Under the umbrella of #GenerationHope, our campaign to raise awareness about the impacts of climate change on children and the community initiatives to address it, and amid an ongoing economic recovery in the country—where 69.5% of Colombians believe their economy worsened in the past year—we launched our new Country Strategy (2022–2024) with great success.

This strategy guides the efforts of a team of more than 651 people across the departments of Nariño, Cauca, Valle del Cauca, Arauca, Santander, Norte de Santander, La Guajira, Cesar, and Bogotá. It has enabled us to continue our work in Colombia and, together with our local partners and civil society allies, implement a portfolio worth 27 million USD aimed at realizing the rights to education, participation, protection, livelihoods, health, psychosocial support, nutrition, water and basic sanitation, as well as a healthy environment for thousands of people across the country.

With the voices of 517 children and adolescents advocating for increased public investment to support comprehensive development and care for children in 2022, we were present during the presidential campaign that led, in June, to a new chapter in Colombia’s history with Gustavo Petro becoming president.

“The Government of Change” and the promise of total peace concluded the year with 15 Binding Dialogues in the nine departments where Save the Children operates. These dialogues included the participation of 168 children and adolescents living in extreme poverty, victims of conflict, migrants, and those affected by climate change and natural disasters. From their testimonies, we were able to highlight the challenges left by the COVID-19 pandemic, which deepened existing gaps in the protection of their rights: 98,000 more children out of school, a 112% increase in emergency calls due to domestic violence, and 18,616 victims of sexual violence compared to 14,226 in 2020. There was also a rise in conflict-related impacts, with cases increasing from 23,465 to 268,000 in 2022 in municipalities where armed groups gained greater presence and territorial control; inflation reached 13.12%, and there was a pressing need to stabilize more than 2.8 million migrants from Venezuela (768,000 of whom are under 18), promoting their full citizenship in Colombia.

Nevertheless, Colombia’s ratification of the Escazú Agreement and its commitment to the Safe Schools Declaration offer us, as a humanitarian organization, the opportunity to continue standing alongside children and adolescents in 2023. We aim to participate in peace dialogues, build peace by strengthening safe environments for children and the national protection system, and contribute to social and environmental justice alongside Indigenous, Afro-descendant, Palenquero, Raizal, ROM, and diverse national communities—working together for a Colombia free from hunger and full of opportunities for all.

Thank you for helping us change the way the world sees and treats children. Love and respect will be our shared tools for building the future.