• Transforming Ideas Into Action
• Combating Climate Change
• Treating HIV/AIDS & Malaria
• Fighting Childhood Obesity
• Promoting Economic Opportunity
• Creating Sustainable Development in Africa
• Enabling Sustainable Development
  • Why Sustainable Development?
  • Partners and Donors
  • Our Approach
  Countries
  • Peru
  • Colombia
  Projects
  • Economic Development
  • Education
  • Health
  • What We've Accomplished
  • News and Media

Colombia

Colombia, a diverse nation of about 45 million people and the fourth largest country in South America, has experienced sustained rates of economic growth over the last decade. The country possesses significant natural resources: it is a major producer of gold, silver, emeralds, platinum, and coal, and it also has substantial oil reserves. Still, despite advances in poverty reduction, nearly 18 percent of the population lives with less than $2 per day, and 7 percent with less than $1 per day. In Chocó, a rural region of about 440,000 people, nearly 80 percent of people live in poverty and many lack access to clean water, health care, improved sanitation, and other necessities. CGSGI’s projects address these challenges by providing more Colombians access to health services, education, and economic opportunities. These are long-term commitments that will continue to develop over the coming years. Specifically:

• In partnership with Fundación Carlos Slim, CGSGI has announced the launch of a $20 million investment fund that will invest in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that are seeking to expand but are underserved by existing capital markets. The aim of this fund is to enable job creation and sustainable increases in income. CGSGI and Fundación Pies Descalzos, founded by Shakira, have implemented a two-year, $4 million initiative that provides child nutrition, education, vocational training, and support for microenterprise development in Bogotá, Quibdó, and Barranquilla. Through highly acclaimed Pies Descalzos public schools, this project is expected to impact positively 4,000 vulnerable students and their families.
• CGSGI has launched projects to develop sustainable, market-driven businesses in some of the most under-resourced areas of Colombia. The first project, in Chocó, is scaling up a promising organic spice business run by 150 Afro-Colombian women. In conjunction with the National Hotel Association of Colombia, CGSGI is assisting low-income suppliers in Cartagena to develop the capacity and quality needed to service local hotels that traditionally have overlooked these suppliers in favor of more established suppliers from other parts of Colombia and beyond.
• CGSGI partnered with Fundación Angelitos de Luz, an NGO, to support the delivery of much-needed health services to 55,000 people living in rural areas who lack regular access to health care.