BOGOTA (AlertNet) - Just a month ago, running water, healthcare and education were hard to come by for the displaced families squatting in Florida Heights, their swishly named hill-top community on the Colombian capital's southern fringes.

But a new community centre overseen by the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR, complete with its own water supply, clinic, classroom, dining hall and community room, has improved their lives and become a haven for hundreds of children uprooted by violence.

More than four decades of conflict have turned Colombia into one of the world's worst humanitarian hotspots, with millions caught up in the crossfire between soldiers, leftist rebels, cocaine smugglers and far-right paramilitary militias. About three million people have had to leave their homes.

The centre, a pilot project co-funded by local authorities, 12 local and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the French government, is a good way to curb rampant malnutrition among displaced children and cut the risk of their being recruited by armed gangs, the UNHCR says.

The centre was built after two months of consultation with local authorities and community leaders to identify their specific needs and concerns, the first time UNHCR in Colombia has used such an approach. It is one of the few centres built in the heart of a displaced community in the country.

"We talked extensively to a range of community leaders to get a real idea about what they needed and wanted before we went ahead with the project," said Sebastián Diaz, UNHCR assistant project manager in Bogota. "This approach is important to get local communities on board and push government authorities to provide the basic services displaced and poor people are legally entitled to."

About 40 displaced families descend on Bogota every day, says UNHCR, with most seeking refuge in slums on the outskirts where the government is struggling to provide essential services.

Inside the new community centre, two teachers circle around 30 seven- to 16-year-olds working in so-called 'learning circles', a teaching method that focuses on raising literacy and numeracy and let children work at their own pace. Teachers work in two shifts, reaching over 60 children each day.

Over half the children here come from families who had to flee their homes in the countryside. NGOs estimate that around a fifth of displaced children do not attend school.

The last time Norbi Tutalcha, an 11-year-old indigenous girl, and her three siblings went to school was over six months ago. Her family left their home in the western province of Cauca, because she says "there were problems with the guerrillas who were all over the place".

For Tutalcha, the centre is where she can paint and have fun with her friends. But more importantly, it also guarantees that she has at least one free hot meal a day, usually rice, beans and chicken, and a morning snack. At home, dinner is often just sugary water and a piece of bread.

"You can't expect children to learn or develop properly if they are not being fed properly at home," said Julia Rivera, a teacher. "Recently, we've noticed that the children are more enthusiastic and can concentrate more simply because they are eating more here and getting one decent meal a day."

There is also a small clinic where free government vaccines are available and where pregnant women can get pre-natal care. Next door is a community room where local leaders regularly meet. UNHCR plans to build allotments where food crops can be grown by local residents.

The agency also hopes the centre's shop, open to all locals, will help integrate displaced families in the wider community.

Diaz said: "Displaced families are often ostracised by other poor communities. There's friction between the two. We hope the centre can become a meeting point for the benefit of everyone."

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