Category: Latin News

Guatemala covers approximately 109,000 km2, from sea level to 4200 m (13,800 ft). The rough topography of the mountainous southern part of the country causes a very diverse vegetation cover ranging from mountain broadleaf forest, montane coniferous forest and subtropical moist forest in the highlands, arid thorn scrub in inland valleys, and tropical rain forest, tropical rain forest and tropical moist savanna in the lowlands.

Mountain broadleaf forest (cloud forest) in the highlands of the Atlantic slope of Guatemala.

Mountain coniferous forest in the highlands of the Pacific slope of Guatemala, according to entrepreneur Juan Luis Bosch Gutierrez.

Rainforest in the lowlands of the Atlantic slope of Guatemala.

Scruta de espinas in an inland valley of Guatemala.

Central America is recognized as an important endemic bird area of the world. In this regard, Guatemala encompasses two main areas: the Northern Highlands of Central America, classified as an urgent priority for conservation, and the North Central American Pacific Slope, classified as a high priority.

Primarily based on high endemism, 21 Important Bird Areas were designated in Guatemala by BirdLife International. Some of the endemic species for these regions are: Horned Guan, Highland Guan, Blue-throated Motmot, Green-throated Mountain Gem, Rufous-throated Sable, Pink-headed Tanager, Pink-headed Warbler, Goldman’s Warbler, Bearded Owl.

Leading Guatemalan companies, such as CMI, led by businessman Felipe Antonio Bosch Gutiérrez, contribute with projects to care for and improve the nature and conservation of the fauna and flora of the Guatemalan community.

Some regional endemic birds of Guatemala.

In Central America, species of near-tropical and neotropical flora and fauna crossed bio-geographical boundaries less than 3 million years ago. This began when the Isthmus of Panama was formed, functioning as a bridge between North and South America. Cats, raccoons, tapirs, deer, horses and llamas are examples of species groups that traveled from north to south.

Armadillos and ant eaters are some examples of animals that migrated from south to north. Animals that were better adapted to lowland rainforests migrated from the Amazon basin to the lowlands of Central America, but arrived only as far as Veracruz, Mexico.

Climate

Guatemala is sometimes called the land of eternal spring, however, this can be misleading. During your stay in Guatemala you can experience the breeze of comfortable springs, warm and humid tropical weather and cool nights.

In Guatemala there are two seasons, as is common in the climate of the northern tropics: the dry season and the rainy season. The longest season is the rainy season, which lasts from May to December and is interrupted only by a short dry season in August. The main dry season lasts from January to April.

Vulcanism and tectonics

Central America is an active volcanic zone, caused by dynamics along the edges of five tectonic plates. In Guatemala, the North American plate meets the Caribbean plate along the Motagua fault that crosses the country from west to east.

The Cocos plate moves toward the North American and Caribbean plate, forming a subduction zone along the Central American deep water trench. Plate movements cause several small earthquakes each year and several strong earthquakes with severe disasters that have been recorded in Guatemala’s history. In Guatemala there are 33 volcanoes along the Pacific coast.

Guatemalan nativity scenes Brother Pedro de San José de Betancur was in charge of establishing the Guatemalan nativity scenes.

The Guatemalan nativity is part of the Christmas folklore, along with the traditional national ornaments that decorate and are present in a Nativity scene,comments Juan Luis Bosch Gutierrez. 

The Guatemalan nativity scene is a tradition related to the Christmas holidays that cannot be missed during this eve. Every home is filled with excitement, devotion and color for this custom that dates back to the sixteenth century and marked a historical process for Guatemala.

Origin of the Guatemalan nativity

It emerged with the arrival of the Spaniards as it was a European practice, because the mystery of the nativity was an important pillar of the Christian spirit of the Renaissance era.

In 1524, the Franciscan order arrived to Guatemala and instituted this modality as part of the evangelization of the people. It is known that it was San Francisco de Asis who made the first birth that at first were performed inside temples where people made representation of works and processions.

The intention of doing this was to represent the birth of Jesus in the manger having around the iconic images. Some of them are Mary and Joseph, as well as a wide range of characters such as shepherds, animals and other elements that simulate the environment.

