The Micro-regional Grassroots Associations or AMB's came about as a result of the Agua de Pueblo water projects. Initially, Agua de Pueblo encouraged the civil society to participate in water committees. Later on, it encouraged the participation in committees of diverse nature. Women, men, teenagers and children took part in the community service.

The associations partnered with U.A.M. are:

In the beginning, the AMB's grouped people from one community, but over time they joined other closeby communities with similar geographic, ecological, and socioeconomic features. This is the reason why they are called Micro-regional.

The micro-region is a municipality or sometimes is just a part of it. Municipality is a group of small towns, and the communities are interconnected through roads and other means of communication. Furthermore, its population shares similar economic, social, political and cultural characteristics.

The structure of the organizations is horizontal and vertical, thus allowing management and direction to move forward to a process of development through specific projects. This happens always with a vision of sustainable development.

AMB's have the ability to respond quickly to the immediate needs of the population; More over, they plan for the short and long terms avoiding any parternalistic approach --technically and financially speaking. AMB's aim at a sustainable process of development.

Currently, AMB's group 171 groups. 

They were borned after the execution of the water system projects of Agua de Pueblo. After solving the problem of potable water in the communities, the water committees proposed the continuation of these groups to solve more problems. In the end, the actions would guarantee a better life of the towns and eventually, these existing groups would encourage a rural development.

In 1987 and 1989 Agua de Pueblo reviewed its performance and its initial goal, resulting in a replanning of the course of their work to reach its new vision: Water is the means to develop the process of organization and local empowerment that leads to the self-sustainable development of the rural communities. This is how AMB's were born. As a result, once the water problem was solved, the rural population started to receive economic support.

The new programs started to follow up on the organization and support to the rural economy, and eventually the community groups became the Micro-regional Associations. (AMB's). For instance, ADERSO appeared in 1988, APADER in 1989, ADISMI in 1990, UPC and ACDINSO in 1991, ASDIA, ADIXBA, ADICTA, ASCODER-B ADISQUE, ADIPSA and ADICTA in 1992, AGEMA in 1998, ACODERCA in 2000. To this date, some continue and others work independently like ADERSO and ADIXBA.

U.A.M emerged as a coordinating organization for these associations. U.A.M. stands for Unión de Agricultores Minifundistas de Guatemala or Union of Small Farmers of Guatemala. Due to legal requirements, this name was abbreviated to Unión de Agricultores Minifundistas.

AMB's are in charge of solving the community needs. They know that problems of local development depend on macro variables that are out of their control. These macro variables and their solutions are then contemplated by U.A.M.