It’s 5 a.m. and the aroma of freshly baked bread fills the air. Telma is delivering French bread, sweet bread, and campechanas (pastries) to her customers’ homes before opening her shop. She feels blessed to have a physical place to sell her baked goods in her community in Guatemala.
As a single mother, Telma struggled with the burden of providing for her children, especially their education. Her bakery has been vital to the family’s well-being, but it was a challenge to increase her production and sales.
Telma found the support and financial services she needed through a microfinance group with Fundación de Asistencia para la Pequeña Empresa (FAPE), a Christ-centered microfinance institution in Guatemala.
With loans from FAPE, Telma has invested in her business growth by purchasing new cookware and bulk ingredients to increase her baked goods production. With her earnings, she can more easily provide for her children’s needs, including her son’s school fees.
Telma is now the leader of her microfinance group, inspiring other women like herself as they work to invest in their businesses and dream for a brighter future.
Marginalized families in Guatemala are looking for opportunity
In Guatemala, poverty and inequality rates are among the highest in Latin America, and one in every two children is malnourished (World Bank).
FAPE is working to change these statistics and currently offers capital and financial resources to more than 2,000 underserved families in Guatemala. These microfinance services include business, housing, and schooling loans; savings services; insurance; and mentorship.
FAPE also provides biblically based training and prayer support, embracing a holistic approach that empowers families to break the cycle of material and spiritual poverty.
Around 50% of the men and women that FAPE serves are part of the Indigenous communities in Guatemala—marginalized groups facing malnourishment, unequal access to land rights, and social exclusion.
As one of the few microfinance institutions in Guatemala, FAPE aspires to reach more overlooked people but has lacked the resources to expand broadly.
Partnering with HOPE to serve more families
As a new member of HOPE’s Microfinance Accelerator Program (MAP), FAPE has joined a network of smaller Christian microfinance institutions that share a Kingdom-minded mission. This membership provides FAPE access to Christ-centered resources, including training on expansion and mentoring opportunities. HOPE’s aim is to strengthen their capabilities to serve more Indigenous communities by opening two new branch offices.
Manuel Garcia, executive director of FAPE shares,
We are grateful to God for the opportunity to join MAP. We are very motivated to work together, knowing that God has prepared something important for us to do.
Outside of Guatemala, MAP serves underserved families in Uganda, El Salvador, Mexico, as well as countries in Asia.*
Corinne Han-Danforth, Asia regional director of microfinance shares,
The Microfinance Accelerator Program was developed through a lot of prayer since 2021, and we are excited to serve Him in countries that we never dreamed we could serve.
Pray with us over our next steps
Would you join us in praying for our team as we partner with FAPE?
- Pray for effective collaboration with FAPE to reach more underserved families.
- Pray for strategic and meaningful connections with potential church partners in Guatemala.
- Pray that the Indigenous community experiences the love of Christ and inclusion in society through FAPE.
- Pray that the men and women FAPE serves are better equipped to use their God-given abilities to uplift their families and communities.
*Country and partner names withheld for security
