One of Cordoba Minerals’ social commitments is to help improving the wellbeing of the local communities where we operate.
Malaria is a prominent public health issue in Colombia, especially in the Department of Cordoba. According to National Institute of Health Colombia, Cordoba region ranks the top three departments with the highest number of malaria cases. The disease primarily concentrated in municipalities such as Puerto Libertador in the region. Many people live in the surrounding areas of the Alacran Project suffer from this disease with limited access to medical resources. The need for a health center in the region is a top priority for the wellbeing of the local communities.
In 2022, Cordoba Minerals donated building materials and facilitated the construction of the only health center in San Juan de Asís village. So, the residents of San Juan and patients from the surrounding villages could access basic healthcare without travelling long distance to the local municipal hospital.
(San Juan de Asís Health Center)
The Company helped to hire Oscar Tejada, the paramedic and technician in Vector-Borne Diseases to conduct test and provide basic treatment for patients.
(Oscar Tejada, the paramedic and technician in Vector-Borne Diseases, examining malaria test samples)
“Once the Company announced its support for social initiatives, from the Community Action Board, we decided to give priority to the donation of said tests since the residents do not have the economic means to pay for them and this is one of the diseases that most affects the locals,” commented Oscar Tejada, who is also the President of the local Community Action Board.
Cordoba has been assisting the effort on Malaria prevention in the local region by donating test materials and equipment since 2022, while organizing free health brigades to provide more extended health care services to the local communities.
(Cordoba team partnered with medical professionals from Colombian Social Fabric – NGO to organize one of the free health brigades at San Juan de Asís Health Center in June 2024)