Colombia,
A Positive Country
Prepared by:
Affairs Coordinator
Internal and External Communications
Ministry of Foreign Relations
ON THE FRONT PAGE
• CHINESE LITERATURE IN THE BOGOTÁ BOOK FAIR: Chinese
literature came to Bogotá ready to introduce itself and
to captivate those attending the Eighteenth International Book
Fair, held from April 20th to May 2nd, with the participation
of 500 expositors and 350 distributors from across the world.
China, guest of honor, has built a bridge to Colombia, using
the golden key of its culture, based on the riches of thousands
of years of tradition. That culture is now in Bogotá with
a thousand book titles edited in Spanish, English, and also in
the original language, together with samples of handcrafts, calligraphy,
dance, music, films, martial arts, and traditional medicine.
• GUAPI HYDROELECTRIC PLANT,
STRATEGIC PROJECT: the national
government declared the project to build the Small Central Hydroelectric
Plant at Guapi and the Pacific Coast interconnection of strategic
importance. The project will increase the coverage of the electrical
service to the coastal areas of the Departments of Cauca and
Nariño, where close to 270 thousand people live. The National
Council of Economic and Social Policy guaranteed the construction,
and authorized future funds of $5 billion Colombian pesos. The
project, which will take four years, has a cost of US $67.5 million,
of which US $58.4 million will come from a credit from the government
of Spain, and US $9 million will come from resources from the
Nation.
SOCIAL INVESTMENT
• INVESTMENT TO SAVE HOSPITALS: between 2003 and 2006
the investments by the national government to save the public
hospital network will reach $855 billion pesos. President Alvaro
Uribe said that the process to save the public hospitals will
continue, and called on the Cities and Departments to present
next year’s health institution restructuring projects by
June 30 at the latest. In 2006, the program to restructure hospitals
will cost $180 billion, an amount that will be included in the
General Budget of the nation.
• INCODER HANDED OVER UNCULTIVATED
LAND TO 164 FAMILIES: the national government, through the Colombian Institute for
Rural Development, handed over 171 property titles (203 hectares)
to 164 families in Antioquia. Two agreements were also signed
with the Governor’s Office of Antioquia, one for issuing
titles for uncultivated land at a value of $150 million pesos,
and another for $2 billion for the purchase of lands in the rural
development area prioritized for the cacao – rubber belt.
SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC GROWTH AND GENERATION OF EMPLOYMENT
• TRAINING FOR VULNERABLE POPULATION: the SENA and 11
District Mayors’ offices in Bogotá signed an agreement
aimed at free training for 2,500 people in vulnerable sectors
of the city in productive activities. They will invest $5,800
million, of which $3,800 million will come from the local administrations,
and $2,800 million will come from SENA in infrastructure, laboratories,
and workshops, among other resources. The courses will be 500
hours in duration, and the selection of the students will be
made by SENA. The Mayors of the districts will be in charge of
sign-ups, but the SENA will evaluate the candidates so that it
will be an objective process, and then training will begin in
both the district and in the SENA centers.
•
SALES TO MEXICO INCREASED BY 41%: Colombia’s sales to
Mexico during 2004 increased 41.7%, which means additional
income of US $150 million over exports in 2003. While in 2003
Colombian exports to that country reached US $358.2 million,
during 2004 they grew to US $507.9 million. That same year
Colombia increased its participation in the total imports into
Mexico going from 0.23% to 0.32%, partly as a consequence of
the penetration of products such as sweets, cookies, and candies;
vegetable oils and fats; plastics; clothing; books and printed
materials; and construction materials.
• DEMAND FOR ENERGY GREW 1.4%
IN MARCH: the demand for energy in Colombia grew by 1.41% in March
2005 with respect to
the same month in 2004, revealed ISA. Last month the demand for
energy in the country was 4,085.6 Giga Watts/Hour, or 56.9 Giga
Watts/Hour more than in March 2004, when the demand for energy
was at 4,028.7 Giga Watts/Hour. Meanwhile, the total demand for
energy for March of this year, including that of the Energy Control
National Center Corporation CENACE in Ecuador, was 4,108.79 Giga
Watts/Hour.
• EXPORTS TO CENTRAL AMERICA
INCREASED 23%: in 2004 Colombian exports to Central America increased
to U$657 million, from US
$534 million in 2003. The companies had additional sales of US
$122.8 million to Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua,
and Guatemala. Non-traditional sales grew 19%, reaching US $547
million, or an additional US $88.9 million over the US $458 million
recorded in 2003. The total foreign commerce of Central America
increased in 2004 to US $39,197 million, of which 32% correspond
to exports and the other 68% to imports, making it a net importing
region.
• CELL PHONES GAVE $71,293 MILLION
TO SPORTS: the four additional points of sales tax (IVA) generated
during the last
two years on cell phones, were handed over to Coldeportes, an
institution that surpassed its goals in the area of support to
athletes, athletic infrastructure, and the organization of events.
It has co-financed athletic, recreation, doping control, and
physical education programs with the Departmental institutions,
the Colombian Olympic Committee, and with sporting federations,
in the amount of $12,632 million and has built 63 infrastructure
projects for sports and recreation in the same number of locations.
• DISBURSEMENTS FROM THE BANCO
AGRARIO (AGRARIAN BANK) GREW 102%: in the last 32 months disbursements
to small farmers
in the country grew 102%. Of the $2.27 trillion handed over between
August 2002 and March of this year, $730,570 million have gone
to small farmers. From August 2002 to December 2003, $248,183
million were granted in loans, a figure that grew to $368,076
million in 2004. In the first three months of this year alone,
disbursements have been made for $114,311 million.
STATE EFFICIENCY AND TRANSPARENCY
• 2004 WAS A GOOD YEAR FOR THE
FINANCES OF THE NATION AND THE DEPARTMENTS: the General Accounting
Office of the Nation
reported that as of December 31, 2004, the balance sheet for
the public sector recorded a notable improvement in terms of
the financial situation and economic results. Income grew, expenses
were down, and there was more social investment. The Ministry
of the Treasury said that the Public Sector Deficit went down
in 2004 to 1.2% of the GDP, fully meeting the goal set with the
International Monetary Fund. The deficit of the nation and all
its institutions decreased from $20 trillion to $18 trillion,
improving by 11%.
DEMOCRATIC SECURITY
• CARTAGENA DEL CHAIRÁ WITH A BANK AND POLICE STATION: the national government will inaugurate the office for the Banco
Agrario and the new Police station on April 23 in this municipality
in Caquetá, at the same time that 583 young people and
adults trained by the SENA will graduate. The Families in Action
program will be accepting enrollments in May in order to benefit
2,700 households there, while the program for Social and Work
Reconversion will invest $1,000 million to train 400 young people.
The inauguration of the new school cafeteria for the Camilo Torres
Amazon Agro-ecological Institute complemented the push for the
population’s development.
(FIN/JHINA/CIE)
April 22, 2005
