FLACSO-Guatemala began activities in 1987, coinciding with the favorable environment offered by the transition to democracy. It was recognized by the State of Guatemala through Legislative Decree 96-87.

According to the Agreement signed between the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences and the Government of the Republic of Guatemala, the objectives of the Headquarters are

• Train specialists and train technicians in the different fields of the social sciences through Latin American, regional and national courses.
• Carry out research, information and dissemination programs on the different branches of the social sciences.
• Provide scientific and technical cooperation services to the government of Guatemala and public and private entities, as well as to the country's universities and academic institutions in the studies and activities of their specialty.
• Train and train, when required, technical professionals and public sector officials in research, planning and execution of development programs.

Mission

Develop high quality teaching, research and advocacy programs to contribute to the construction of plural, critical and purposeful thinking, and the transformation of the Guatemalan and Central American social reality within the framework of development and democracy.

Vision

FLACSO-Guatemala will become an institution of higher education, recognized for the academic excellence of its graduates and for the theoretical and methodological rigor of its research. It will be valued for contributing to critical and proactive thinking to solve the structural and conjunctural problems of the socio-political and cultural reality of this region; for facilitating spaces for analysis, critical judgment and reflection that help the different social and institutional actors to formulate proposals for action and social transformation to generate well-being, equity and social justice, supported by a democratic political culture.