COLOMBIA
Analysts
Juan Carlos Echeverry
Former President of Ecopetrol, Finance Minister
Andrés Escobar Arango
Former Deputy Finance Minister
Mauricio Santa Maria
Former President of ANIF, Planning MinisterDatabanks
Recent Country Insights
Decertification is deserved – yet unlikely to do much damage
COLOMBIA · Report · 30 Sep 2025 · 3 responses
U.S. President Donald Trump has identified Colombia as a major drug transit or primary illicit drug-producing country, along with the usual suspects, among them Afghanistan, Bolivia, China and Mexico. It’s not surprising that President Gustavo Petro’s policies and military strategy have led Colom...
Which way will the Constitutional Court go?
COLOMBIA · Report · 28 Aug 2025
This is a pivotal moment for the composition of Colombia’s Constitutional Court. Justice José Fernando Reyes, aligned with the “defense of institutions” bloc, will soon resign, leaving a critical vacancy. To fill it, the Supreme Court has nominated Patricia Balanta, Carlos Camargo and Jaime Humbe...
Obstinate Petro risks blowing up public finances
COLOMBIA · Report · 01 Aug 2025 · 1 response
The criminal trial of Álvaro Uribe—the most influential political figure in Colombia in the 21st century—has culminated in a ruling that could redefine the country’s relationship between law and power. After years of legal entanglements rooted in a 2012 complaint initiated by Uribe himself, Judge...
Downgrades and deficits will be Petro’s legacy
COLOMBIA · Report · 03 Jul 2025
Rumors began spreading last month that the government wanted to suspend the fiscal rule, not due to a true macroeconomic emergency, but because of a soaring deficit driven by the government’s expansive fiscal ambitions and flagging revenue performance. The only way out for an administration that...
Webinar replay - Colombia in turmoil
COLOMBIA · Report · 13 Jun 2025
What is driving the current wave of violence in Colombia? What are the likely consequences for governability, reforms and an eventual consultation on labor reform? What are the implications for the presidential race? How will the central bank act in its June meeting? Visit our calendar page to...
Terror, uncertainty, paranoia
COLOMBIA · In Brief · 09 Jun 2025 · 2 responses
It is challenging to interpret the events unfolding in Colombia. There are many antecedents from a distant past that Colombians thought were behind us. Back in the early nineties, many presidential candidates were assassinated in Colombia by the dark forces of narco-trafficking and paramilitarism...
Webinar Replay - Latin America: Fiscal Pressures and Political Shifts
COLOMBIA · Report · 06 Jun 2025
How are the key Latin American countries of Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Colombia navigating their economic challenges amidst political changes? How will Mexico's growth outlook fare in the face of Trump’s trade policy uncertainties and the trend of economic slowdowns during the first year of...
A generation of progress vanishing into thin air
COLOMBIA · Report · 03 Jun 2025
Congress is again analyzing President Gustavo Petro’s labor reform proposal, and the result seems very problematic: it could be even worse than the original proposal. On May 27th, the fourth committee of the Senate approved a version of labor reform, which now moves to the floor of the upper hous...
The IMF says “hmmmm”
COLOMBIA · Report · 01 May 2025 · 1 response
The purpose of the IMF’s flexible line of credit is to help countries with generally sound fundamentals meet balance of payments needs, and boost market confidence during periods of heightened market risk. That is, it was created as a “spare tire” or a bumper to help eligible countries navigate t...