President Gustavo Petro addressed Colombians to say goodbye to the year and welcome the one that is about to begin. As is tradition, with that message too the Government’s balance sheet was presented on all fronts, including security, economy, health and others.
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On this occasion, The president presented a compilation of 11 points with which the progress made by the Executive would be summarized not only in 2024, but in the two years that he has been leading the country’s administration.
In the first instance, President Petro highlighted the achievements in social and economic matters.
As he explained, in 2023 alone, 2.5 million people managed to escape hunger in Colombia. Added to this are the 1.6 million Colombians who emerged from monetary poverty and the 1.1 million who are no longer part of extreme poverty. In that sense, the Government aims for these figures to have doubled in 2024.
The head of state also highlighted the growth that the Colombian economy has been reporting. Based on data from the National Administrative Department of Statistics (Dane), for the month of October it would have reported a real growth of 2.9%, which is explained, according to Petro, “because there is more agriculture, more industry and more production.”
Likewise, the reduction in indicators such as unemployment and inflation stood out. In the case of the latter, for example, He emphasized the downward path that it has been registering in the last 21 months and to date they place it at close to 5%.
inflation
Source: IStock
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Balance on other fronts
Another of the advances that he mentioned in his speech has to do with the delivery of lands as part of what was established in the 2016 Peace Agreement. According to the president, In 2024, 440,000 hectares of land will be redistributed to farmersIn addition, 1.2 million hectares were formalized for families in informal situations.
As part of that list, he also mentioned the approval of the pension reform, the conclusion of the Credit Pact, the holding of COP16 in Cali, the approval of the reform to the General Participation System (SGP) and the 9.5% increase in the minimum wage by 2025.
Along these same lines, Petro pointed out the revitalization of tourism as another of the Government’s achievements. As he highlighted, there have been more than 6.2 million international tourists in Colombia, which would place the country as the third in the region with the most income from this activity, only behind Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
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COP16
THE TIME
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Regarding security, he highlighted a reduction in almost all crimes, except extortion. Likewise, he indicated that by the end of the year Nearly 848 tons of cocaine have been seized, which represents an increase in seizures of 14% compared to 2023.
To close his message, the head of state sent good wishes to Colombians and indicated that he hopes that this path will continue with a view to fulfilling all commitments and promises.
“My wish for next year is that these data and this good progress unite us as Colombians and that we reach consensus so that in the country the ideas in favor of the people are finally what we agree on (…) In “In 2025, my Government’s commitment is to deliver each of the promises made”he concluded.
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