Guatemala faces a crisis of perception and strategy. Not only do we fail to appear in the key global competitiveness rankings, but when we do appear, we are portrayed as a country in decline, comparable to authoritarian regimes and fragile economies.
The case of the World Bank’s Business Ready report is revealing: Guatemala was not even considered. We are not in the first wave of 50 countries, nor in the second of 58, nor in the third… we simply do not count. For international investors, Guatemala is not an option.
And when we are evaluated, the results are even worse. The Bertelsmann Foundation, a liberal think tank from Germany, classified us as a hard-line autocracy, on the same level as Cuba and Venezuela. The contrast with reality is absurd. In Guatemala, the electoral system allowed the opposition to win and guaranteed the transition of power. Meanwhile, El Salvador, where judicial independence has been eliminated and power has been concentrated in a single figure, received the more lenient classification of “moderate autocracy.” Surely Bukele has known how to manage both his country’s image and his own.
This is not only a problem of external evaluation; it is a failure in defending our international image. Neither the government nor the private sector has made the necessary effort to position Guatemala on the global stage. We have not conquered markets, generated trust, or built our own narrative. Worse still, the opposition that now governs actively contributed to weakening our reputation, portraying the country as a failed state before the international community.
Beyond Image: An Economy Without Ambition
If the international perception is poor, economic performance does little to correct it. While Panama, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic have designed clear strategies to attract investment and strengthen their positioning, Guatemala remains trapped in inertia.
Economic growth in recent years has been positive, but insufficient. The Dominican Republic has achieved 9.6% growth in GDP per capita over the last three years, consolidating itself as one of the region’s most dynamic economies. In contrast, Guatemala grew only 4.8% during the same period. If Guatemala does not accelerate its growth, in one or two decades the Dominican Republic could become three or four times richer than Guatemala, at the level of Costa Rica and Panama. Meanwhile, Guatemala would remain left behind for half a century or more.
The difference is not accidental; it is the result of strategic vision. While the Dominican Republic has aggressively invested in tourism and economic diversification, Guatemala continues depending on traditional exports, remittances, and a limited domestic market. We have made no serious effort to integrate into global value chains or implement reforms to improve our competitiveness.
Furthermore, the current government distrusts the private sector, whereas in other countries the alliance between business and government has been key to development. In the Dominican Republic, government and business leaders work together for a better nation. In Guatemala, such collaboration is unthinkable.
Five Urgent Structural Changes
To transform the country’s economic reality, Guatemala needs immediate and profound action.
First, a comprehensive tax reform. The current system discourages investment. It is urgent to redesign the corporate income tax to make it more competitive and simplify the tax burden. In addition, investor guarantee laws are needed to provide legal certainty and long-term stability. Without clear rules, no one will invest capital in Guatemala.
Second, turn tourism into an economic pillar. While the Dominican Republic receives more than 11 million tourists per year, Guatemala barely surpasses 2 million, despite possessing unmatched cultural and natural wealth. But to grow tourism, we need infrastructure. We do not have the ports, airports, hotels, or restaurants necessary to host 11 million tourists. If they arrived tomorrow, it would be chaos. And if something serious happened to one of them, goodbye tourism in Guatemala for a decade.
Tourism growth must be planned. Investing in air connectivity, international promotion, and security is essential. It is not enough to wait for tourists to arrive; we must go out and attract them.
Third, modernize the productive sector. Productivity in Guatemala is among the lowest in the region. Companies have not adopted advanced technologies nor invested in training their middle management, which remains far below the Latin American standard. Automation, artificial intelligence, and digitalization must become priorities, but without skilled talent, none of these solutions will work.
Fourth, improve infrastructure with immediate solutions. Modernizing ports and highways will take at least 15 years, but there are changes that can be implemented now. Optimizing logistics processes, digitalizing customs procedures, and reducing bureaucratic barriers would improve efficiency without waiting decades to see results.
Fifth, spend better, not more. Guatemala does not need a welfare state based on subsidies and dependency. It needs a government that strategically invests in infrastructure, education, and technology. Reducing current spending and redirecting it toward productive projects is the only way to generate wealth and reduce migration. The greatest failure of a country is watching its citizens leave because they cannot find a future in their own land.
A Call to Action: Guatemala’s Future Is Not Written
Guatemala’s problem is not only economic, but also one of vision and strategy. We do not appear in the key rankings, and when we do, we are portrayed as a country without direction. We have failed to manage our image before the world, and we have not made the structural decisions necessary to change our reality.
But there is still time to correct our course. Guatemala has all the potential to become a nation of opportunity, but it needs courageous decisions and a clear vision. We cannot continue waiting for change to arrive on its own. If we want a competitive and prosperous country, we must build it starting today.
Guatemala has a historic opportunity. It is not a country lacking resources, talent, or capability. It is a country that, if it chooses to do so, can change its destiny. But to achieve this, we must act now. We cannot continue resigning ourselves to being an invisible, ignored, and relegated nation. It is time to build a country recognized on the global map, admired for its growth, stability, and capacity to compete in a world where Guatemala can have its own manifest destiny if we decide so.
