Latin America and Caribbean

Wildfires continue burn in the region

Published

2 weeks ago

April 19, 2024

Rashaed Esson
Staff Writer

As high heat affects Latin America and the Caribbean, wildfires are raging and threaten the safety and quality of life of the people in Guatemala, Mexico and Guyana.

Guatemala is currently facing 40 active forest fires and so the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (CONRED) in response, declared a 30 day state of calamity on April 10, according to a report from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Also, the report says the Ministry of Education in three departments, Guatemala, Escuintla and Sacatepéquez, was forced to suspend classes in an effort to maintain the safety and health of students and teachers, given the threat of air pollution due to the mammoth fires.

The surface area damaged by the fires so far sums up to about 18,226 acres of land, putting many families at risk of loss of property.

Mexico is also on the line of defense against these fires. The OCHA says the National Forestry Commission (CONAFO) informs that as of April 11, there are 70 active forest fires in 19 states and at least 32,026 thousand hectares burned, mostly in the southern states.

With strong efforts to ensure these fires are under control, the report highlights that about 3,115 troops have been deployed to control the fires with aerial support teams.

Additionally, Guyana too has been battling wildfires with 28 people currently in a shelter in the village of Santa Arratack.

Last month an elderly male lost his life to a bush fire in Guyana.

As of April 10, fires have burned more than 40,000 acres there.

Related Topics:#guyana #Mexico #Wildfires guatemala

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Published

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Credit: Library of Congress

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#Latam#SDGs, April 23, 2024 – Twenty two percent of Latin America and the Caribbean’s Sustainable Development Goals are in good standing, with the expectation of being reached by 2030, compared to only 15 percent globally according to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), during the seventh Forum of Latin American and Caribbean Countries on Sustainable Development.

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Latin America and Caribbean

IMF says Regional Growth Slowing- not bad news

Published

1 week ago

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#IMF#LatinAmericaandCaribbean#EconomicGrowth, April 22, 2024 – The IMF reports that economic growth for Latin America and the Caribbean is projected to slow to 2 percent for 2024, from 2.3 percent in 2023 due to weaker external environments and the effects of strict policies to control inflation, which are still materializing. This is not bad news for the region according to IMF official Rodrigo Valdes, speaking at a Press briefing on April 19. Additionally, Valdes informs that inflation has decreased and that the region has shown great resilience over the past few years.