When this government started we had 88.14 percent and last year we finished it with 89.94 percent, an increase equivalent to 60,000 beneficiary households and around 300,000 people, said the head of the ministry, Pimentel Mata.
At a press conference, he highlighted Sacatepéquez in this capital, Escuintla, Chimaltenango, Quetzaltenango, Sololá and Totonicapán as the most advanced departments in electrification, with over 95 percent.
While Suchitepéquez, Retalhuleu, El Progreso, Jutiapa, Santa Rosa and San Marcos have 90 percent, while Zacapa, Jalapa, Huehuetenango, Chiquimula, Quiché, Izabal and Baja Verapaz have 80 percent, he said.
Only Alta Verapaz and Petén departments have less than 80 percent electricity coverage due to the remoteness of their communities, Mata said.
He announced that the MEM, together with the National Electrification Institute (INDE), aims to reach more than 30,000 beneficiary households, while the number in 2020 was 11,559, 14,252 in 2021 and 25,274 in 2022.
“We are exploring the possibility of conducting rapid intervention projects aimed at bringing solar energy to small communities,” he said.
This, the minister said, would create opportunities for economic activation and enable computer labs for schools.
Guatemala ranks fourth in Central America for electrification, and the most worrying thing, according to analysts, is that private companies control almost the entire chain and costs are the highest in the region.
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