Key Impact Points:
- Improving Maternal Health: Microgrids provide consistent power to remote Guatemalan clinics, ensuring safer childbirth environments.
- Expanding Global Reach: This initiative builds on successful microgrid deployments in Kenya, where maternal mortality rates dropped by 83%.
- Community Empowerment: Reliable electricity supports healthcare, education, and socioeconomic growth, impacting entire communities.
Powering Safer Births in Guatemala
Schneider Electric, a global leader in energy management, has partnered with United Solar Initiative to install microgrids at maternal healthcare clinics in remote regions of Guatemala. The initiative focuses on improving maternal health outcomes by providing consistent energy access, enabling clinics to operate without power interruptions. The project will impact healthcare facilities in San Sebastián Coatán and Santa Eulalia.
A Crucial Need
In Guatemala, indigenous women face some of the highest maternal mortality risks in the Western Hemisphere, with a mortality rate of 156 deaths per 100,000 live births. This is seven times higher than the rate in the United States. Reliable energy access is crucial for healthcare, especially in these remote areas, where power shortages can be life-threatening.
“Energy must be a resource accessible to all,” said Maria José Bazo, President of the Central American Cluster for Schneider Electric. “Thanks to this project, thousands of Guatemalan women will be able to have their children in safer and better-equipped environments. We are an impact company that generates actions.”
Building on Success in Kenya
Schneider Electric’s efforts in Guatemala are part of a broader program to expand energy access to healthcare clinics worldwide. Previously, the company partnered with United Solar Initiative and Impact Global Health Alliance to deploy microgrids at clinics in Kenya. Since their installation, maternal mortality rates in Kenyan clinics have dropped by 83%.
“Our partnership with United Solar Initiative and Impact Global Health Alliance has already underscored the life-saving impact of microgrids via our deployments in Kenya,” said Samantha Childress, Microgrid Partner & Strategy Director for Schneider Electric. “We are excited to expand this program to Guatemala, where we can continue to help make a positive impact in the lives of mothers and their children.”
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A Broader Impact
Beyond improving maternal health, the microgrids will also benefit day-to-day clinic operations, including preventative healthcare, staff training, and community education.
Andrew Herrera, Executive Director of Impact Global Health Alliance, emphasized the broader effects: “These projects are part of a comprehensive community-based initiative that empowers mothers and their children… Schneider Electric’s collaboration with world-class public health experts, backed by peer-reviewed results, is driving meaningful change where it’s needed most.”
With this partnership, Schneider Electric is ensuring that energy equity leads to healthier futures for underserved communities in Guatemala.
