The Festival of Economies for Life began on Saturday at the Palacio de San Carlos in Bogotá, organized by the Ministry of Education and the Progressive International. The event, running until May 4, brings together officials and economists to discuss a progressive economic model focused on industry, agriculture, and energy transition. Panels address institutional blockages and income distribution.
The festival opened on May 2 at the Palacio de San Carlos, supported by the Centro de Pensamiento Vida, the Foreign Ministry, and the Ministry of Finance. Cristian Pino, from the Progressive International secretariat, stated Colombia represents 'a living reserve of the spirit of Havana 1974' and that the event continues a cycle started in 2024.
Simón Gómez Azza, economist at King’s College London, criticized the oil-dependent model of recent decades and advocated for Colombia as a 'world life power', with agrarian reform and energy transition. First-day panels included 'Model change: engines of development (energy transition, agriculture, and industry)', featuring Mario Valencia and Hernán Ceballos, who highlighted policies like Law 2294 of 2023 and non-mining exports near US$8 billion.
Laura Moisá, co-director of the Banco de la República, called for rethinking the global economic model by valuing environmental resources like the Amazon and reducing inequalities in water and education access. César Giraldo, another co-director, pointed to institutional blockages: 'More resources are demanded, but when the Government tries to obtain them, the blockage appears', proposing fiscal, productive, and social pacts.
In the employment panel, speakers like María Consuelo Ahumada and Daniel Ossa discussed minimum wage advances and labor share recovery to 43%, criticizing the neoliberal approach and prioritizing the poorest.
