Colombia

In the last 10 years, between two and four million Colombians have been displaced due to internal conflict and violence. Women comprise 48 percent of those displaced.

Nearly 30 million out of a total population of 45 million people live below the national poverty line in Colombia. About seven percent survive on less than USD $1 a day, and almost 18 percent of all Colombians live on less than USD $2 a day.

Women in Colombia are more vulnerable to poverty, due to limited employment opportunities, especially in the formal sector. Overall, the unemployment rate for women is 19.2 percent - nearly seven percentage points higher than for men.

Key issues

Decades of internal conflict and violence in Colombia has uprooted millions of people and torn apart families and communities throughout the country. Political and socioeconomic divisions, as well as drug trafficking, have long fueled fighting between paramilitary groups, rebel forces and the military, creating a level of prolonged general insecurity that jeopardizes rule of law, basic human rights and overall development.

Although the government has successfully pursued aggressive economic growth policies, resulting in steady returns over the last several years, the majority of wealth remains concentrated among the Colombian elite. Economic disparities and poverty help to fuel exclusion and create social divisions, especially among those most vulnerable - rural and indigenous populations, women, youth and displaced groups. Tackling poverty is necessary for strengthening social cohesion, which may also help to lessen the base of support for armed groups that claim to give voice to the poor and disenfranchised.

COLOMBIA

Cottage Industry

As in any country, jobs determine where people go, and Colombia is no different. The country's third-largest city, Cali, has one of Colombia's fastest-growing economies thanks to its involvement in the textile, sugar and coffee industries. Jobs in these sectors annually attract tens of thousands of Colombians to Cali, and this massive influx of people has led to and ramshackle "invasion" communities springing up on the outskirts of the urban center.

Solace International staff visited one such "invasion" community, which consisted of 150 families - mostly single mothers (some under the age of 16) and their children - living along an irrigation ditch. The ditch floods regularly during heavy rains, and local government has made little if any effort to help these people. Even worse: despite no official providing of sanitation or utilities to these communities, so-called government "representatives" have been collecting fees from people in these communities to pay for electricity and sewer usage.

Elizabeth Ramos, a single mother with seven children, serves as a sort of spokeswoman for one of these shanty communities. Ramos has lived in Cali for 20 years, since her husband left her and she had no way to pay rent and bills.  Her home has a dirt floor, while the walls and roof are made of collected materials. The toilet is outside, and the waste goes straight into the river, as it does from other area homes. Though she'd like to move, Ramos has no where else to go. She and her children are stuck there.

What Ramos needs most is a job and an income, which could ultimately help her find a better place to live for her and her children. To that end, Solace has launched a Colombian branch of its Cottage Industry Program that will involve Ramos and many other "invasion" community women making inexpensive hand-crafted necklaces and bracelets.  It is hoped that profits from the program will pay for sanitation improvements for the community, as well as provide better housing for those living there.

Currently, Solace has a variety of itmes for sale. If you are interested in purchasing please contact Marlo Shedlock at marloannshedlock@gmail.com