Institutions must strengthen capacity before the crisis arrives
As the first days of June arrived, Colombia's institutional watchdogs raised their voices in rare convergence: El Niño is coming, and the country's systems — its farms, its power grid, its public health infrastructure — are not ready to receive it. The ombudsman and the comptroller general, each from their own vantage, described not merely a drought but a cascading stress test on a state already carrying the weight of unresolved debts and delayed projects. What hangs in the balance is not an abstraction but the daily lives of millions of Colombians for whom electricity, clean water, and food are not luxuries but necessities.
- El Niño threatens to strike Colombia on multiple fronts at once — drying out crops, draining reservoirs that power the electrical grid, and unleashing waves of heat and waterborne illness.
- The government's 8.2-trillion-peso debt to electricity companies has left the energy sector weakened precisely when resilience is most needed.
- Stalled infrastructure projects mean that the safety nets Colombia would normally rely on during a climate shock are not yet in place.
- Two of the country's most powerful oversight bodies — the ombudsman and the comptroller general — have issued urgent, overlapping warnings within days of each other, signaling institutional alarm.
- Authorities are being urged to accelerate debt resolution, fast-track energy projects, and coordinate across local, regional, and national levels before the phenomenon peaks.
- The window to act is narrow, and the question now is whether political will can outpace the approaching climate pressure.
On the first of June, Colombia's ombudsman office delivered an urgent warning to authorities at every level of government: El Niño is not simply a drought — it is a multi-system crisis in the making. Speaking during a monitoring session organized by Asocapitales, the association of the country's capital cities, the ombudsman's environmental delegation described a phenomenon that reaches into agriculture, energy, and public health simultaneously. Soil moisture will vanish, heat will stress livestock, reservoirs will fall, and with them the hydroelectric generation that powers much of the country. Hospitals and clinics will face surges of heat-related illness, respiratory disease, and waterborne infection. The message was direct: institutions must build their capacity now, before the crisis is upon them.
Five days earlier, the comptroller general's office had sounded a parallel and even starker alarm. That agency pointed to a specific structural vulnerability — the Colombian state owes electricity companies 8.2 trillion pesos, a debt that has quietly accumulated and now compromises the sector's ability to absorb shocks. With major energy projects already behind schedule, the comptroller warned that El Niño could push the system past its breaking point, producing a simultaneous collapse in water, electricity, and food access that would fall hardest on the most vulnerable.
The convergence of these two warnings is itself significant. Colombia's institutional watchdogs rarely speak in such close unison, and their overlapping alerts describe a country with a narrow window to act — to settle debts, restart stalled projects, and coordinate the kind of response that scarcity demands. Whether the government treats these signals as the serious calls to action they are, or allows El Niño to arrive and find the country still unprepared, remains the open and urgent question.
On the first day of June, Colombia's ombudsman office issued an urgent call to government authorities at every level—local, regional, and national—to prepare for the arrival of El Niño. The warning came during a monitoring session organized by Asocapitales, the association of Colombia's capital cities, and it carried a message that extended far beyond the familiar specter of drought.
The ombudsman's environmental affairs delegation made clear that El Niño cannot be understood simply as a water shortage problem. The phenomenon reaches into multiple sectors that sustain the country's basic functioning. Agricultural and livestock production will suffer as soil moisture disappears and heat stress mounts. The national electrical grid faces pressure as reservoir levels drop, threatening the power supply that millions depend on. Public health systems will strain under a surge of heat-related illnesses, respiratory problems from degraded air quality, and waterborne diseases that flourish when clean water becomes scarce. The ombudsman framed the challenge plainly: institutions must strengthen their capacity now, before the crisis arrives.
This warning arrived alongside a parallel alarm from Colombia's comptroller general's office, issued five days earlier. That agency painted a more dire picture, warning of a potential structural collapse in both water and electricity supply. The comptroller identified a specific vulnerability: the Colombian government owes electricity companies 8.2 trillion pesos—a debt that has accumulated over time and now sits like a weight on the sector's ability to respond to stress. With major energy projects already delayed, the comptroller's office expressed concern that El Niño could push the system past its breaking point.
The convergence of these warnings reflects a deepening anxiety among Colombia's institutional watchdogs. El Niño is not simply a weather event; it is a stress test on systems already under strain. A drought that reduces hydroelectric generation would normally be manageable, but combined with unpaid government debts and stalled infrastructure projects, it becomes something more dangerous. The comptroller's office made this explicit: the combination of drought, delayed energy projects, and accumulated state debt could produce a crisis that affects millions of ordinary Colombians simultaneously—no electricity, no water, no reliable food supply.
The ombudsman's call emphasized the need for coordination and speed. Vulnerable populations must be prioritized. Responses must be timely. The language was measured but the urgency was real. What both offices were saying, in effect, is that Colombia has a narrow window to prepare—to accelerate stalled projects, to address the debt burden, to strengthen the institutions that will have to manage scarcity when it arrives. The question now is whether the government will treat these warnings as the serious institutional alerts they are, or whether El Niño will arrive to find the country still unprepared.
Citas Notables
We must anticipate the risks and strengthen institutional capacities— Colombia's ombudsman office, environmental affairs delegation
The combination of drought, delayed energy projects, and accumulated state debt could produce a structural crisis affecting millions of Colombians— Colombia's comptroller general's office
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does the ombudsman say El Niño is more than just a water problem?
Because when reservoirs drop, hydroelectric dams generate less power. When crops fail from heat and drought, food becomes scarce. When water systems strain, disease spreads. It's not one crisis—it's three or four happening at once, and they feed each other.
What makes the government's debt to electricity companies relevant here?
If the state owes 8.2 trillion pesos to power companies, those companies have less money to invest in maintaining or upgrading the grid. When El Niño hits and demand spikes, the system is already weakened. The debt becomes a structural vulnerability.
Who suffers most when this happens?
The poorest Colombians. They can't afford generators or water tanks. They live in areas with the least reliable infrastructure. When the grid fails or water stops flowing, they're the first without power or drinking water.
Is there time to prevent this?
That's what both warnings are saying—yes, but only if the government acts now. Accelerate energy projects. Pay down the debt. Strengthen institutions. The window is closing.
What happens if nothing changes?
Millions of Colombians face simultaneous shortages of food, electricity, and clean water. Not in theory—the comptroller said it could become a structural crisis, meaning the system itself breaks, not just strains.