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Colombia
>> Regional Overview >> Colombia Overview Activity Data Sheet
PROGRAM: Colombia
TITLE AND NUMBER: Provide Earthquake Reconstruction Assistance, 514-004
PLANNED FY 2001 OBLIGATION AND ACCOUNT: None
PROPOSED FY 2002 OBLIGATION AND ACCOUNT: None
STATUS: Continuing
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1999 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2002Summary: USAID's Special Objective supports Government of Colombia (GOC) efforts to provide relief to the victims of the devastating 6.0 magnitude earthquake that hit the heart of Colombia's coffee region on January 25, 1999. Over 1,000 people were killed, some 8,000 injured and a total of approximately 425,000 people were affected. Hardest hit was Armenia, the capital city of the Quindío Department, with a population of 300,000, where an estimated 37,000 families (approximately 185,000 people) were left homeless. In the neighboring city of Pereira, with a population of 450,000, another 3,000 families lost their homes. Also, a section of mountain adjacent to Pereira's principal aqueduct was weakened, potentially threatening the city's water supply. Were the section of the mountain to collapse, an estimated 3,000 city residents could have been killed and a total of 500,000 would have been without potable water supply for approximately six months.
On January 21st, the day following the earthquake, the U.S. Ambassador to Colombia declared a disaster, setting in motion the U.S. Government response. The primary element of the SpO is the reconstruction of infrastructure, and it aims to: a) provide low-income housing; b) support indigenous, non-governmental institutions in delivering shelter and basic infrastructure services to low-income earthquake victims; and c) leave behind sustainable models of delivery that require public and private sector participation, as well as a sustainable investment finance model.
Key Results: Almost immediately following the disaster, USAID's Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) responded to Colombia's call for help by providing search and rescue teams to the area and emergency relief for immediate needs (food, water, temporary shelter, health). On January 25, the same day of the U.S. Ambassador's disaster declaration, OFDA deployed a 62-person search and rescue team along with 56,000 pounds of search and rescue equipment. That team worked in coordination with the Colombian Red Cross and remained in Armenia through January 30, when the search and rescue phase ended. OFDA also provided funds to the Pan-American Health Organization for earthquake-related health activities. Between January 26 and February 4, 1999, OFDA airlifted 600 rolls of plastic sheeting, 8,000 blankets, 165 cases of ready-to-eat meals, 1,980 gallons of bottled water, and 8,460 pre-packaged daily food rations to the earthquake-affected area. The rolls of plastic sheeting were used to support a variety of initiatives including construction of temporary shelter units for families, community kitchens and temporary facilities for the fire stations destroyed in the earthquake, and for the reconstruction of pre-existing daycare centers. OFDA provided support to The Colombian Association of Seismic Engineers, who prepared an analysis of earthquake reconstruction procedures that became the basis of Armenia's reconstruction plan.
USAID funded a total of 21 local construction seminars and workshops that focused on teaching earthquake resistant construction techniques using local materials and resources to assure that appropriate uses of local materials became part of existing norms in target communities. More than 1,000 citizens affected by the earthquake were in attendance. Two books were published on construction techniques covered in the various seminars and workshops and delivered to participants.
Colombia's Family Well-Being Institute (ICBF) funds a variety of programs aimed at supporting the physical, psychological and social development of children under seven years of age who live in extreme poverty. These programs work through neighborhood women who provide childcare within their homes, many of who lost their homes in the earthquake, rendering ICBF programs inoperative. Many of the facilities that provided these services were destroyed in the earthquake. In order to reestablish these important programs, USAID funded the reconstruction of Child Community Homes (daycare centers) that provide a clean, dignified and appropriate space, thereby enabling ICBF programs to resume. All four "community homes" planned for reconstruction have been successfully completed benefiting 485 pre-school aged children.
Throughout the affected area, many schools, community centers, and other important community buildings suffered serious damage. To help meet the need for construction materials, USAID supported the creation of a "materials bank." The materials bank provides such basic construction materials as zinc sheets for roofing, wood and cement in exchange for transportation and labor provided by target beneficiaries. All 24 social infrastructure projects in thirteen municipalities in three departments planned for reconstruction have been completed using building materials supplied by the materials bank, benefiting an estimated 300,000 people. The materials bank has also served as a means for keeping the price of local construction materials within the reach of the local population. Community projects completed include two primary school, seven community centers (centers for town meetings, social and minor health events and recreational activities), four hospitals and health clinics, five homes for the elderly, one cultural center, one artisan center, two sports centers and two market places for micro entrepreneurs.
