As part of the live events that the United States Embassy in Colombia is carrying out through social networks, the Executive Director of Save the Children, María Paula Martínez, participated in the talk ‘Support from the US Embassy to migrants and vulnerable Colombian communities. ‘ In this activity he spoke about the work that the foundation has been doing with the support of the Office of Population, Refugees and Migration of the State Department (PRM), in the departments of Arauca, La Guajira, Valle and Nariño.

The Director commented on the activities that take place in these areas of the country and what are those characteristics of the population that is being served. “At this time we are attending to children and their families, located in areas of extreme poverty, victims of conflict, migrants, and populations affected by COVID-19. Thanks to the support of PRM we have been able to carry many services that are related to the protection sector, leading these communities to be resilient, to be able to raise their voices and to be able to count the risks that amid these situations of conflict and migration in these moments. ”she said.

Even in the midst of the pandemic by COVID-19, the attention and deliveries of Save the Children Colombia to its beneficiaries has continued; taking into account all necessary precautions. “The first thing was that we adopted biosecurity measures as a team in order to carry out our humanitarian action. The Colombian Government, in the exceptions it established for sectors that could remain open, included humanitarian action. This is one of the great achievements of the Government in not abandoning the populations, «he explained.

“Then, we established the teams that were to go out to continue accompanying families to deliver hygiene and education kits, and thus to maintain the work we do with children, which we normally do in informal settlements where we set up our tents or we locate temporary spaces and work with populations victims of the conflict, migrants and host communities, ”said the Director, ensuring that in this way, Save the Children continues to fulfill its mission of reaching every last boy and girl; guaranteeing their survival, ensuring access to education and promoting the protection of children.

The mission of the State Department’s Office of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) is to provide protection, alleviate suffering and resolve the plight of people persecuted and uprooted around the world on behalf of the American people by working with other governments and international partners.

See the full talk below: