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Colombia

In 2007, Colombia, with help from The Carter Center and its partners, made history as the first country in the world to interrupt river blindness transmission.

Read about the Center's health work in Colombia >

Read about the Center's peace work in Colombia >

Building Hope

Gold, platinum, and emeralds are just some of the precious metals and minerals of Colombia's natural resources. However, rebel insurgent and paramilitary-run drug trafficking rings support the wealthiest populations in Colombia, leaving much of the country's potential unrealized. Hope is found in the fight against river blindness, a painful and debilitating disease on the verge of eradication in the Americas thanks to Carter Center efforts. If this disease is eradicated in the region, perhaps other significant problems may be addressed with the same commitment and diligence.

Fighting Disease
Regional Eradication of River Blindness in the Americas

Onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, is a debilitating disease spread by the bite of black flies. It causes blindness and severe skin disease in an estimated 17.7 million people around the world, 500,000 of whom reside in Latin America.

In 2007, officials of the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program of the Americas (OEPA) announced that Colombia had become the first country in the world to interrupt river blindness transmission. This tremendous success was achieved through significant hard work and dedication by the national program with help from The Carter Center, its international partners and Merck & Co., Inc.

Between 1996 and 2006, The Carter Center and its partners helped Colombians receive bi-annual doses of the curative and preventative drug Mectizan®, donated by Merck & Co., Inc. The program exceeded the treatment coverage goal for eight consecutive years, thus breaking the cycle of disease transmission.

More work must be done to determine that onchocerciasis has been eliminated from Colombia. Post-treatment surveillance must continue through 2010. If evaluations show that the disease has remained at bay, the program can apply in 2011 for certification of onchocerciasis elimination from the Pan American Health Organization. Continued vigilance is vital as evaluations are conducted to confirm the elimination of onchocerciasis in Colombia and The Carter Center and its partners strive for the same in the other five OEPA nations.

Learn more about the Center's work fighting river blindness >

Read the News Release: Colombia is First Country to Interrupt Transmission of River Blindness >

SEPTEMBER 2009

Waging Peace
Resolving Conflict

Since 2007, The Carter Center has been developing initiatives to improve relations between Ecuador and Colombia and partnered with the United Nations Development Programme to encourage dialogue between influential citizens in both countries. 

Read more about the dialogue process between Ecuador and Colombia.

The Carter Center was invited to witness the return of 60 Colombian soldiers and 10 marines captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia in June 1997. Dr. Robert Pastor, then director of the Carter Center's Americas Program, witnessed the delivery along with members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, ambassadors from six countries, and representatives of the Colombian National Conciliation Commission. The release occurred as part of the government's agreement to end a yearlong clash by evacuating its military and ceding temporary control of an area the size of Connecticut.

Earlier, in September 1996, former U.S. President Carter, Dr. Pastor, and other senior Carter Center officials had met with Colombian leaders to discuss possible negotiations in Colombia's guerrilla war. The meetings included former Foreign Minister Augusto Ramirez Ocampo, who went on to become leader of the Conciliation Commission, and former Presidents Belisario Betancur and Alfonso Lopez Michelsen, who are members of the Center's Council of Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Americas.


Building a Model For Transparency
The Carter Center and its Council of Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Americas have initiated a multiyear project working with governments and civil society to develop monitoring mechanisms to ensure transparency in government transactions and serve as a model for the rest of the world. Transparency, or openness, will improve investor confidence, spur economic growth, improve public services to the population, and increase public confidence in democratic institutions.

At a high-level conference held May 1999, leaders from across the hemisphere, including former President Michelsen, came to The Carter Center to evaluate anti-corruption efforts and seek commitments from other governments to implement similar strategies in their own countries.


Urging a Moratorium on Arms Sales
Although Latin America spends relatively less on defense than most other regions, expenditures on expensive weapons systems divert scarce foreign exchange from more effective investments, including education. They also compel neighbors to spend more on defense and, by doing so, generate international tensions. Concerned about an arms race in Latin America, the Carter Center's Council of Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Americas urged governments in the region to pause before embarking on major arms purchases. Between April 1997 and March 1998, 28 current heads of government and 14 former heads of government signed a written pledge to accept a moratorium of two years on purchasing sophisticated weapons. Among the signatories was Colombia President Ernesto Samper Pizano.

Learn more about the Carter Center's Americas Program.

UPDATED AUGUST 2008