Mision Nuqui: Tourism, Schools, Water, and Recycling Plans for Colombia’s Choco

Nuquí is the kind of place that makes people whisper, “How is this real?” Jungle, ocean, rain, music, and a community that keeps going even when the basics are hard.

On June 20, 2025, a new public-private effort called Mision Nuqui kicked off with one big promise, put education, health, tourism, recycling, and water on the same to-do list.​

One mission, five priorities

Mision Nuqui was designed as a coordinated package, not a single project. It focused on education, health, tourism, recycling, and water, after community listening sessions helped set priorities.​

The Foreign Affairs Ministry was positioned as a bridge among national agencies, local authorities, international cooperation, companies, and NGOs, aiming to keep everyone pulling in the same direction.​

On the funding side, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Tourism reported investments of more than US$11.4 million for Choco, including more than US$1.3 million for competitiveness and promotion actions in Nuqui.​

Leaders framed the mission as a way to build dignity and opportunity for more than 18,000 residents.​

Mision Nuqui gives education and culture a boost

One of the headline moves was cultural diplomacy; 10 young people aged 12 to 17 and one teacher prepared to travel to Korea to share ancestral knowledge and music from the northern Choco Pacific.​

The trip was backed by a US$70,000 budget under a promotion plan for Colombia abroad. For many teens, a trip like that can flip a switch; their local culture starts to feel like a strength.

Fundacion Terpel planned to deliver a school library with a digital ecosystem for more than 800 students at Institución Educativa Litoral Pacífico.​

Turkey’s cooperation agency TİKA also planned improvements for Institución Educativa Punta de Arusi, supporting 166 students, plus a health day with Turkish specialists for diagnoses and possible treatments.​

SENA training added a practical layer, with courses in food handling, digital marketing, and tech for secondary education, plus support for local associations and women building tourism services.​

That training helped spark “Vive Nuqui,” a digital directory designed to show the local tourism offer in one place.​

Tourism that feels like Nuqui

Tourism was treated as more than cash. The goal was to protect identity, culture, and nature while giving local entrepreneurs stronger tools and clearer routes to visitors.​

Programs supported by partners such as ONU Turismo and CAF aimed to train dozens of entrepreneurs and open doors to biocultural experiences, with Nuquí promoted as a “destination of peace.”​

People already travel to Nuquí for humpback whale watching, usually from July to October, with peak months often in August and September.​

A “Colombia Destinos de Paz” mission also planned a third exchange trip to Portugal with six community leaders from the Pacific, including three from Nuquí.​

Coca-Cola Colombia joined community work tied to regenerative tourism and responsible waste management, and Acoplasticos support was set for proposal writing on plastics and recycling, plus beach cleanups.​

Mision Nuqui tackles recycling and water essentials

Tourism falls apart if trash piles up or clean water is scarce, so the mission also leaned into basics.

A “Basura Cero” (zero waste) project in Nuqui was set with an investment of more than US$522,000 to benefit 8,500 people, strengthen the recycler organization REDCICLEMOS, and raise the recycling rate from 2% to 21% over the next 25 years.​

On water, Nuqui’s geography does not guarantee a safe supply. Plans moved forward for studies and designs for water systems in seven corregimientos (internal part of a Department or province), with US$266,000 and an expected reach of more than 3,500 people.​

Even in a rainy region, safe water needs pipes, treatment, maintenance, and trained operators. Without those pieces, a community can live next to rivers and still struggle with water for drinking and cooking.

The Work Ahead for Nuqui

Success will not be one big ceremony. It will look like a normal school day with books and internet, a clinic visit that does not require a long trip, and a tourist season that leaves money in local families.

Mision Nuqui started as a public commitment backed by many partners. Keeping it alive will depend on steady funding, clear goals, and the patience to do the unglamorous work, training people, fixing systems, and repeating what works.​