Data or statistical facts on the situation and perspectives of agri-food systems and the impact of policies
4 Central American countries, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, contain extensive areas of the Dry Corridor exposed to prolonged droughts and extreme rainfall associated with El Niño.
4 weeks without rainfall were enough to destroy staple crop plantings in agricultural communities in Guatemala and El Salvador, worsening food insecurity risks.
Between 2.0 and 2.49 million people will need food assistance in Guatemala from June to September 2026, reaching the upper end of the range between July and August as food stocks decline, income sources decrease and dependence on food purchases intensifies. From October 2026 to January 2027, the population in need is expected to decline to between 1.5 and 1.99 million.
7% of forest cover was lost between 1990 and 2020 in Latin America and the Caribbean, equivalent to 138 million hectares, highlighting the scale of landscape degradation in the region and the urgency of advancing large-scale restoration and conservation efforts (World Resources Institute, 2024).
58% of greenhouse gas emissions in Latin America and the Caribbean originate from land use, land-use change, and the forestry sector, highlighting the significant weight of these activities in the region’s climate dynamics and the urgent need to strengthen mitigation efforts (World Resources Institute, 2024).
23% of the world’s forests and 60% of global biodiversity are located in Latin America and the Caribbean, highlighting the region’s strategic importance for ecosystem and biodiversity conservation. This significant share also reflects the critical role of LAC in providing essential ecosystem services and in supporting global efforts to address environmental degradation and climate change (Worl...
Up to 70% of agricultural productivity growth in Latin America and the Caribbean is reduced when environmental costs are taken into account. The increase in production has been driven mainly by the intensive use of inputs rather than by technological or managerial improvements, highlighting the need for policies that integrate sustainability and innovation. (IDB, 2025)
In 2023, the relative internal productivity of the Agriculture sector in Latin America and the Caribbean was 44 (with total productivity coefficient = 100), showing its lag compared to sectors with higher productivity, according to the sectoral graph of the report (ECLAC, 2025).
