After the meeting held between President Abelardo de la Espriella; the Minister of Housing, Jaime Andrés Beltrán; and representatives of the business sector, the National Government defined the main lines of action of the ‘Miracle Reconstruction Plan‘, a strategy that will coordinate the immediate response and the reconstruction of the areas affected by the earthquake this Monday.
The plan will be developed under the guidelines of the President of the Republic and will coordinate the capacities of the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD), the Ministry of Housing, the businesspeople and the territorial entities, with the participation of other public, private, financial, and cooperation actors.
The coordination of actions and resources will be carried out within the framework of the ‘Miracle Fund‘, created by the National Government as an instrument to coordinate efforts aimed at reconstruction.
The partial consolidated reports as of August 14 that serve as the basis for response planning record more than 12,000 destroyed homes and approximately 75,000 damaged homes, around 170 collapsed buildings, as well as dozens of destroyed schools and health centers.
Given this magnitude, the National Government has proposed an intervention that combines immediate attention, technical diagnosis, repair, infrastructure improvement, new housing, and territorial reconstruction.
First phase: immediate reaction and definitive diagnosis
The first priority is to attend to the affected families and technically determine the real magnitude of the damage. The UNGRD will advance in coordination with territorial entities in delivering rental subsidies for families who must temporarily leave their homes, as well as in support mechanisms associated with public services and other necessary resources to respond to the emergency.
These measures will be coordinated with the regulatory provisions adopted by the Ministry of Housing to facilitate institutional response in the affected territories.
At the same time, this Ministry and the business sector agreed to form an “Experts Battalion“, made up of specialized professionals who will be deployed to the territories to support the technical evaluation of affected homes and infrastructure. It will be composed of highly experienced professionals who registered in a national call.
This team will allow for a technical diagnosis and screening, especially regarding the structural and safety conditions of the buildings, with the purpose of classifying them according to their level of damage and establishing which can be repaired, which require structural interventions, and which must be replaced.
The business sector will also support the immediate response through donations, heavy machinery for debris removal, and technical and logistical capacities.
Second phase: Miracle Housing Reconstruction
Once the technical characterization progresses, the reconstruction phase will begin under the Miracle Housing concept. One of the first measures will be to identify, together with Camacol and the construction sector, the Social Interest Housing (VIS) projects that are completed, available, and ready for immediate delivery in the affected areas or in areas that can accommodate the affected families.
The purpose is for these homes to be one of the first alternatives for households that have completely lost their houses. The scheme will combine public and private resources through the “Everyone Contributes” strategy.
To facilitate the financial closure of households, National Government subsidies, family compensation funds, and territorial entities subsidies may contribute.
The businesspeople also expressed their willingness to contribute to the reconstruction through cost reductions and counterparts that help reduce the final value of housing solutions.
Regarding housing improvements, priority will be given to houses that, according to the technical diagnosis, present repairable damage and can recover adequate habitability and safety conditions through interventions.
For this purpose, a ‘Materials Bank‘ will also be structured, with participation and management from the business sector, aimed at facilitating materials for repair and reconstruction interventions in the territories.
The model contemplates that the National Government provides resources and that the implementers incorporate counterparts, thus increasing the number of households that can be assisted.
A technical table where “Everyone Contributes“
As a result of the meetings held between the National Government and the private sector, a technical table for reconstruction will be launched, in which the different necessary actors will participate to make the plan viable financially and technically.
The construction sector will provide technical capacity and work on mechanisms to reduce costs of housing solutions. Meanwhile, the financial sector will be called upon to structure differential rates and favorable financial conditions for construction credit.
The family compensation funds will play a fundamental role through housing subsidies and their capacity to contribute alongside other public contributions. The National Government will also evaluate tax and tariff instruments that allow reducing costs associated with reconstruction and housing production.
The plan will also seek support from multilateral organizations and international cooperation, through donations, financing, and credits on favorable terms that complement national resources.
Housing solutions during 2027 and 2028
In the subsequent reconstruction phase, planned to take place over the next years, the National Government will work on housing solutions that can be completed and delivered during 2027 and 2028, as well as on new improvements for affected households.
Mechanisms will also be reviewed to allow quick land enabling for the development of housing projects, ensuring the necessary technical and legal conditions.
Reconstruction must go beyond houses. Therefore, the National Government will evaluate mechanisms such as Works for Taxes and sources associated with the General System of Royalties, as legally appropriate, to finance complementary infrastructure such as schools, parks, health posts, road infrastructure, bridges, and other equipment required by communities.
The role of the countryside in reconstruction
The National Government will promote alliances with regional producers, local businesspeople, financial entities, and rural-related guilds, including organizations such as the National Federation of Coffee Growers, palm and cocoa producer guilds, and the Agrarian Bank, among other actors with effective presence in the affected rural areas.
The goal is for the reconstruction not to focus solely on urban centers and to respond to the productive, social, and territorial characteristics of peasant families.
The National Government reiterated that the Miracle Reconstruction Plan will be executed in permanent coordination with governors and mayors of the affected territories.
Territorial administrations will be fundamental to consolidate censuses, identify needs, prioritize interventions, and ensure that national decisions respond to the real conditions of each municipality and department.
The purpose is for the reconstruction resources to be allocated with technical and territorial criteria and executed under principles of transparency, effectiveness, efficiency, and timeliness.
“This reconstruction will not be done by a single sector. We will do it together. The Government contributes, the businesspeople contribute, the family compensation funds contribute, the financial system contributes, the territories contribute, and international cooperation can also contribute. That is the essence of ‘Everyone Contributes‘: joining capacities so that affected families can recover their homes and territories as soon as possible,” said the Ministry of Housing.
