Bogota is to host a “Doing Business in Latin America” conference, featuring experts from 15 different countries focused on increasing Colombia’s competitiveness and improving the local business environment.
Trade, Industry, and Tourism Minister Sergio Diaz-Granados said that the realization of this summit, taking place December 1 and 2, is the first step in a national reform plan that will push the Colombian government to advance the country’s economic competitive advantage internationally, and continue to increase their World Bank’s Doing Business Ranking.
The ranking measures business regulations in various countries in order to determine an overall “ease of doing business,” based on various factors such as cost of utilities, access to construction permits and credit, as well as issues of taxes and trading across international borders.
“Colombia has made significant strides in this direction,” the minister explained, adding that “in the ranking for 2012, we increased to 47 from 42, among 183 countries.”
“We will continue to work tirelessly around the subject, with additional efforts to prioritize some indicators that are key — especially [those regarding] micro, small, and medium enterprises, so that they can have a better business environment,” Sergio Diaz-Granados said.
The event will feature participants from both the public and private sectors in Guatemala, Panama, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Chile, Brazil, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Colombia.
The conference agenda will address challenges facing Latin America in terms of competitiveness, the vision of the private sector and global investment climate, regional trends with respect to the local business climate, and ease of obtaining electricity, which is a new indicator in the Doing Business Ranking.
Colombia’s Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Tourism is hosting the event in conjunction with the World Bank Group. It will be held in Bogota’s Chamber of Conference, and attended by high-ranking government officials and national business representatives.