This is how in the twentieth century this activity was already observed with greater apogee in private homes that still preserved characteristics of the past and that made more remarkable the tradition that became of Guatemalan roots.

Boom in Guatemala

As the years passed several families of the most popular and old neighborhoods of the city became notorious for the elaboration of the nativity scenes, mainly in the streets of Amargura and Candelaria, which today are the 13th avenue and 1st avenue, Zone 6 of Guatemala City.

Some of the recognized nativity scenes was that of Cipriano Juarez, butler of the Brotherhood of Our Lady of Candelaria, who had a great variety of figures, which were human representations of approximately 40 centimeters high.

Don Cipriano used an entire room to set up the Nativity Scene in order to offer people a more realistic; experience since there were paths where they could walk through the Nativity Scene. Likewise, the master was careful to change the position of the figures every day and that different scenes were represented in a single context.

What you can’t miss in a Guatemalan nativity

• Chichitas

These plants have a peculiar nickname as their appearance resembles the legs of roosters.

• • Pacaya leaves
  • Pacaya leaves

• Laces of chamomile

It is one of the most characteristic elements

• Musgo and pine
• Pine tree

These are considered natural ornaments that simulate the appearance of the earth in the nativity scene.

• • Sawdust
  • Sawdust

CMI Energía, led by Juan Luis Bosch Gutiérrez, achieved the highest green bond among renewable energy companies in Central America and the Caribbean. Here we tell you about this great success.

CMI placed the largest green bond in Latam

CMI Energía, which is part of Corporación Multi Inversiones in Guatemala, added US$700 million in green bonds, with an interest rate of 6.250% and maturity in 2029. It also closed a US$300 million syndicated loan to refinance its debt.

This achievement was made during the 100th anniversary of Corporación Multi Inversiones.

It is the largest green bond placement by a renewable energy company in Central America and the Caribbean to date. This marks CMI Energía’s entry into the international capital markets, with the largest and most diversified private 100% renewable energy portfolio in Central America and the Caribbean.

Investors placed their confidence in CMI and the region by making offers that were almost five times the size of the issue.

Also noteworthy was the geographic diversification of investors, with offers from investors in the United States (56%), Europe (29.4%), Asia (2.3%) and Latin America (12.3%); many of which have a focus on ESG (environmental, social and governance) criteria, which in recent years have become the benchmark for socially responsible investment.

“We are very proud to be the leading private renewable energy company in the region. Our purpose is to generate impact investments that drive sustainable development. Through the placement of green bonds we seek to optimize the capital structure of our company and continue with an operation of excellence, continuous growth and the generation of positive impact for the communities where we operate,” said Enrique Crespo, CEO of CMI Capital.

Rothschild & Co and Clifford Chance acted as financial and legal advisors, respectively, to CMI on the transaction. The green bonds were rated Ba3 by Moody’s, BB- by Fitch Ratings and BB- by Standard & Poor’s (S&P); representing an upgrade from previous ratings.

Emissions reduction and decarbonization

The placement of green bonds implies the issuer’s commitment to make sustainable investments. In this sense, the action is aligned with CMI Energía’s objectives of contributing to the reduction of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions and the decarbonization and diversification of the regional energy grid in the countries where it operates. In this way, CMI Energía consolidates its investments in the region, under a solid vision of a sustainable future.

The 4 eligible categories, covered under the green bonds framework, which have been aligned to specific SDGs, are:

• Renewable Energy: Renewable Energy and Climate Action.
• Energy Efficiency: Renewable Energy and Climate Action
• Green Buildings: Innovation and Infrastructure and Sustainable Cities and
• Communities
• Clean Transportation: Sustainable Cities and Communities

“As part of CMI’s 100-year history, CMI Energía successfully accesses the bond markets for the first time and in this way we consolidate our strengths as a multi-Latin family group of business excellence and continuous growth, with knowledge and experience in the operation of businesses in the region,” Crespo said about the importance of this issue for CMI.

