UPRA Shared the Results of the APPA with the Community of Nine Municipalities in La Guajira

Representatives of producers and associations praised UPRA's work and the benefits that the delimitation of the APPA will bring. 
 

 

Bogotá D.C., (@UPRAColombia, @claudialili76). In the first week of April, the Rural Agricultural Planning Unit (UPRA) socialized the Areas of Protection for Food Production (APPA) with the community of nine municipalities in southern La Guajira, in order to present the identification process and the results obtained in each of the territories.
 

 

Dora Inés Rey Martínez, Technical Director of Social Property Planning and Rural Land Market at UPRA, commented, "We were socializing the results of the identification of the APPA to the secretaries of planning, mayors, and technical teams of the municipal governments so that they could firsthand know which areas are and what remains for their declaration, as well as the elements that are needed for after the declaration."

 

It is worth noting that the National Government, led by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, with the technical support of UPRA, has been working on identifying rural lands that present the best conditions for food production and that must be protected in a special way. These territories have been designated as Areas of Protection for Food Production (APPA).
 

 

The work began in 2023, specifically in nine municipalities of La Guajira, where UPRA has been present on several occasions, accompanying the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in various presentations to the municipalities and the community. The municipalities are: Distracción, Fonseca, Barrancas, Hatonuevo, San Juan del Cesar, El Molino, Villanueva, Urumita, and La Jagua del Pilar.

 

 

Alejandra Amaya, who is part of the agroindustry in Distracción, commented, "It is gratifying to see initiatives like the Areas of Protection for Food Production and what they are aiming for at the national level, which is to have a productive protection zone for producers."

 

Ángel David Mejía, a representative in Fonseca (La Guajira), highlighted, "It is interesting that these consultations are taking place because it allows us from the territory to understand the reality of how the territory is being managed and organized, in this specific case of the APPA."

 

José Francisco Redondo, a producer from Barrancas, said, "I think the APPA is very interesting for the municipality and the world. Currently, we are in a situation where we are experiencing physical hunger, having the territory and the resources needed to produce food, and we are not doing it."

 
 

Talita Salome Santiago Vega, a rural youth from the municipality of Hatonuevo, stated that "the socialization by UPRA was very important, as the APPA will allow achieving food security within the municipality."

 

Elber Córdoba, a representative of Fundesat (El Totumo, San Juan del Cesar), indicated, "how important it is that the Government is willing to recover areas for food production at this time when there are sectors with hunger at the national level; it is good that the State is directing its focus where there is need." 

  

Maribel García, representative of the Association of Victims, Displaced, and Vulnerable of the municipality of El Molino, emphasized, "Community participation is paramount; from the territories, plans, programs, and projects must be explained, and that is what they are doing, allowing us to know how to contribute to the identification process of the APPA."

 

Ricardo Andrés Moreno, an environmental engineer from La Jagua del Pilar, assured, "The importance of prioritizing and zoning areas for food production is of great importance because 60 percent of the Population of La Jagua del Pilar is dedicated to agriculture. In the long term, we hope that the municipality can be agro-industrial and sustainable."

 

At this moment, UPRA is finalizing technical details to complete the identification of the APPA so that the Ministry of Agriculture can publish an administrative act declaring the APPA in La Guajira. ​