ACT Alliance members continue to respond to the earthquakes in Venezuela and Colombia in July and August 2026. The three quakes- two striking back to back in Venezuela, and then just weeks later a third in Colombia- have caused significant damage and exacerbated ongoing humanitarian needs in both countries.
Last week, ACT’s general secretary, Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, visited both countries, talking with ACT members, visiting communities in Venezuela impacted by the double quake, bringing solidarity and learning about the realities facing ACT members and other humanitarian actors.
Bueno de Faria emphasized the impact that the earthquakes had on the pre-existing situation in Venezuela: “By late July, Venezuelan authorities were reporting more than 5,300 deaths, around 16,700 injuries and approximately 18,000 people who had lost their homes… but the humanitarian community was simultaneously responding to a much broader crisis: almost eight million people already required humanitarian assistance before the earthquakes.”
In Colombia the remoteness of the impacted communities adds layers of complexity to the response. “The scale of the disaster remains difficult to quantify precisely because assessments continue and data from remote areas are incomplete… Many affected communities can only be reached by river. The ACT appeal describes remote areas along the San Juan and other river systems where significant Afro-Colombian and Indigenous populations were already living with extremely limited access to essential services. Some communities remain difficult even to assess,” Bueno de Faria continued.
Preparedness is not simply the pre-positioning of supplies. It also means investing in organizations, relationships, knowledge and leadership before an emergency occurs.
ACT members are coordinating together in responding to the quakes in both countries- responding through shared capacity, through local partners and churches, through flexible models that adapt to the needs of the different communities. Between the two appeals ACT has launched, ACT members are requesting 8.6 million USD.
The churches, the ACT members, and their local partners were already in the communities before the earthquakes. This presence as part of the fabric of society gives them a significant advantage in being able to respond. “This confirms a fundamental point about community-led humanitarian response: preparedness is not simply the pre-positioning of supplies. It also means investing in organizations, relationships, knowledge and leadership before an emergency occurs,” said Bueno de Faria. “Where local coordination structures had been disrupted by the earthquake, congregations and church networks were sometimes becoming practical points for information exchange, community organization, identification of vulnerable households and connection with outside humanitarian support.”
ACT members continue to prioritise hard to reach communities in the responses. Many humanitarian organisations understandably focus on the places where the needs are most visible and where access is easiest. ACT members are present in those places, but also focus their efforts beyond them.
“In Venezuela, ACT’s appeal… concentrates on vulnerable communities that remain underserved or difficult to access. HEKS/EPER’s intervention also specifically includes rural surrounding areas where humanitarian assistance is weak,” explained Bueno de Faria. “In Colombia… ACT partners are working through Indigenous cabildos, Afro-Colombian community councils, churches and local organizations capable of reaching populations that external organizations may struggle to access.”
LWF and HEKS/EPER bring humanitarian expertise, systems, financing capacity, technical specialists and organizational infrastructure. Local churches, community structures, ethnic authorities and Colombian organizations bring access, legitimacy, contextual knowledge and long-term relationships.
In addition to reaching communities that are underserved, ACT’s response in both countries serves to exemplify ACT’s commitment to localisation. ACT’s international members are working through and with local and national churches and other partners in both countries, providing expertise and capacity to support these local actors in their work. “The Colombia response provides a particularly useful model,” says Bueno de Faria. “LWF and HEKS/EPER bring humanitarian expertise, systems, financing capacity, technical specialists and organizational infrastructure. Local churches, community structures, ethnic authorities and Colombian organizations bring access, legitimacy, contextual knowledge and long-term relationships.”
Bueno de Faria has a call to ACT members and to the wider faith community:
“I therefore strongly encourage ACT members, churches, ecumenical partners, faith-based and multi-religious organizations, foundations and other partners to urgently support the Colombia COL261 and Venezuela VEN261 Appeals.
“I also encourage members with relationships to institutional donors to advocate for funding approaches that recognize the real costs of reaching remote communities, adequately finance national and local partners, and allow sufficient flexibility for community-led planning.”
Donate: ACT members and partners interested in supporting the humanitarian response in Colombia and Venezuela are invited to contact the ACT Alliance Secretariat.
Read more:
- ACT Venezuela Appeal
- ACT Colombia Appeal
- Rudelmar Bueno de Faria’s report on his visit to Colombia and Venezuela
