Colombia’s government signed a peace accord with its largest rebel group last fall, raising hopes that a five-decade insurgency that claimed 220,000 lives will be replaced by a period of stability and prosperity.
Toward that end, Juan Carlos Pinzón, Colombia’s ambassador to the U.S., visited Denver Thursday on a mission to boost trade between his country and Colorado.
“We want to tell our story,” Pinzón said. “There is more peace and stability, more opportunity.”
On his agenda during a two-day visit were meetings with Liberty Global, a leading cable TV provider in Colombia; Ball Corp., the world’s largest maker of aluminum beverage cans; Arrow Electronics, a global provider of electronic components; and MKK Consulting Engineers, which has an office in Bogota.
Pinzón also noted the state’s reputation as a hub for green energy, and will visit the National Renewable Energy Labs in Golden.
After Brazil and Mexico, Colombia boasts Latin America’s third-largest population. But when it comes to trade, Colombia doesn’t come anywhere close to those two nations in volume.
Colombia purchased $20.6 million in Colorado goods in 2015. It is the seventh-largest trading partner for the state in Latin America and 37th overall. Its top purchases were machinery, computer and electronic products and electrical equipment.
Colorado took in $7 million of Colombian imports, making the country the fifth-largest source of origin in Latin America and 49th overall. The country is known for its coffee beans and flowers, and the top goods coming to Colorado were agricultural products and processed foods.
The United States and Colombia implemented a new free trade agreement in 2012. And while there is a lot of uncertainty regarding trade, the agreement is bi-lateral, something the Trump administration said it favors over multi-lateral agreements like NAFTA.
Pinzón lists several things in the country’s favor: some of the world’s most plentiful water resources, and abundant agricultural and mineral resources. In contrast to aging populations in Europe and some parts of Asia, about 60 percent of Colombians are younger than 30, and the country has an abundance of skilled professionals.
Colombia has managed to cut its poverty rate in half, has never defaulted on a foreign debt payment, and claims the region’s longest continuous democracy, Pinzón said. The country has gone from among the most violent in the world to the most secure, and is now training police forces across the region, Pinzón said.