based on practical experiences and the desire forchange. Community organization and self-management are emphasized, along withtechnical interventions and hands-on learning. To ensure long-lasting development, wepropose working on different phases that gradually strengthen the building blocks forthe rest of the project, starting with some components of community participation,education, health, income-generating activities (IGAs) and food security. The following image provides an overview of the typical components included in eachphase of an SCD. It is important to note that these components may vary as they aretailored to each community's unique needs, context and progress. Furthermore,depending on the reach and type of IGAs to be implemented, a third phase might benecessary.Project DescriptionThis project's overarching is to improve the general well-being of 94 familiesresiding in Primera Joya, Palencia, Guatemala, by creating and fostering enablingconditions that empower the community to be agents of transformation towardsustainable development.goal

These objectives will be sought through the following activities:The of this phase by component are:specific objectivesEducation and trainingprograms for parentsfocused on developingskills for organizing andparticipating in schoolactivities.Training plan andcounseling for teachers.Main ComponentsStrengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges ofthe context and organization of parents identified.Strengthened skills for organizing school activities of theBoard of Directors and parents.Increased knowledge about the importance of parentalinvolvement in their children's education.Created space for interaction, inclusion andcommunication between members of the board, parentsand teachers.Strengthened skills and capacities of teachers withtechniques and resources adapted to the students.Expected Outcomes The proposed components (education, social development, food security, economicempowerment, WASH and health) respond to the community's main challenges and theirpotential to be implemented in the first phase. We intend to complement and leverageprevious interventions by broadening their scope in terms of participants and integrality. 1.1 Increase parents'involvement andorganization in theirchildren's educationalactivities 1.2 Strengthen teachers'skills2.1 Strengthencommunityparticipation andleadership.3.1 Increase access andavailability of food3.2 Enhance goodnutritional and farmingpractices3.3 Follow up and improvethe nutritional status ofchildren and lactatingwomen in critical conditions 4.1 Identify the supply,demand, competition, aswell as potential incomeand employmentopportunities for thefamilies of Primera Joya5.1 Promote accessto health servicesamong communitymembers6.1 Promote sanitationand hygiene practices Education

EconomicEmpowermentFood Securityand NutritionComprehensive nutritionprogram.Family garden, fruit treesand good agriculturalpractices.Strengthened community organization and leadershipto encourage citizen participation.Increased participation and commitment ofcommunity members in decision-making and projectimplementation.Increased skills for managing and expressingemotions, targeting people who receive leadershipand community organization training.Execution of a community project organized and ledby the leadership group.Main ComponentsExpected Outcomes Creation and strengtheningof leadership groups.Facilitate the planning andexecution of a communitydevelopment-led project.Psychosocial care servicesfor the communityleadership group: guidanceand emotional support, andactivities to strengthensocio-emotional skills.SocialDevelopmentIncreased awareness about the significance of goodnutrition.Increased availability and access to high-quality foodfor self-consumption.Increased good agricultural practices.Improved nutritional status of children and lactatingwomen in critical conditions.Market opportunityassessment.The supply, demand, competition, as well as potentialincome and employment opportunities for the familiesof Primera Joya are identified.WASHPromotion of best sanitationand hygiene practicesthrough workshops andfollow-up visits.Cleaning and hygiene kitdelivery.Support community-ledinitiatives for garbagecollection sites.Promoted sanitation and hygiene practices.Community diagnosis (visits to all homes toestablish a health statusbaseline).Follow-up on critical casesthrough medical brigades.Promoted access to community health services.Health

This intervention will benefit 94 families, approximately 470 people in total. Althougheach intervention may target different groups within the community (such as adults,young people, children, teachers, women, etc.), they are selected based on pressingneeds and representation in terms of gender, age and ethnicity (to ensure equity),motivation to participate and learn, and/or possessing the knowledge or skills requiredfor specific income-generating activities. ParticipantsSome of the potential partners in this intervention are the Ministry of Education for theFood Security Component at schools, the Palencia Municipality for the communityorganization and empowerment, and Rafael Landívar University for the psychosocialsupport in the social development component. Given the family's economic situation, they welcomed Marvin's contribution to thehousehold income. With his and his father's earnings, the family's monthly income isaround Q1400 (around $179). They primarily use this money to prioritize access to food,relying on a basic diet of corn and beans, as well as paying for electricity.In the following pictures, we show Gloria Limaand Cristóbal Salazar's family. They are anexample of the families who will be included inthe project.This family has benefited from the FFTP andCaritas housing project in Primera Joya.Previously, they lived in a house that was in poorcondition due to the low-quality constructionmaterials used. Thanks to this intervention, theynow have a safe place to live, with adequatephysical spaces that have significantly improvedtheir quality of life.Gloria is content with the current situation,which is much safer during winter.This couple has three children; the youngest two,Marvin Horacio (15) and Estefani Fernanda (11),live with them. Estefani attends a public schoolin the community. However, Marvin onlycompleted fifth grade in elementary school. Heleft school to help his father with harvestinggüisquil (a type of vegetable). Other school-aged youth like Marvin have also left school towork. He now works alongside his father in thefields surrounding the community and earnsQ40 ($5) per day. Gloria and her daughter Estefani arepictured at home.

