Migration agency says 57.000 Colombia quake survivors could lose aid

The International Organization for Migration, a United Nations agency, warned that 57.000 people affected by the earthquake in western Colombia in August could be left without humanitarian aid because of a lack of funds. The agency also warned of a new crisis as El Niño intensifies. UN News reported the warning, which rests on the agency's own figures.

The agency has received 6,5 million dollars of the 30 million dollars it requested to assist 100.000 people. It says the money in hand will let it help about 43.000 people. It says thousands of families would be left without support to find housing, drinking water and health care.

According to the figures in the report, the earthquake had a magnitude of 7,4. It killed 335 people, left more than 100 missing and affected almost 487.000 people in 16 departments. About 207.000 homes were damaged and about 36.000 were destroyed. The source does not say who compiled these counts. Two months on, around 2700 people remain in temporary shelters, and more than 286.000 children and adolescents are still studying in temporary facilities.

The Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM) confirmed El Niño conditions, according to the report. The institute warned of water shortages, forest fires and lost livelihoods. The National Institute of Health reported that dengue cases rose by more than 30% in September in Chocó, Risaralda and Valle del Cauca. The report adds that forest fires have burned more than 26.500 hectares across the country, and that sudden rains could cause landslides on ground weakened by the quake.

The International Organization for Migration said conditions are hardest in rural, Indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities. Its own assessment found that 87% of the affected municipalities are above the national average for multidimensional poverty. In Chocó, damage to roads and infrastructure adds to the difficulty of access caused by armed conflict.

The agency has assisted more than 10.000 people in 51 municipalities. It is now working to help families return to safe housing and recover their livelihoods. It distributes water and hygiene supplies and has deployed medical teams. It also offers help with home repairs, rent subsidies and protection services for women and children. It has given psychological care to more than 450 rescuers and emergency workers.

A statement in the report, whose speaker the supplied text does not name, says that families who lost their homes now face a second crisis as El Niño intensifies. It says the agency needs urgent funding. A person identified in the source only as Espinosa, with no first name or title given, said in Spanish: “El desafío ahora es apoyar a las familias para que salgan progresivamente de los alojamientos temporales y reconstruyan sus vidas y comunidades mediante viviendas seguras y medios de vida sostenibles”.

The agency repeated its appeal to donors. The source does not say which donors have been approached, whether the Colombian government has committed funds, or what will happen to the people outside the 43.000 if no more money arrives. The agency is itself a UN body appealing for money for its own operation, and the figures in this report come from that agency and from the institutes it cites.