Colombia begins reconstruction after earthquake with housing subsidies

President Abelardo De La Espriella announced on August 24 the start of the reconstruction phase for areas affected by the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck Colombia on August 10. From Quibdó, capital of the hardest-hit Chocó department, he declared: "Hoy empieza la reconstrucción de la patria desde Quibdó" Source: El Tiempo. The government will provide a monthly rent subsidy of 875,452 pesos (about $285 USD) for three months, totaling 2,626,356 pesos per family, starting August 26 Source: Portafolio. Payments will go directly to family heads via a logistics operator or bank to avoid intermediaries Source: El Colombiano.

Damage and response

The UNGRD reports 16 departments and 494 municipalities affected, with 159,924 families and 324,157 people impacted. The quake left 329 dead, 4,592 injured, and 234 missing, destroying 31,519 homes and damaging 178,236 Source: La República. In Chocó alone, 12 died and 3,521 homes were destroyed Source: Diario Libre. The government is distributing 480 tons of construction materials for self-repair and assisted reconstruction, with technical support Source: El Tiempo. Grupo Argos pledged 1,000 rapid-construction houses, with 500–600 for Chocó Source: La República.

Reconstruction leadership

Reconstruction will be managed by the Fondo Milagro, led by businessman Jaime Uribe, with an estimated cost of 30 trillion pesos (about $9.5 billion USD) Source: El Caribe. The fund will model itself on the Forec, created after the 1999 Armenia earthquake Source: Diario Libre. Regional leaders, including Chocó Governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba, will oversee local efforts Source: El Colombiano. De La Espriella vowed to prevent clientelism: "Una tragedia... jamás podrá convertirse... en una oportunidad para el clientelismo" Source: El Colombiano.

What's next

A business summit is set for September 7 in Quibdó to develop a special plan for Chocó Source: La República. The government will maintain health and epidemiological surveillance in affected areas Source: Infobae. Reconstruction is expected to take three to four years Source: Portafolio.