For decades, Colombia has been affected by a protracted conflict between the national government, insurgent groups – the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN) - and a number of criminal organisations. In 2016, after more than 50 years of conflict, the Colombian government signed a peace agreement with the country's largest insurgent group, the FARC. However, several other armed groups remain active across the country, seriously undermining the security situation in the most remote areas of the country, and civilians continue to suffer the humanitarian consequences of the ongoing violence.
Colombia is now the second most heavily mined country in the world, just behind Afghanistan. Nearly half of the victims of mines and explosive devices are civilians, and many live in remote areas with no direct access to health centres or rehabilitation care. HI, accredited in July 2016 as one of the country’s four official humanitarian demining actors, has since been conducting mine clearance and mine risk education operations.
More than a third of the world's Venezuelan refugees, representing 1.8 million people, now live in Colombia, sometimes in extreme precarity. This is particularly true of people with disabilities or vulnerable people, such as single mothers. Work is underway to improve the integration of vulnerable populations and make Colombian society more inclusive. However, inequalities remain for people with disabilities, especially in access to employment, particularly in rural areas. A significant proportion of the population does not have access to education, especially among children with disabilities.
Number of HI staff members: 183
Date the programme opened: 1998
