Spanish President Pedro Sánchez is expected to arrive in Colombia tonight, and he will hold a full agenda tomorrow. The main events will be a meeting with his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, after a business forum that will begin at 9:30 am
With his popularity plummeting, as a result of wear and tear after four years of management marked by the pandemic, inflation and the war in Ukraine; The Spanish president –of the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE)– will visit Colombia with the intention of giving a boost to the new government.
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According to government sources, in this tour that will extend to Ecuador and Honduras, Sánchez will insist on the importance of the relationship between Spain and Latin America, especially when the political landscape in the region began to change with the arrival of leftist governments, to the that the head of the Spanish Executive seeks to accompany, among other reasons, because in his country he governs thanks to a coalition in which Podemos participates, a party considered to be of the extreme left.
Strengthen relationships
With the visit we want to highlight the special relevance of Colombia and Latin America in current geopolitics and, as indicated in Moncloa, it will serve to address challenges such as peace, security, migration, the fight against climate change, and, among others. , adaptation to an interconnected and digitized world.
Also, sources from the Spanish Executive assured that the tour will also serve to promote the holding of the Summit of the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC)interrupted since 2015, and whose purpose is to hold it in the second half of 2023, with the participation of 60 heads of state from Europe and Latin America.
business language
Spain is consolidated as the second foreign investor in Colombia, with a 16.7% share of total foreign direct investment.
One of the key points on Sánchez’s agenda in Colombia will be to demonstrate why Spain continues to be a strategic partner in business and economic matters. For this purpose, a forum will be held tomorrow in Bogotá attended by more than 600 companies and will be inaugurated by the president of Spain.
The Spanish president will be in Colombia accompanied by 15 journalists, the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, and a business delegation including representatives from Indra, Ohla, Sacyr, Navantia, Airbus Spain, Idom, Llorente and Cuenca, Proeducar-Unir Group, Hispasat, Urbas Group, Redeia (Red Eléctrica Group), CEOE and the Chamber of Spain. A support that seeks to reaffirm the presence of the Spanish company and the investment in Colombia and the region.
There are currently more than 800 Spanish companies established in the country, with an investment that reaches 26,000 million euros.
“Spain is consolidated as the second foreign investor in Colombia, with a participation of 16.7% of the total foreign direct investment, with an accumulated stock, in the last 20 years, close to 22,000 million dollars. Today, more than 800 Spanish companies invest in Colombia”, said Luis Guillermo Plata, ambassador to Spain until the possession of Petro.
After the business forum will come the meeting with Petro, in which it was confirmed that Sánchez will offer help to the President in the search for peace with the Eln. Additionally, and also in recognition of Colombia’s efforts to end the violence, he will visit the Museo Centro de Memoria, Paz y Reconciliación de Bogotá. There, a tribute will be paid to the victims of the conflict and Father Francisco de Roux will give Sánchez the report of the Truth Commission.
Tour other countries
After the visit to Colombia, Sánchez will continue his journey through Ecuador and Honduras. It is the first time that the Spanish president visits these countriesalso being the first state visit in the last 20 years.
In Ecuador, he will participate in a business forum and hold institutional meetings with the government of Guillermo Lasso, who visited Spain last year.
Sánchez will know the result of the work carried out by the Spanish cooperation for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the historic center of Quito. There will also be a meeting with the Spanish community.
In Honduras, he will have breakfast with representatives of Spanish companies settled there and a meeting will be held with the Presidency of the Government. He will also visit the Comayagua workshop school, which is dedicated to skills training and job reintegration of young people, with the aim of combating forced migration.
Meanwhile, the Spanish president hopes that, during his tour, the energy saving policy implemented due to the rise in electricity prices will not attract more criticism.
JUANITA SAMPER OSPINA
WEATHER CORRESPONDENT
MADRID
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