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After having suffered a 5-year drought, followed by extreme rains and floods in the past few months, worsened by El Niño’s effect in Latin America and the Caribbean, this series looks at how people rebuild and live their daily lives in the La Guajira region of North East Colombia. Incorporating the support and interventions that have assisted them from ECHO as well as partner workers such as FAO and UNICEF.
La Guajira, Colombia, is home to the indigenous Wayuu people. A humanitarian crisis has resulted from seven years of drought; in 2016, 86 children lost their lives. Today nearly 900 families are severely affected by drought. The Wayuu people are battling to survive: they face food and water shortages, as well as malnutrition.
The EU and its humanitarian partners Oxfam and UNICEF are providing access to water and hygiene (WASH) to the Wayuu people. Water provided with EU support is used to clean, cook and to irrigate land for the cultivation of vegetables. Meanwhile, hygiene practice education helps to prevent illnesses such as diarrhoea which increases the risk of malnutrition.
Learn more about WASH, and the EU in Colombia:
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/what/humanitarian-aid/water-sanitation-hygiene_en
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/where/latin-america-carribean/colombia_en
9 August 2017
