“To prevent, you must have a comprehensive risk mitigation plan before the problem arrives,” says José Isupe, director of the Road Conservation Executing Unit (COVIAL), who adds that This plan is necessary to avoid the vulnerability of the roads during the rainy season. ISTUPE highlights that, to create it, inter -institutional collaboration that allows to determine vulnerable areas during winter is necessary.
Covial points out that Guatemala is categorized as one of the most vulnerable countries due to the effects of climate change. Juan Laureano, spokesman for Conred, explains that, during the rainy season – to which the country is already entering – the entire national territory is at risk.
According to Laureano, the country’s main roads – specifically the route to the Atlantic, the route to the Pacific, the Inter -American Route and the road to El Salvador – tend to register, during the winter, floods, landslides and landslides. This is due, said Laureano, to the Lack of technical evaluations and analysis of field that allow to determine the quality of the soils.
Carla Caballeros, executive director of Camagro, points out that there is currently an imminent risk due to the beginning of the rains, which could be aggravated in the coming weeks. “This puts connectivity at risk, increases emergency, repair and transport costs.” Knights emphasizes that they have identified 120 sections in critical conditionsregardless of the time of the year, which represent more than 50% of the total road network.
What is needed?
The reason why the stability of the road network is complex, according to Covial, is because the roads are built in geographical accidents, such as mountains, volcanoes and rivers. Carlos Steiger, competitiveness analyst of the AGEXPORT Logistics Sector, points out that it is necessary to analyze the risk points for their respective maintenance, which – according to Steiger – is key to minimizing the impact of climatic conditions.
For the development of this comprehensive plan, Istupe emphasizes that it must contain three essential points:
- Have the classified information of all infrastructure units affected by the road network. This – according to the director of Covial – means that all the information must focus exclusively on the damage it can cause in each region.
- Have an action plan for the improvement of the previously identified points. ISTUPE points out that it is necessary to have the planned work before the problem develops; That is, act before the rainy season arrives and landslides, sinking and flooding are presented.
- Follow up. It is not a single government plan, but a strategy that is strengthened over time, to reduce the problems that are currently presented.
ISTUPE argues that, to create a plan for this magnitude, it is necessary to involve public institutions, such as Insivumeh and the Ministry of Environment, to provide relevant data, in addition to the municipalities and governorates that are in charge of the road network. It also emphasizes the need for private actors.
Laureano said that, to avoid the increase in vulnerable areas in the country, it is necessary to strengthen public policies and infrastructure: “that this also leads to technical studies demonstrated by experts, that effectively the area where the constructions can be carried out is safe to avoid any type of emergency.”
According to ISTUPE, approaches with different units are being made to start collecting the information.
Maintenance
Knights mentions that, For the second consecutive yearthe roads are not receiving maintenance. “We are already in the sixth month of the year and the execution of the Budget of the Ministry of Communications does not even exceed a quarter of its budget,” says the executive director of Camagro.
According to Knights, the critical state of 120 sections is due to the lack of maintenance during 2024 and the first six months of 2025.
According to Isupe, At the national level, 78 active cleanings are recorded, In addition to projects in the process of awarding to give coverage nationwide. Likewise, the director of Covial points out that among the pending tenders are bumping, signage and cleaning work.
Knights highlights that what the country needs are actions and plans that are fulfilled in its entirety. “Maintenance programs that are executed in the planned and properly,” he says, adds that the guarantee of financial and physical execution of the works is necessary.
Productivity effects
The first impact – according to Steiger – is reflected in the time mobilization times. “An landslide, collapse or flood on the route can cause delay hours,” says Steiger, who mentions that this generates the risk of not reaching the port terminals promptly and not reaching the scheduled exit of ships, in export issues.
Knights mentions that the direct impact of roads in poor condition, specifically for the agricultural sector, is evidenced in the negative effects on the main agricultural production corridors. This – according to gentlemen – increases logistics costs and reduces the interest of producers, since they must spend more resources in transport, maintenance and fuel.
“This deteriorates the country’s competitiveness in a general way,” says Caballeros, who says that both agricultural producers and carriers and merchants are affected.
In that sense, Caballeros explains that the negative impact is generated both in production and the availability and quality of products in the national market.
Other vulnerable sectors
Other areas qualified as vulnerable – according to Laureano – are the lower parts of the country, especially on the southern coast and the mouth coast. These sectors also include departments such as Suchitepéquez and Escuintla.
Loureano also mentions that departments such as Petén and Quetzaltenango are recorded, since in the rainy season they are usually emitted alerts by floods. “Precisely because there are constructions in places where they should not be,” said Laureano.
During this year, Isupe says that 109 emergencies have been attended at the national level, in the 22 departments of the country. These emergencies include the removal of trees, rocks, and attention in bridges and vaults. The departments with more attention – according to Isupe – are Santa Rosa, Quetzaltenango and El Progreso.