TİKA Provides Boats to Colombian Students

Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) supplied two boats to El Charco La Tribuna School to help 300 students, who live in the far off sections of Colombia’s El Charco Municipality, get better access to school.

Located nearby Ecuadorian border in Colombia’s Narino Department, the town of El Charco is situated within the estuaries on the Pacific coast. One of the least economically developed regions of Colombia, El Charco’s population consists of Afro-Colombian and native people. The transportation in the region is achieved by river navigation and the students aged 7 – 17 were using rafts made of timber to go to school.

Upon the request of the El Charco Municipality, TİKA supplied 2 boats named “Kapadokya” and “Fatmagül” to help 300 students get access to school. Speaking during the handover ceremony of the boats, El Charco Municipality Representative Emerson Micolta said, “We send our endless gratitude to Turkey for showing great love and affection to this far away corner of our country and providing us with boats.” 

Yani Fernanda, who used to ride rafts to get to her school across the river, gets up early in the morning and waits like 300 other students of La Tribuna school.

“When I wake up in the morning I brush my teeth and shower. I get ready to go to school and wait. Because the river runs between my school and my home, I wait to get across. I used to ask people who were crossing the river to drop me off on the other side.  Now we have a boat and I can make it to the class on time without getting wet. I want to thank the people of Turkey and TİKA very much.”

In the town of El Charco, where Afro-Colombian and native people reside, the students can go to school safely and without getting wet thanks to the boats provided by TİKA.