Forced investments in Colombia: in which sectors could the Government influence?

During the installation of the new Congress, the President Gustavo Petro He reiterated his government’s intention to draw up an economic recovery plan, focused on increasing the debt limit to better manage commitments, alleviating the tax burden on companies and providing incentives to the tourism sector and renewable energy.

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He also indicated that he will present to Congress an initiative to authorize “a forced investment in the Colombian private financial system for loans to small, medium and large industries, agriculture and also tourism”.

But what does this proposal consist of, to which voices like that of Jorge Restrepo, director of the Center for Conflict Analysis Resources (Cerac)have described as “inconvenient and probably unconstitutional”.

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“The financial repression announced by the president, which was fashionable in the 60s and 70s, makes credit more expensive and, as it directs the risk to sectors, companies and people without considering their ability to pay, it directly affects the use that the financial system makes of the public’s savings,” The expert added that the credit authority is held by the Bank of the Republic by constitutional designation.

What does Petro propose?

However, according to the president, the idea is that part of the investment capital will be directed “towards the popular world, to work on the transformation of things, industry, in the furrow, agriculture and in tourism.”

The intention to generate forced investment to clear objectives such as housing construction, renewable energy and digital integration, and infrastructure in health and education Its mission is to stimulate resources in these areas, including that companies are obliged to allocate a portion of their financial resources to investments in projects designated by the Government.

(Also: Petro accepted the resignation of the director of National Intelligence, implicated in the UNGRD case).

According to the Financial Superintendent, Cesar Ferrarithis proposal is not new in banks, “For 30 years they have been making forced investments, there are entities that do not know and do not have the experience to carry out financial development in agriculture, therefore they give some quotas and end up financing the Agrarian Bank, which does know how to do that financing,” he explained.

The proposal will seek to promote SMEs that are mainly driven by microcredits, which, according to the latest report from the financial system, has a gross portfolio of 18.7 billion pesos and a non-performing portfolio of 1.8 million pesos..

With information from Economy and Business EL TIEMPO