The 79th edition of the National Congress of Traders-Businessmen of Fenalco began in Barranquilla. Which seeks to address the current economic and social situation, as well as the future of the country in the coming years.
(Read: Minhacienda will not renegotiate the covid debt with the IMF: the arguments of the decision)
Jaime Alberto Cabal
Private file
(Read: Labor reform entered the final stretch in the Chamber amid alerts about its effects)
During the installation of the event, the president of Fenalco, Jaime Alberto Cabal, presented an assessment of the security situation for merchants. Until the first half of the year, there was a 27.5% increase in extortion cases, compared to the first half of 2023. Likewise, the leader stated that in the first half of the year kidnappings increased by 2.6 %, going from 1,112 cases in 2023 to 1,141 cases of kidnapping in 2024.
Given the terrorist actions, Cabal specified that these increased by 70% during the first half of the year. For his part, The presence of armed groups in the municipalities increased by 56% in the case of the ELN, 84% in the case of the Clan del Golfo, and 141% in the case of the FARC dissidents.
(Read: What does the US project on migration that will be led by Colombia consist of?)
“One of the points that must be analyzed is security, since the situation in many cities is dramatic, the number of extortions has increased as well as crime. We went back 30 years in these two years of Gustavo Petro’s government. But not only security is one of the points that must be addressed, but also economic reactivation.”Cabal stated.
Economic situation
Jaime Alberto Cabal
Private file
(Read: Coffee production in Colombia: why the country would be exceeding its annual goal)
Given the economic situation of the country, The leader of Fenalco stated that the balance in these two years of Government is “poor and negative”. Furthermore, he remarked that it is observed “a disorganized, disorderly country with great setbacks on all its fronts”.
“We see that the economy is going through its worst moment since the pandemic and political uncertainty among economic actors has deepened. Therefore, we must analyze what has happened with such important indicators as economic growth (GDP), the behavior of the main productive sectors, especially trade, investment and employment, among others. It is good to support why we have been in a process of economic slowdown in these 2 years, let us remember that after the pandemic in 2021, growth was 10.8% and in 2022 it was 7.3%. In 2023, a year and a half after starting this Government, we fell to a stagnation of almost no growth, just 0.6%. This year the pace continues to be slow, with 0.7% in the first quarter and 2.1 in the second”Cabal explained.
Regarding the labor market, the president of Fenalco said that the slowdown of the economy and especially the poor performance of commerce, industry and construction, were beginning to take their toll on job creation. Added to this was the fall in private investment.
(Read: First steps of the reactivation plan, after a 6-week deadline set by the Government)
“The report presented by Dane for the month of July of this year shows an increase in the unemployment rate, going from 9.6% in July 2023 to 9.9%; registering an increase of 101,000 new unemployed, a figure that suggests that the economy is not generating new jobs and rather they are being destroyed. When broken down by sector, we see a loss of 118,000 jobs in construction, while in the commerce cluster, made up of the subsectors of trade and vehicle repair, accommodation and food services, transportation and storage, the loss of jobs reached 198,000”Cabal said.
What does the future look like?
Finally, Cabal called on businessmen to commit to the process by 2026.
“This commitment should not only be with financing candidate campaigns, but more purposeful and demanding, such as: participating with ideas in groups, associations or unions to help with the priority agenda that the country requires; carefully review the current and past performances of candidates for Congress and the presidency”Cabal highlighted.
JOHANA LORDUY
PORTFOLIO
