The Ambassador of the European Union in Colombia visits Bucaramanga

Gilles Bertrand, Ambassador of the European Union (EU) in Colombia, is conducting a four-day visit to the city of Bucaramanga and its metropolitan area, in the department of Santander.

The purpose of this visit is to establish a dialogue with departmental and district authorities, the Santander business sector, academia and partners with whom the EU works in this department. The focus is on strengthening the bilateral alliance on common issues such as trade, investment, university cooperation and innovation, as well as meetings with partners on issues of migration, gender and human rights and with the Departmental Youth Council.

In this regard, Ambassador Bertrand affirms: “This is my first visit as Ambassador to Santander. It is a department characterized by its human and economic dynamism, with many opportunities for investment and scientific and technological cooperation. It also has high potential in relevant issues for the European Union such as environmental protection, integration between migrants and host communities. I am visiting Bucaramanga with the purpose of strengthening these ties, reaffirming our commitment to work together and presenting the many opportunities that the European Union offers for the department and its inhabitants”.

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On Thursday, the Ambassador and trade advisors of EU Member States participated in an event aimed at entrepreneurs and businessmen of Bucaramanga and Santander where they will discuss the progress and achievements of the Trade Agreement between the European Union and Colombia, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year. They also discussed the challenges ahead: strengthening the manufacturing sector and promoting the competitiveness of agricultural products to improve their export potential, in line with European regulations on sustainable trade framed in the European Green Pact. The Access2Markets tool, which provides public information on how to export to the European Union, was also presented.

The agenda includes meetings with the Governor in charge of Santander, Raúl Julián Serrano, the Mayor of Bucaramanga, Juan Carlos Cárdenas, as well as with trade unions of the department to exchange on the challenges and achievements in terms of social, business, economic and commercial development. The visit will be accompanied by the representative for Latin America of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Alexandre Staff, and the Regional Coordinator of EURAXESS, Viktoria Bodnarova. Dialogues will be held with academia on the European doctoral and postdoctoral education program Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), as well as two discussions with students: ‘Study and Research Opportunities in Europe’ at the Universidad Industrial de Santander and ‘The role of the European Union in Colombia: an agenda of shared values’ at the Universidad Autónoma de Bucaramanga (UNAB).

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The Ambassador will also meet with civil society actors, women’s organizations, leaders and social leaders of Bucaramanga in the framework of #DefendamosLaVida, the campaign of European embassies for the accompaniment and visibility of social leadership in Colombia, to discuss the main challenges in human rights, migration, gender equality and humanitarian situations in the department.

On Friday, the Ambassador will visit the local offices of Migration Colombia and the center of attention for migrants and will deliver mobile units provided by the European Union and German cooperation in the framework of the European Migration and Refugee Program.

He will also visit communities participating in the ‘Inclusive Cities’ program, which seeks to strengthen the capacities of local governments for the attention and management of migratory flows and their proper integration into public policies and territorial planning. This action, implemented jointly by UN Habitat, the United Nations Refugee Agency – UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration – IOM, is financed by the European Union and offers migrants and inhabitants of Bucaramanga’s host communities access to entrepreneurship and cohesion initiatives.

Source: EU Delegation in Colombia