About Alta Verapaz

Inn Kapeu is based out of San Cristobal, Verapaz, the Guatemalan base for Inn Ministries. This ministry has been making a difference in the lives of people in San Cristobal for nearly 30 years through their church, school, and local outreach.

Alta Verapaz is a state in the northeastern highlands of Guatemala. It has an average altitude of about 1300 meters above sea level (4200ft). As a part of the rainforest, it experiences heavy rainfall for the majority of the year. Due to its high elevation and good rainfall, it is an excellent agricultural area for both coffee and cardamom.

Due to its rural location in Guatemala, there is ample opportunity for growth where poverty and education are a concern. Many Guatemalans suffer stunted growth due to malnutrition as a result of the extreme poverty levels, especially in rural areas such as Alta Verapaz; an area where poverty forces many children to leave school to help provide for their families, only one in five children will graduate from sixth grade.

In 2014:

Only 32% of household heads had no education. Even today, we see children being forced to leave school to help the family work the fields or earn money in manual labor jobs in order to feed the family; funds for education are not an option. Economic studies have proven that the higher the education levels of a population, the higher their income and standard of living becomes.  

Alta Verapaz has the highest percent of households in extreme poverty, with about 56% of households falling into this category. This equates to living on less than $1.90 per day. Most people in developed countries spend more money on a cup of coffee. Alta Verapaz has the lowest percentage of households connected to a municipal water supply, being less than 16%. Though blessed with plenty of rainfall, this water is not safe for consumption due to bacteria and sediment deposits. Around 75% of households boil their water to sanitize it. Less than 20% of households are connected to drainage systems, which means that waste is disposed of in holes dug into the ground or into the street. 

These are harsh realities that people in our area deal with on a daily basis, but it does not take away from the immense beauty of the local rainforests and the incredible hospitality of the people. With your continued support, we are making a difference in the lives of those around us through Inn Ministries’ teaching, mentorship and discipleship for the better future of the Alta Verapaz region. 

Your support of buying coffee from Inn Kapeu is helping to make that difference happen on a wider scale. We thank you for your support.

Information obtained from Guatemala – Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Poverty Diagnostic.