It is difficult to explain to those outside of the country, but what is currently happening in Mexico is a situation of a structural violence towards the indigenous communities, as well as against human rights advocates and defenders, social leaders and journalists, says Mexico's human rights activist Alejandra Ancheita.

The development sector replicates many of the very injustices it claims to work against, reproducing these historical power dynamics and stripping agency from the very people it claims to support. How can international organisations truly work towards equality when they underpay local staff, continue to think of development as unidirectional, and don’t allow for a true shift in power towards local leaders who most fully understand the needs of their own communities?

By Anna Heikkinen

Twenty years have passed since the end of the Guatemalan civil war. The country has managed to take notable steps fostering its economic and human development. However, inequality and poverty still remain at concerning level. Investing in education is what Guatemala urgently needs to raise its people out of poverty and continue the success story of its economy on a sustainable basis.

There is more to life than money and by now it is well established that gross domestic product (GDP) is an inadequate measure of...