Colombia could see up to $40 billion in infrastructure investments over the next decade, the country’s transport minister announced at a Reuters Latin American summit in Bogota.
Minister German Cardona stated, “Colombia could be surpassing $40 billion … that’s long term investment. We’re talking about more or less 10 years in all sectors, rivers, roads, railways, airports, that is, all infrastructure sectors.”
China, France and Spain have all expressed an interest in contributing funds to help improve the country’s poor infrastructure, which is widely considered to be a major obstacle to the country’s economic development. Cardona indicated that he expected at least 30% of the investment to come from local and foreign private firms.
Colombia currently has coffee, coal and oil among its key exports but growth within each of these sectors has failed to reach its full potential due to the existing roads, railways, waterways and airports within the country. Long term investment in all of these infrastructure sectors is furthermore considered necessary for Colombia to gain access to major economic blocs such as the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), a group Colombia is currently pushing to become a member of.
Foreign investment in Colombia has increased in recent years in line with improvements in the country’s security situation. Last week, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services lifted Colombia into investment-grade territory, further enhancing the Andean nation’s chances of sustaining long-term economic growth.