In front of 8 major investors who participated in a business round held in the capital of the United States, the mayor of Bogotá, Claudia López, presented the city's most important projects to seek financial support and attract foreign capital.
With the support of Invest in Bogotá in Washington, the mayor made a detailed presentation to North American businessmen and investors about the progress in multimodal and sustainable mobility infrastructure projects in the city, seeking to establish strategic partnerships with companies interested in the different initiatives of the city.
"We have 580 projects of great importance in Bogotá that involve US$13 billion. In the last 5 years, we have received US$11.9 billion in foreign investment. The projects that we are going to carry out with our tax debt quota are US$13 billion, which is more than the foreign investment of the last five years. Obviously, this is going to attract more investment," explained Mayor López.
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Among the main projects presented were the Second Line of the Metro, the Canoas Wastewater Treatment Plant (PTAR), the railway development projects that include the Regiotram del Norte and Occidente, the Carrera Séptima Green Corridor, the Cable System, the Engativá Hospital and the extension of Calle 13.
In this tweet, Mayor Lopez highlighted some of the presented projects:
The initial funding for Line 2 of @MetroBogota is secured, and now with @investinbogota, we are conducting a business round to present to interested companies the biggest infrastructure projects in the city, such as Line 2 of the Metro and the Canoas Wastewater Treatment Plant. https://t.co/UXhnH8iD61
— Relaciones Internacionales Bogotá (@BogotaInter_nal) April 13, 2023
"At Invest in Bogotá, we work together with the concern of promoting projects and seeking investors for the city's projects because we want international actors and foreign investment to come to Bogotá. The direct impact of this management will be seen in the city's Gross Domestic Product, GDP, which will impact the quality of life of its inhabitants," said Gloria Sánchez, infrastructure investment officer at Invest in Bogotá.
When explaining the city's innovative qualities, the mayor highlighted as an example the pilot program that allows Bogotá to have the first hydrogen bus in all of Latin America in an alliance with Ecopetrol. The city currently has the most important electric bus yard in the region.
The business meeting held at the Colombian embassy in Washington, organized by Invest in Bogotá and the Mayor's Office, was an opportunity to generate interest and obtain the support of potential investors in the most important infrastructure projects that will benefit the city's inhabitants and contribute to its sustainable development and growth.
Several important investors participated in the event, which ended shortly before noon, such as Mariana Quidel, Director of Investments at Meridian, Rafael Matas, Lead Investment Officer in Infrastructure at BID Invest, Eduardo Holgado, Director General of Projects at Goldman Sachs, and Elias Alcantara, Vice President at Macquarie, among others.
Bogotá Region accounts for 61% of the United States' Foreign Direct Investment projects in Colombia. The United States has been the city's number one investor, followed by Spain and France.
Bogotá's economy is larger than that of several Latin American countries. For example, it is larger than the GDP of countries such as Costa Rica, Panamá, and Uruguay.
In the afternoon, the mayor had a busy agenda that included meetings with Felipe Muñoz, head of the Migration Unit of the Inter-American Development Bank, where she had an informal conversation about the alliance between the IDB and Bogotá for the care and integration of migrant populations, a model for which the city has received international recognition. Also present at the meeting was Ferdinand Regalía, manager of the IDB's Social Sector.
During the meeting, the mayor thanked and praised the support received from the IDB, which is fundamental for Bogotá because it guarantees the continuation and strengthening of the economic inclusion phase for international migrants in areas such as employment, entrepreneurship, and financial education.
At the end of her agenda in Washington on Thursday, the mayor met with a team from the World Bank, led by Ayat Soliman, director of Strategy and Operations at the World Bank, to agree on the terms of the financing process with the World Bank for the Second Line of the Bogotá Metro, joining the financing secured with the European Investment Bank.
