The first rural electric cooperative ever to operate in Colombia is now serving more than 7000 customers in the area of Sevilla and Caicedonia and adding new homes and industries to its power lines every day. Built with a loan from the U.S. Agency for International Development and with technical assistance from the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the co-op has stimulated economic growth in the fertile Cauca Valley and measurably improved standards of living in the entire area. Soon co-op electricity will replace the power created by a small generator at this sugar mill.