Two years after Gustavo Petro’s arrival at the Casa de Nariño A new era for the Colombian economy began, which has been marked by different bets, such as the drastic change to the pension system approved a few weeks ago and other initiatives.
(Further: Low growth and erratic policies: this is how the economy has fared in 2 years of Petro).
For his part, the Minister of Finance, Ricardo Bonilla, presented a balance of the country’s economic situation and the measures taken to address inherited challenges and move towards sustainable stability.
In his speech, Bonilla outlined the main economic ‘achievements’ and challenges, highlighting the reduction of inflation, the correction of fuel policies and the responsible management of public debt.
“We received the country in a condition of an overheated economy in the midst of a process of rising inflation, which reached a maximum of 13.34% in March 2023, simultaneously a Bank of the Republic raising intervention rates with a maximum of 13.25% in the same month of March 2023“, said the Minister of Finance.
(Read:In two years of government, progress in housing and infrastructure has seen ups and downs).
The minister stressed that, to date, they have managed to reduce inflation to 7.18% and lower the intervention rate to 10.75%. In addition, He highlighted a process of recovery in economic growth, projecting an increase of 1.8% for this year.
(See: Overview: How popular credit has benefited from the push for microcredit).
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“We had to correct the previous government’s decision to freeze fuel prices, which meant that we had a deficit in the fuel price stabilization fund that today has accumulated 69 billion pesos since 2022.“, said Bonilla.
Regarding the above, he commented that this debt had to be paid from the National General Budget. He also indicated that the adjustment of gasoline prices allowed the deficit to be gradually reduced.
(Further: Wear and tear of reforms would limit the fulfillment of the PND in education and health).
Bonilla also mentioned the commitment to pay domestic and foreign debt, which in 2020 amounted to 200 billion pesos, with scheduled payments of 75 billion in 2023, 95 billion in 2024, and 112 billion in 2025.
In conclusion, the minister emphasized that they are in the process of correcting macroeconomic indicators to recover the country’s fiscal and macroeconomic sustainability, ensuring responsible and effective management of public finances under the Petro administration.
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