Colombia, a Positive Country

Prepared by:
Affairs Coordinator
Internal and External Communications
Ministry of Foreign Relations

ON THE FRONT PAGE

• NATIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT DECREASES: the national unemployment rate decreased from 11.7% to 10.2% in November 2005, relative to the same month in 2004, representing the lowest rate since 2001. The decrease was caused by the creation of 561,743 jobs across the nation between November 2004 and November 2005. The National Statistics Department reported that the Economically Active Population numbers almost 21 million citizens, of which 18.7 million are employed, and 2.1 million are not employed. In terms of the thirteen main cities of the country, unemployment in November 2005, compared to the same month in 2004, went down from 13.9% to 12.1%.

• MILLIONS IN REWARDS GIVEN TO INFORMANTS: in 2005 the national government paid $7,716 million in rewards to citizens who provided information that allowed the public security forces to carry out 334 successful operations against terrorist groups and drug traffickers. Thus stated the Minister of Defense, Camilo Ospina, pointing out that these funds were paid out as follows: $7,090 million for information against terrorism, 563 million related to the struggle against drug trafficking, and $63 million for information for intelligence and counterintelligence work. Thanks to the availability of this reward money, the public security forces captured twelve leaders of the illegal armed groups in 2005.

SOCIAL INVESTMENT

• DISPLACED POPULATION GIVEN FOOD: More than 8 thousand tons of foods have been distributed within the framework of the third phase of the Prolonged Aid Operation, promoted by the Presidential Agency for Social Action, the ICBF, and the World Food Program. This has been possible thanks to the collection of USD 18 million given by international donors, and to a contribution of $80 billion pesos from the national government. Peter Goossens, WFP representative in Colombia, indicated that this strategy is being developed in 15 Departments to provide foodstuffs for people in emergency situations due to forced displacement.

• GOVERNMENT AND BOGOTÁ MAYOR’S OFFICE UNITED IN FAVOR OF DEMOBILIZED PERSONS: the Ministry of the Interior and of Justice, and the Bogotá Mayor’s Office signed a cooperation agreement to create a Reintegration Policy for Bogotá. The goal is to provide better economic and social opportunities for those who abandon the ranks of the terrorist groups. The Ministry of the Interior and of Justice, Sabas Pretelt de la Vega, indicated that the idea is to see how the private sector can get involved in employment generation and how productive projects can be developed with assistance from the SENA. Another idea is to study the possibility of having that population hired by District institutions.

• JAPANESE DONATION FOR DEMOBILIZED PERSONS: the government of Japan, through its Embassy in Colombia, donated $478 million to the Ministry of the Interior and of Justice, allocated for building a gastronomic training center for the demobilized population served by the ‘Juan Bosco Obrero’ Center in Ciudad Bolívar, Bogotá. The goal of the project is to train reintegrated and displaced young people in cooking, bread making, and baking, using the items and tools needed for learning this profession.

SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC GROWTH AND EMPLOYMENT GENERATION

• BANKS IMPROVE EARNINGS: earnings for the Colombian financial system grew by 23% from November 2004 to November 2005. According to the report from the Banking Superintendence of Colombia, while as of November 2004 the institutions had earned $2.5 trillion pesos, by the same month in 2005, earnings of $3,186,221,000,000 pesos had been recorded. By type of establishment, the greatest earnings were $2.3 trillion at banks formed with domestic or Colombian capital, reflecting growth of 32.9%. In the case of banks based on foreign capital located in the country, earnings increased by 8.5% and the institutions in the cooperative sector showed a slight increase of 2.58%.

• SALES UP FOR VEHICLES: during the months of July, August, and September automobile sales increased by 29.76% with respect to the prior year, going from 36,490 units to 47,348. The National Department of Statistics revealed that in the category of private vehicles, 27,238 vehicles were sold, representing growth of 27% with respect to invoices for the same period last year. Likewise, the report reveals that 58.3% of autos sold were domestic cars, while the remaining 41.7% sold were imports.

DEMOCRATIC SECURITY

• KIDNAPPINGS AND HOMICIDES DOWN IN HUILA: Cases of kidnapping for extortion in the Department of Huila went from 41 cases in 2004 to 10 in 2005, representing a 75% reduction in that crime. As far as homicides in the Department, the reduction was 16%. In 2004 there were 85 homicides reported in Huila, and so far this year, 71 have been recorded. This decrease is due to the work by the authorities, and also in great part to cooperation from citizens.

STATE EFFICIENCY AND TRANSPARENCY

• 800 THOUSAND NEW INCOME TAX DECLARATIONS IN 2006: in 2006 close to 800 thousand additional Colombians must present income tax declarations for income and assets received and obtained during the 2005 tax year. Thus stated the Director of the DIAN, Oscar Franco Charry, as he clarified that does not mean that all those people will have to pay income taxes. In 2005, 1,200,000 additional people prepared tax declarations in consequence of the new limits established in the recent tax reform. The first step to be taken by the additional 800 thousand people who will now have to declare is to apply for a Taxpaying Registration Number (RUT for the initials in Spanish).

• TAX RATES UPDATED: the national government updated the rates for different taxes that must be paid by Colombians for the 2005 tax year, for which declarations will be presented in 2006. The basis for the update was the percentage rate of 5.07%, which was the increase in the Consumer Price Index reported by the National Administrative Department of Statistics. The Decrees update the withholding tables for salaried workers, the tables for income tax declarations, the level above which the “4 por mil” (4 per thousand) tax will be charged on savings accounts, the stamp tax rate, and the exit tax to be paid when leaving the country and the fee for issuing passports, among others.

(FIN/JHINA/CIE)
December 30, 2005