The Monitoring, Evaluation, Design, Accountability and Learning (MEDAL) Plan involvescoordinating efforts with the FFTP MEDAL team to conduct regular monitoring andevaluation activities throughout the project's duration. The team aims to measure the outcomes of project activities on participating families andassess changes in their lives. To gather data, qualitative and quantitative research will beconducted, focusing on key questions related to poverty reduction, resilience building andcommunity self-sustainability. MEDAL is integral throughout the project and essential to improve future interventions'design and ensure project accountability. Therefore, we have created a comprehensiveplan, which can be found here.Monitoring, Evaluation, Design, Accountability andLearning (MEDAL)Despite Marvin's inability to continue his education, Gloria emphasizes that he is amotivated young man with a strong desire to learn. He is particularly interested indeveloping additional skills that would allow him to find employment in Palencia, likeother young people from the community. Currently, Marvin is involved in the youth groupof the local Catholic church.Project Budget and TimelineThe project timeline can be accessed in this link.Pictured above is a work day at the güisquil plantations in Primera Joya.

Primera Joya SCD Project BudgetQTYUNITDESCRIPTIONDETAILSAMOUNTTOTAL1SumSocial development:communityorganizationInitial meeting and launch of the SCD project$1,167.00$1,167.001SumCommunity organization training process and development of self-management plans$9,905.00$9,905.009UnitsDesign and implementation of a community development ledproposal (training and facilitation expenses)$10,000.00$10,000.001SumPsychosocial care wokshops$1,467.00$1,467.001SumEducationEducation and training for parents' organization $3,309.00$3,309.004EachTeacher trainings$1,360.00$1,360.001SumHealthCommunity households health baseline and health/medical brigades$12,028.00$12,028.001SumWASHHygiene training and visits$7,920.00$7,920.001SumHome hygiene kits$9,024.00$9,024.001SumFood security andnutritionEquipment and materials for assessment and monitoring of thenutritional status of children$900.00$900.00 1SumEco-filters for households$4,982.00$4,982.001SumDIGISALUD software for assessment and monitoring of thenutritional status of children$1,500.00 $1,500.00 1SumComplement to the Ministry of Education’s school snack and mealprogram (workshops, basic kitchen equipment)$4,113.00$4,113.001SumWorkshops for mothers and children (training and promotion ongood nutrition, didactic materials)$3,733.00$3,733.00 1SumComprehensive nutrition program$41,266.00$41,266.001SumAvailability and access to food and good agricultural practices$867.00$867.001SumDelivery of certified seeds$5,723.00$5,723.001SumEconomicEmpowerment(consultancy work)Market study and business plans for income generating projects$15,000.00$15,000.001SumMarket study support from Caritas Arquidiocesana$400.00$400.001SumEquipmentEquipment (2 computers, 1 projector, flipcharts)$3,013.00$3,013.001SumVisibilityProject banner$1,258.00$1,258.001SumTechnical and financialsupportCommunity promoter (15 months)$14,355.00$14,355.001SumEducation staff (12 months)$6,084.00$6,084.001SumFood security staff (12 months)$6,084.00$6,084.001SumAgricultural staff (12 months)$9,888.00$9,888.001SumHealth staff (12 months)$6,084.00$6,084.0012Month(s)Technical staff perdiemsTechnical staff per diems$860.00$10,320.001SumMEDALMonitoring and Evaluation (3 visits)$10,000.00$10,000.00Total Direct Costs$201,750.00Indirect CostsCorporate, Network & Field OperationIn-country project management expenses$9,698.00Food For The Poor fulfillment, project management and monitoring expenses$20,175.00Total Indirect Costs$29,873.00TOTAL PROJECT COSTS$231,623.00Additional InformationIn this you can access the full report of the qualitative assessment in Spanish, and you can access a translation of the photovoice report prepared with young people ofPrimera Joya, and a video summarizing the assessment process with English subtitles herelinkhere.

About Food For The PoorFood For The Poor, one of the largest international relief and developmentorganizations in the nation, does much more than feed millions of hungry childrenand families living in poverty primarily in 17 countries of the Caribbean and LatinAmerica. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency reliefassistance, water, medicine, educational materials, homes, support for vulnerablechildren, care for the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise developmentassistance. For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.