Recent studies show that rural women in Guatemala work, as a part of a family unit, as much as 18 hours a day without remuneration, bearing the greatest burden of the country's poverty. Women's health in Guatemala has improved somewhat over the past years, but the situation is still among the worst in the Western Hemisphere. Women in Guatemala also suffer from malnutrition and lack of access to health care. Another problem facing Guatemalan women is violence and discrimination in the home. A woman who wants to participate in the formal economy will often have to obtain permission from her father or husband in order to do so.
Indigenous women suffer triple discrimination stemming from their gender, poverty and ethnicity.
Political Representation of Women Women occupy fewer political positions than men do in Guatemala. Of the 80 deputies in the national Congress, only 13 are women. Of the 12 Cabinet positions, only the Minister of Education is a woman. Women constitute a mere four of the 24 vice ministers. In general, women occupy even fewer leadership positions in the rural areas of the country.