With funding provided by USAID, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers analyzed the conditions of the landslide in Pereira, made recommendations on a course of remedial actions to prevent loss of the city's water supply, and generated sufficient information to fully execute the project. The mountain has been stabilized and the project was completed in March 2000.
USAID is assisting in the restoration of adequate, permanent shelter to approximately 2,600 of the region's poorest families. These homes are being built using a "sites and services" approach, in which most of the construction is done by the families themselves. Additionally, USAID is funding the reconstruction of a primary school serving street children and a home for the elderly in the city of Armenia. As of September 2000, eleven grants with local NGOs had been signed for the construction of 2,432 homes, as well as the primary school and elderly home.
Performance and Prospects: The construction of low-income housing and the additional infrastructure projects will be completed on or prior to December 31, 2001.
Possible Adjustments to Plans: No substantial adjustments are expected.
Other Donor Programs: Combined loans from the World Bank and IDB totaled approximately $300 million for goods and services necessary for provisional housing and the immediate stabilization of damaged structures, as well as medium and longer-term support to the reconstruction of homes and other physical infrastructure. After the U.S., the next largest bilateral donor was Germany, which invested $1 million in the reconstruction of 280 homes, and Japan with an investment of roughly $600,000. Approximately $100,000 was donated by private U.S. citizens and $950,000 form private, expatriate Colombian citizens. Other countries, including Morocco, China and Jamaica, donated approximately $500,000 in humanitarian aid for earthquake victims.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: U.S. organizations include Planning & Collaborative Inc. and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Various Colombian non-governmental organizations are also involved in implementing the objective.
Colombia 514-004
Performance Measures:
Indicator FY97
(Actual)FY98
(Actual)FY99
(Actual)FY00
(Actual)FY00
(Plan)FY01
(Plan)FY02
(Plan)Indicator 1: Low-income housing. NA NA NA 0 200 2,000 400 Indicator 2: Number of steps completed. NA NA 3 NA NA NA NA Indicator 3: Stabilization successful in preventing the collapse of a mountainside in the city of Pereira. NA NA NA Yes Yes NA NA Indicator Information:
Indicator Level (S)or(IR) Unit of Measure Source Indicator Description Indicator 1: IR Number of houses. Partner Reports/Field visits NA Indicator 2: IR Number of steps. Partner Reports/Field visits NA Indicator 3: IR Yes/No Partner Reports/Field visits An indicator of yes/no, or whether or not the stabilization was successful in preventing the collapse of a fragile mountainside in the city of Pereira and the subsequent destruction of an aqueduct providing water for 500,000 inhabitants for an estimated time of six months. U.S. Financing
(In thousands of dollars)
Obligations Expenditures Unliquidated Through September 30, 1999 0 DA 0 DA 0 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 CSD 1,996 ESF 0 ESF 1,996 ESF 9,500 CACEDRF 0 CACEDRF 9,500 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA 0 DFA Fiscal Year 2000 0 DA 0 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 ESF 1,100 ESF 500 CACEDRF 719 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA Through September 30, 2000 0 DA 0 DA 0 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 CSD 1,996 ESF 1,100 ESF 896 ESF 10,000 CACEDRF 719 CACEDRF 9,281 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA 0 DFA Prior Year Unobligated Funds 0 DA 0 CSD 0 ESF 0 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 DFA Planned Fiscal Year 2001 NOA 0 DA 0 CSD 0 ESF 0 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 DFA Total Planned Fiscal Year 2001 0 DA 0 CSD 0 ESF 0 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 DFA Future Obligations Est. Total Cost Proposed Fiscal Year 2002 NOA 0 DA 0 DA 0 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 ESF 0 ESF 1,996 ESF 0 CACEDRF 0 CACEDRF 10,000 CACEDRF 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA 0 DFA
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Last Updated on: May 29, 2002 |
