Colombia is grappling with an increasingly severe rainy season, triggering widespread floods, landslides, and displacement across multiple regions. According to the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD), the worst may be yet to come. Authorities are urging citizens to prepare for what could become one of the most intense wet seasons in recent years.
Authorities have issued alerts in departments such as Antioquia, Cundinamarca, and Choco, where river levels continue to rise and infrastructure is under increasing strain. Authorities are urging residents to remain vigilant, avoid traveling in affected areas when possible, and report any signs of ground instability. The rainy season is expected to last through August, and meteorologists warn that conditions could worsen before they improve.
According to the IDEAM (Colombia’s Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies), this spike in rainfall is tied to the influence of the La Niña phenomenon, which tends to cause heavier than usual rains in the Andean and Pacific regions. According to recent official data from the IDEAM, precipitation levels have surpassed monthly averages in at least 22 of Colombia’s 32 departments.
In the capital of Colombia, Bogota, rainfall in the first two weeks of July has already exceeded 120mm, almost 30% above the historical average for this time of year.
The social and economic toll of Colombia’s rainy season
UNGRD reports that between May and July 2025, the rainy season has already affected over 98,000 people, left 22 people dead and more than 50 injured across Colombia. Heavy rains destroyed or damaged over 5,500 homes, caused at least 300 landslides nationwide and led to flooding in 130 municipalities, mostly in Antioquia, Choco, Santander, Tolima and Cauca.
In some rural areas, entire communities remain isolated as washed-out roads and collapsed bridges have cut access to supplies and emergency services. In Choco for example, one of the most severely impacted departments, the Atro River overflowed, submerging entire neighborhoods and displacing hundreds of families.
The economic toll is also mounting. Agriculture, particularly in coffee and banana producing regions, has taken a hit, with early estimated from the Ministry of Agriculture placing crop losses at over COP 60 billion (approximately US$15 million). Infrastructure damage, especially to roads and drainage systems, could add tens of millions more in repair costs nationwide.
Colombia on alert as UNGRD faces budget shortfalls amid heavy rains
While Colombia frequently experiences heavy rains, climate scientists and policy analysts warn that climate change is increasing the intensity and unpredictability of the rainy season. According to the Colombian Climate Adaptation Observatory, only 45% of municipalities in Colombia have fully implemented their climate risk management plans. In many cases, the lack of updated hydrological data, trained personnel and funding limits local governments’ ability to respond effectively.
Unfortunately, and quite visibly, it seems that Colombia is not adequately prepared to face the enormous challenges posed by climate change. Experts warn that without a significant shift toward proactive climate adaptation, including investments in resilient infrastructure, stronger early warning systems, and sustainable urban planning, these climate-related emergencies will only become more frequent and more devastating. This scenario will be at the cost of both, human lives and economic losses.
For now, Colombia’s government has placed emergency response teams on high alert. In a recent statement, UNGRD Director Carlos Carrillo said, “we are seeing above-normal rainfall in nearly 70% of the country, and the risk of further disasters is high. We urge local authorities to activate contingency plans and citizens to avoid high-risk areas, especially riverbanks and unstable slopes.”
The agency has deployed rapid-response units to hot spots and is coordinated with local governments to establish temporary shelters, distribute food and hygiene kits, and begin damage assessments.
Despite ongoing efforts, the UNGRD is also sounding the alarm over critical lack of funding. The agency says that at this point, it has yet to receive the emergency resources it was promised.
According to UNGRD Director Carlos Carrillo, roughly COP 2.5 trillion (approximately US$650 million) in disaster relief funding remains frozen. This includes COP 2.1 trillion (approximately US$522 million) withheld due to the government’s broader budget freeze issued in January (Decree 0069), and COP 423 billion (approximately US$105 million) that were supposed to be allocated through a climate variability subaccount created under Decree 1372 of 2024. To date, none of that money has been disbursed.
These financial gaps leave the agency operating with a drastically reduced budget, approximately COP 686 to 700 billion (US$170-175 million), most of which is tied up in administrative and operational costs. Less than 3% of that amount, about COP 17 billion (approximately US$4.24 million), is available for actual emergency response and investment in mitigation efforts.
So far in 2025, UNGRD has responded to 845 emergency events across 27 of Colombia’s 32 departments, spending nearly COP 20 billion (approximately US$5,000) to manage disasters ranging from landslides and floods to strong windstorms and river overflows. But with worsening weather patterns driven by climate change, Carillo warns that these funds are woefully insufficient for what lies ahead, and he stated, “we are facing a situation where we simply don’t have the cash flow to respond to the scale of emergencies we’re seeing. If these resources aren’t released, our ability to protect lives and infrastructure is seriously at risk.”
The question now is: Will the government take action? UNGRD has formally requested that the Ministry of Finance authorize the release of the pending funds and approve an additional COP 700 billion (approximately US$175 million) in new funding to address the emergencies. Carillo has publicly urged President Petro to give the order needed to unlock these resources. It remains to be seen if the agency will be backed up by the government at a very sensitive and critical time for Colombia.