Expert Consulting Services, SEC Guatemala

Although small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Guatemala account for 85% of the total job market, they only represent 35% of the GDP. There are many factors that prevent SMEs from being more productive: low levels of education, lack of access to financing and information on markets, insufficient capabilities in business management and a lack of support for entrepreneurs. Improving entrepreneur’s performance and increasing their participation in local and global markets could have very positive results for the entire economy. 
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Suchitepéquez Department, Guatemala
14.4215982
-91.4048249
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Retalhuleu Sacatepéquez Department, Guatemala
14.5178379
-90.7152749
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Quetzaltenango Department, Guatemala
14.792433
-91.714958
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Chimaltenango Department, Guatemala
14.5634787
-90.9820668
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Escuintla Department, Guatemala
14.1910912
-90.9820668
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Guatemala Department, Guatemala
14.5649401
-90.52578229999999
Project duration
2019 - 2023
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The project

The project objective is to boost companies by strengthening local capacities and offering personalised support with expert consultants.

To this end, it introduces Senior Expert consultancy services in Guatemala through Swisscontact’s Senior Expert Contact on the one hand and liaises with local stakeholders on the other hand. These include expert organisations, entrepreneurship accelerators and business associations to facilitate the establishment of a local organisation that manages an expert pool of at least 100 local or regional experts.

With personalised and specific consultancies for small and medium-sized companies through volunteer consultants, SEC offers services to companies that have been operating for at least one year, have between five and 200 employees, and an annual volume of operations of up to a million dollars. These SMEs can benefit from a selective transfer of skills, knowledge, industry perspectives and catalytic support, either in person or virtually, which would improve the quality of products and services, workflows and/or working conditions.

SEC conducts face-to-face consultancies in the departments of Guatemala, Sacatepéquez, Chimaltenango, Escuintla, Suchitepéquez, Retalhuleu and Quetzaltenango, and virtual consultancies throughout the country.

Financing partners

This project is financed by Argidius Foundation, Jansen PrimeSteps Foundation, among other donors. It is part of the Swisscontact Development Programme, which is co-financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA.  

Project links

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News

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Grupo Los de Aquí - Lacteos Chicacsi, Guatemala: For the love of cheese
“It’s the love that makes this company special,” smiles Maria Alejandra Grotewold, Administrative Manager of the 32-year old cheesemaking company in Guatemala set up by her father in 1990. Read the story in the annual report of the Argidius Foundation.
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As part of its goal to create a competitive private sector in Guatemala, the Programme Expert Consulting Services (SEC Guatemala) will expand its offering to include mentoring and technical support from volunteer Salvadoran experts.
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Thanks to expert consulting services, Estela Rivera found new distribution channels repositioning her small enterprise in Guatemala despite challenges faced during the pandemic. Photo ©James Rodriquez/Panos