Colombian Vice President José Manuel Restrepo on security, private investment and growth in Latin America, Digi Mart USA News (Madrid, Spain): Colombian Vice President José Manuel Restrepo Abondano told DigitalMex that Mexicans should “be careful, because the paths are very different” when asked about insecurity in Mexico and his country’s experience with drug trafficking and violence.
Speaking at the Ibero-American Business Meeting in Madrid, Restrepo said Colombia has faced serious problems including drug trafficking, terrorism, loss of territorial control and the expansion of criminal economies. He said these conditions have affected both daily family life and economic development opportunities.
Restrepo said insecurity is one of the main factors eroding citizens’ trust in institutions. He stated that the government of President Abelardo de la Espriella has made the recovery of security, the fight against corruption and respect for the independence of public powers among its priorities.
The vice president argued that no nation can achieve sustainable growth if it depends on excessive public spending and debt. He called for restoring the value of private initiative, attracting investment and creating conditions for businesses to drive productive activity and employment.
Restrepo also said Latin America faces a structural productivity problem. He explained that while in developed economies two-thirds of growth comes from productivity gains, in Latin America it depends mainly on increases in the labor force, a model he considered unsustainable given demographic change.
He called on Ibero-American countries to take an active role in developing artificial intelligence, quantum computing and biotechnology, which he said will be decisive for economic competitiveness in the coming decades. He warned, however, that growth and wealth creation lack meaning if their benefits do not reach the most vulnerable sectors, and said poverty, inequality, unemployment, informality and limited access to health, education and basic services must be addressed.
Restrepo said economic recovery must be accompanied by fiscal discipline, strong institutions and conditions of certainty for investors. He also said corruption threatens democracy because it destroys citizens’ trust in their governments.
The vice president presented Colombia as an open country for investment and international business cooperation. He said Colombia seeks to overcome the effects of violence through a strategy based on security, productivity, institutional strengthening and private-sector participation, with a development vision extending to 2050.