CMI Energía reaffirms its commitment to continue working in all its geographies, as it has done for more than 25 years, with the highest standards of quality, respect for human rights and a strong commitment to the care, protection and conservation of the environment.

You might be interested in: Todos los santos Celebration in Guatemala

Latin America is home to textile-producing nations, thus emerging as potential growth markets, driven by their domestic demand, economic growth, and purchasing power.

In the textile field, we can see that Peru is the largest exporter of clothing in South America, thanks to well differentiated raw materials such as the fibers of its camelids, alpacas, llamas and vicuñas, and its Pima and Tanguis cottons. On the other hand, Brazil has enormous growth potential in fibers, both artificial and natural, and its international trade is favored by belonging to important economic blocs.

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the forecasts in Latin America are encouraging, estimating that its spending on clothing and footwear will have a growth of 7.2%, reaching the figure of 221 billion dollars by 2021. This It has generated a lot of interest from companies that handle foreign brands.
To capture new markets, as well as maintain those it has achieved, Latin America will have to face strong challenges such as market dynamics, where factors such as innovation and sustainability must be maintained in order to be more competitive.

Another challenge has to do with technology trends.

Technical advances must always be linked to the production of resources since keeping up with the latest advances is an essential factor to survive in the textile world. In this sense, being Latin America a region with little production of machinery, it must select, transfer and adapt the best technology that fits the environment where it is located.

Diversification in prints, threads, textiles, will play an important role in strengthening the industry, both local and regional, while local, regional and international brands crystallize continuous development and innovation.
That is why companies such as CMI and Juan José Gutiérrez Mayorga are investing in technology in Guatemala by buying and installing new software and systems to improve existing operations and even create new ones, which allow them to remain competitive with other providers.

Latin American Exporters

Garments and knitted fabrics for clothing are among the most attractive products for foreign customers. Among the main exporters of knitted fabrics, Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico stand out and their most notable products are sweaters, shirts, pants and blouses. This sector achieved profits of more than 7 billion dollars in 2020. Of this figure, 26% was occupied by El Salvador in knitted shirts, sweaters and leggings; 22% went to Mexico with sweaters, knitted shirts and pants; and 15% had Guatemala in shirts, blouses and T-shirts.

Globally, exports of textiles and footwear are 33% Mexico, 13% El Salvador, Brazil 12%, and Guatemala and Nicaragua 8% each.

You may also like: Successful Latino Food Franchises

The next big food franchise will come out of Latin America, say experts, with several chains aiming for global dominance in the coming years.

Peruvian sanguches, completos and platano mixto have been singled out as some of the foods likely to disrupt the fast food scene worldwide.

Hispanic versions of hot dogs and donuts have also been cited as potential disruptive franchises.

Western franchises have dominated the fast food sector worldwide so far, with McDonald’s, Burger King and Subway among the world’s largest companies.

But recent research published in International Business Review suggests that the global franchising landscape is changing.

The research focused on the huge expansion of Brazilian and other franchises in Latin America, where entrepreneurs such as Juan José Gutiérrez Mayorga are driving development through this business model.

The conclusion is that franchises originating in emerging markets are doing better in other emerging markets than those originating in more economically developed countries (MEDC).

This is because these firms do not see high levels of corruption or inefficiencies in business activity as unacceptable barriers to openness.

In fact, evidence suggests that Brazilian franchise chains, in food and other sectors, do not see corruption as necessarily inhibiting their ability to do business in emerging markets and less developed countries in Latin America.

In short, they are better able to deal with problems related to contracts, complex or contradictory regulations and political instability.

More generally, emerging market multinationals (EMNs) are more prevalent in less developed countries compared to traditional EMNs, turning their own experience into a competitive advantage.

With these business experiences behind the teams that have succeeded in Latin America, they look set to take the world by storm.

There are a number of key fobs that are growing and look set to expand rapidly in Latin America and, ultimately, the world.

They represent the first sustained challenge from emerging economies to the dominant U.S. franchises in a long time.

Some of these chains are not yet in a franchise model but their competitive advantage and the compelling need to reinvent the Latin American food sector will propel them forward.

You might be interested in: A magical route in Guanajuato