Colombia has evolved past the point of being considered an “emerging” platform for tech innovation, according to Pedro Moneo, Director of the MIT Technology Review magazine.
Speaking at the EmTech conference in Medellin, Moneo said that Colombia is “no longer an emerging country in technology,” and should instead be considered “developed and mature” by those in the industry, with a well-formed “ecosystem” of innovation and entrepreneurship to support future growth.
This is the second time Medellin has hosted the conference, which brings together 600 technology experts. Colombia’s second largest city city is considered a regional hub for the startup and tech scene.
The winner of the 2014 EmTech Innovator of the Year award was a Colombian, Daniel Cuartas, with Adelaida Gomez taking the conference’s Social Innovator award.
According to Moneo, high levels of “digital development” in elementary and secondary education has facilitated the technological growth Colombia is experiencing.
“Today we see that Colombia has a successfully developed infrastructure for innovation and entrepreneurship, and has also expanded its connectivity,” the specialist emphasized, explaining that the challenge now is to become “a center of global development,” which is an attainable goal if they continue “creating alliances, business treaties and a fertile ecosystem to facilitate the installation of big companies and multinationals here.”
Growth is clearly visible according to the minister, such as in the last quarter of 2013 when the number of broadband connections in Colombia increased to 8.2 million, almost four times more than in 2010 when they reached 2.2 million.
Sources
- EmTech: Colombia ya no es un “emergente” tecnológico (Colombia Inn)
- Colombia no longer “emerging” tech nation, expert says (Global Post)