Now on bbc news, on the banks of the parana river in the south of paraguay lies a group of towns known as colonias unidas or united colonies. these german settlements were first established more than 100 years ago by a handful of immigrant families wanting to farm the land. since then there s been a steady stream of new settlers, untiljune 2021 that is when suddenly the numbers began to spike but why? bbc mundo s mar michel travelled to the south american country. on the banks of the parana river, built among some of paraguay s most fertile land, hohenau, obligado and bella vista, or the united colonies. these german settlements were first established more than 100 years ago by immigrants wanting to farm the land.