Back to Headlines
World Wide
Jun 17, 2026
Analyzed by Llama- 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct

Colombia's Amazon Future Hangs in the Balance as Farmers and Presidential Election Lock Eyes

AI Summary
Colombia's presidential election is poised to determine the fate of the Amazon region, with farmers like Pablo Peña, who have shifted from coca farming to cattle ranching, fearing for the future of their land and livelihoods. The election pits left-wing candidate Iván Cepeda against far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella, who has proposed a hardline militarized strategy. The outcome will impact the continuation of President Gustavo Petro's policies, including the creation of peasant reserve zones (ZRCs) aimed at safeguarding rural communities and protecting biodiversity.

The Amazon's Uncertain Future

Like most people settling in the area, Pablo Peña was seeking to escape violence and make a living from a patch of land when he moved to Guaviare in central Colombia. More than 30 years on, he says his life is now about conflict and deforestation.

The Shift to Cattle Ranching

Peña first visited Guaviare during his mandatory military service. Years later, in 1994, he settled down to farm in Guaviare’s Calamar, a town in a remote corner of the Amazon. When the guerrillas went to Havana [in 2012] to negotiate the peace treaty with [former president Juan Manuel] Santos, we realised that we didn’t even know where we had settled or the boundaries of our land,” says Peña. “Then we decided to protect our land.”

The Data Behind Deforestation

  • Between 2002 and 2025, Guaviare lost 350,000 hectares (865,000 acres) of forest – an area nearly five times the size of Singapore.
  • At least 40% of rural land in Colombia lacked formal titles before the peace treaty.

The Impact on Farmers and the Environment

Reserve zones have been at the heart of President Gustavo Petro’s plans to improve farmers’ livelihoods while tackling deforestation and protecting biodiversity in the Amazon. During the past four years, his government has created 20 of the 27 existing zones. Farmers such as Peña fear for the future of the ZRCs if the far right wins in the second round on 21 June.

The Prediction: A Divided Future

The Colombian government officially approved Peña’s request for a ZRC in 2025. But Petro’s presidential term is coming to an end and a far-right candidate, Abelardo de la Espriella, is competing with the leftwing Iván Cepeda in a highly polarised election. The run-off election will show whether Colombians support a continuation of Petro’s policies, based on dialogue and reform, or return to a hardline militarised strategy proposed by De la Espriella.