The South Korean government is investing three million dollars into a housing project with over 40,000 houses in western Colombia, national media reported on Tuesday.
The governments of South Korea and Colombia have signed a cooperation agreement with the view of developing a mega-project in Cali as part of the second generation of the “Eco-city Navarro,” according to Colombia’s W Radio.
“We want to convert the town of Navarro into a Macro-project model with the potential for over 40,000 living units for strata 1, 2, and 3,” affirmed the housing minister, Luis Felipe Henao.
According to El Universal, over the next 18 months the planning stages of the project will confirm the area the housing will be built on as well as establishing public spaces.
The whole project will cover a space of around 3,000 acres, according to El Universal, and will generate some 130,000 jobs.
“What we want is to have a social mix to generate much more sustainable internal economies and projects,” said Henao, adding, “This will allow cities such as Cali, and if it works, other cities, to have socially interested housing projects with better equipment, better public space, connectivity and more savings in public services, reusing water and energy.”
According to El Universal, the mayor of Cali, Rodrigo Guerrero, explained to those worried about the impacts of this mega-project on the city that both the South Korean and Colombian investors are taking precautions to ensure minimal impacts on surrounding areas and public health.