Colombia’s National Federation of Coffee Growers (Fedecafe) and a Spanish NGO signed an agreement intended to aid in the development of rural Colombian communities.
The agreement, signed with Spain’s Humanism and Democracy Foundation, aims to provide economic, social and environmental assistance to rural communities affected by Colombia’s armed conflict, online news source CM& reported Friday.
The Spanish Agency for International Development is also investing in the project, called “Huellas de Paz,” (Footprints of Peace) by contributing about $10.5 million to benefit over 4,000 farming families in 22 municipalities in the Antioquia, Valle, Cauca and Nariño departments.
“The agreement intends to help them improve their lives and stay in the country by increasing productivity, improving the social fabric, promoting leadership and strengthening the conditions for peace in Colombia,” said Fedecafe President Luiz Genaro Muñoz Ortega.
The two organizations, which have been working together since 1999, aim to increase the annual revenue of farmers five-fold.
“Footprints of Peace” will also strengthen the Colombian environment through the development of preservation and recovery programs for the Cauca River watershed, among other initiatives, explained Fedecafe’s Europe-based representative Adriana Garcia.
“To contribute to the welfare of Colombians is to strengthen the relations of friendship and brotherhood between the two countries,” said the president of the Spanish foundation, Rafael Rodríguez-Ponga.