Life in producing areas

Life in producing areas - longer version

Life for farmers in Colombia’s coca-growing regions is precarious. While most farmers would prefer to grow food crops, they feel compelled to cultivate coca crops due to the lack of infrastructure and access to markets. Many coca-growing farms do not have running water or electricity, although a gasoline generator might provide a few hours of electrification in the evenings.

Since many coca-growing regions are also in conflict zones, farmers and their families live under constant threat of violence. Many farmers live in guerrilla-dominated regions and are accused of being rebel sympathizers by the military and the paramilitaries. As a result, they routinely face harassment, arrest, forced displacement and death.

Farmers also live under constant threat of aerial fumigations. If a farmer’s coca crops are fumigated, he can lose significant income. The loss of income makes it especially difficult for the farmer to purchase food if the fumigations have killed his food crops, which is a common occurrence. Not surprisingly, fumigations have led to many families being displaced in order to seek an alternative means of survival.