United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
Published: 2011
Total Pages: 152
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This report reviews the different policies that bear an impact on FDI in Guatemala, with a view to recommending concrete policy actions to improve the country's attractiveness and the benefits from FDI throughout the economy and in relation with the strategy sectors identified by the Government. Guatemala is one of the countries in Latin America with the longest FDI attraction record. However, a long internal conflict that lasted for a good part of its contemporary history took a heavy toll on economic and social development and slowed both foreign and domestic investment. The signing of the Peace Accords in 1996 marked the beginning of a new epoch, characterised by renewed macro-economic stability, opening to trade and investment and an unprecedented rise in FDI inflows. Nonetheless, widespread poverty and inequitable income distribution, low education levels and high crime rates continue to hamper the country's social and economic development and prevent Guatemala from realising its full FDI attraction potential.