Joint work, the key of the Government’s distanced mayors

In the midst of strong political tensions reflected in the distancing with the national government, the regions and main cities of the country advance with investments, while its mayors call on union and joint work so that development does not stop and Colombia can change course to 2026 when new president is elected.

These were some of the approaches of the mayors of Bogotá, Carlos Fernando Galán; Medellín, Federico Gutiérrez; Cali, Alejandro Eder; Barranquilla, Alex Char, and Cartagena, Dumek Turbayduring one of the last conversations of the Colombian Business Congress (CEC) that ended this Friday, August 15 in Cartagena.

Advances in Bogotá

Each exposed how they have managed to advance in almost 20 months of management and recognized the importance of the private sector to meet the objectives in their respective cities.

Carlos Fernando Galán said that, to achieve advances, it is key to “build on what is built” and not starting from zero ignoring what already exists. He also highlighted the importance of dialogue, even when it is not easy, and gave as an example the agreements reached to guarantee the resources of the Bogotá Metro and the acquisition of a new fleet for Transmilenio.

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For the mayor, “the antidote against populism is to deliver concrete results: no speeches, not promises, I do not hate, not empty criticism, but construction.”

He stressed that, although there is much to do, in the first quarter of 2025 Bogotá grew 3.7 %, marking the national economy, mainly thanks to civil works. Only the Metro project injects each quarter about 700,000 million pesos to the economy.
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In Medellín, resources are their own

Federico Gutiérrez, mayor of Medellín.

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Federico Gutiérrez highlighted the unit among local leaders: “There are no envy here, we work together and we are glad that each one does well, because that benefits our city and the country. That this example serves what is coming, because Colombia will need a lot of teamwork.”

He added that his development plan did not include resources from the nation “because we knew what was coming” and that in Medellín an investment of 45 billion pesos is executed to transform the city.

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On the security situation, he lamented The murder of politician Miguel Uribe said that “I cannot say that Petro is responsible for his death, but I am convinced that if he were not president, Miguel would be alive.”

He criticized that in three years of government “The only strengthened have been the ELN, the Gulf clan, the dissidents of the FARC and other criminal organizations,” and asked to preserve the institutions while the regions continue to “support the country.”

Barranquilla and Cartagena: the private sector is the protagonist

Alex Char, mayor of Barranquilla.

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In addition to the efforts that have been made in security, Álex Char attributed the success of his city to the joint work between the public and private sector to meet the needs of the community.

“We have no large budgets; we live in the property and industry and trade tax,” he explained.

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Meanwhile, Mayor Dumek Turbay emphasized that “It is up to us to solve our own problems, define a line of development with the ingredient that this city is the city of all Colombians.”

He stressed that the transformation of Cartagena has been given thanks to the confidence of the Colombian financial system, which has compromised 500 million dollars for the Cartagena Development Plan-Rights City.

“The expectation of working harmoniously with the national government did not occur, but we found an important ally in the financial system,” he said.
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‘Tranquility returned to Cali’: Eder

Alejandro Eder, mayor of Cali.

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For his part, the mayor Alejandro Eder highlighted the support and communication between local administrations. He recalled that since his possession he called unity and reconciliation, But he warned that “reconciliation is not alcahuetía, it is to respect us in the differences and meet the norms that apply us to all.”

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He considered that his greatest achievement has been to maintain peace in the city, despite attempts to alter public order, thanks to coordinated work with the public force, even with a 30 % cut in the National Security Budget.

Constance Gómez Guasca
Portfolio writing