Press release
U.S. Ambassador inaugurates housing project in Barranquilla neighborhood
The U.S. Ambassador in Colombia, William Brownfield, will inaugurate on December 13 2007 new houses that will benefit approximately 1,000 internally displaced and vulnerable people that live in the Pinar del Río neighborhood in Barranquilla. The project is financed by the U.S. Government, through its Agency for International Development (USAID) and managed by the Pan-American Development Fund (PADF) in Colombia. The project also had support from the Barranquilla Mayor’s Office, the Presidential Agency for Social Action and International Cooperation (Acción Social) and the Dominican Corporation Opción Vida. U.S contribution to this initiative was US$ 281,656 and the total cost of the project was of US$ 699,269.
The project seeks to develop better housing conditions for 200 families on the Northeast part of the city and was developed through an educational process that allowed the work to be performed by the beneficiaries. Also, the inhabitants participated in the definition and distribution of private spaces within their new homes as well as spaces for family interaction.
Besides the houses, the project has a health component that seeks to strengthen community organization through the incorporation of healthy habits and the improvement of mental health conditions for the families.
Besides Ambassador Brownfield, Liliana Ayalde, Director of USAID/Colombia, Max Goldensohn, General Director of FUPAD Colombia, and Sister María Leonor Charria, Executive Directora of Opción Vida will attend the ceremony.