Quarterly Report: Colombia Regional Governance & Consolidation Program

The program's primary objective is to train public officials in managing public resources to improve service delivery, efficiency, and transparency. A state of emergency was declared due to widespread flooding throughout Colombia, affecting the target CIMIENTOS regions. The hardest hit zones were the Bajo and Medio Atrato and Catatumbo. As a result, programmed CIMIENTOS activities were hampered, and local partner teams were unable to gain access to the municipalities. Public officials prioritized responding to the emergency and humanitarian situation over training and technical assistance activities. Despite the challenges, CIMIENTOS made progress in various sectors. Under citizen security, the program held a meeting of mayors and police station commanders to train them in the new community policing approach. A total of 125 policemen and 80 mayors were trained, and they shared successful experiences with regard to citizen security at the municipal level. In Montes de María, CIMIENTOS provided primary health care to 8,262 patients from displaced or returned communities. Additionally, 23 Afro-Colombian and indigenous midwives from the Bajo and Medio Atrato region were trained in safe birth techniques. CIMIENTOS accompanied municipal administrations on 11 supervision visits to healthcare providers to identify problems with service provision and design improvement plans. In education, CIMIENTOS finished the training of teachers in civic education and social oversight set out in its 2010 work plan. The program also trained over 100 teachers, principals, and public officials in the adequate administration of national transfers and on how to administer funds for education services. In Public Administration, the National Planning Department published the results of its municipal performance index, in which 15 out of 25 CIMIENTOS municipalities improved their positioning and performance. CIMIENTOS provided technical assistance to public accountability hearings for three governor's Offices and four municipalities. In Citizen Participation, CIMIENTOS delivered 13 BASES projects to various communities, with a total of 24,914 people set to benefit from these projects. The program also organized and facilitated the first departmental meeting in Norte de Santander for 82 youth municipal council members to discuss public policies that affect this sector of the population. A total of 44,309 citizens and 5,904 public officials benefited from the support of the Program this quarter. The report is divided into six sections, with the next section describing the activities under Program components and the third section detailing the activities undertaken at the national level and in each of CIMIENTOS' regions. Component I, Improving Citizen Security and the Effective Presence of the State in Health and Education, continued its support to local governments in the implementation of models for managing local citizen security. Mayors, community leaders, the police, comisarios de familia, and education institutions all took part in coexistence activities designed to contribute to a safer environment in CIMIENTOS municipalities. The most salient activities implemented during this quarter include providing technical assistance for the formulation of PICS, strengthening Municipal Security Councils, and implementing activities that encourage the positive use of spare time. CIMIENTOS also supported the elaboration of the Coexistence Manual for the Department of Magdalena and improved the organizational capacity of the Comisarias de Familia. The program trained public officials and the Police in the community policing model used in Colombia and implemented workshops for the peaceful resolution of conflicts and for the prevention of consumption of drugs.