About 30 people are reported to have died from yellow fever in 2024 and 2025. The authorities have chosen to declare a state of emergency in parts of the country.
This decision responds to a situation that Colombia began to face in September last year: an unusual outbreak of yellow fever in the eastern part of the Tolima region, says Colombia's Health Minister Guillermo Alfonso Jaramillo according to the newspaper El Tiempo.
A large-scale effort has been launched to vaccinate the nearly 14 million Colombians who are considered to be in a risk group. Proof of vaccination will be required to travel to and from high-risk areas.
The disease outbreak is not limited to Colombia, according to El Tiempo. Brazil, Peru, and Bolivia have also confirmed cases.
Yellow fever is spread through mosquitoes and has a high mortality rate, up to 50 percent.
