Colombia

Colombia is enduring the worst humanitarian crisis in the hemisphere today. Four decades of war and the ensuing conflict between the army and insurgent groups have forced more than 3 million Colombians—as much as 5 percent of the country's population—from their homes. The crisis has created a population of internally displaced people second only to Sudan, and has exacerbated conditions of dire poverty and social exclusion.

People—many of them indigenous or Afro-Colombian—who have been forced from their homes left vulnerable to poverty, disease and violations of their human rights. Swaths of land throughout the country are now in the hands of armed agents or are being developed for agro-industry and large-scale infrastructure projects while thousands of displaced people struggle to meet even their most basic needs.

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has worked in Colombia for more than 50 years. In response to increased violence and widespread suffering, CRS formed the In Solidarity with Colombia program, a joint program between CRS Colombia and the Catholic National Secretariat for Social Ministry-Caritas Colombiana, in 2000.

Today, the joint program works to strengthen civil society and create a culture of peace in the face of this nation’s prolonged and complex crisis. Together, CRS and Caritas promote peace in Colombia through education programs, reconciliation processes and conflict resolution. We support organizations that provide emergency and humanitarian assistance to thousands of Colombians whose lives have been impacted by violence. We rebuild families and communities by promoting community organization and economic opportunities.

CRS, Caritas and our many humanitarian partner organizations believe peace in Colombia is possible. For a just and lasting peace to be achieved, the Colombian Conference of Catholic Bishops, the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops and CRS have called for international support for policies which respond to the underlying social and economic conditions driving the current conflict, and humanitarian aid for the millions of Colombian victims. CRS works with other Catholic, ecumenical and civil society organizations to increase U.S. awareness and advocacy efforts in the United States regarding the situation in Colombia.

From its office in Bogotá, the capital city of Colombia, the In Solidarity with Colombia program runs 11 projects. In areas including peacebuilding and reconciliation, emergency preparedness and response, and advocacy and solidarity, the program ultimately serves more than 100,000 Colombians.