Colombia

Development assistance

Colombia was the fifth-largest net recipient of French ODA in 2016 and the leading recipient in the Americas.

Since the end of 2009, Agence Française de Développement (AFD, French Development Agency) activities in Colombia have been conducted under a remit for emerging countries, supporting “green and inclusive growth”. The AFD’s Bogota office has developed an intervention strategy for the period 2014-2018 setting out three objectives: (i) fostering convergence and sustainable regional development, (ii) promoting climate change mitigation and adaptation policies, and (iii) supporting social cohesion policies, including reduction of inequalities. The strategy also specifies two cross-cutting goals: contributing to economic diplomacy and French climate commitments. The AFD loans included initial financing of $300 million, signed at the end of June 2015 during the French Prime Minister’s visit to Colombia. The cumulative total of AFD loans for Colombia since 2009 stands at $2 billion of commitments, of which $811 million for operations contributing directly to the post-conflict period. These loans primarily concern rural development and land governance and registry.

France’s assistance through its contribution to the EU Trust Fund for Colombia (inaugurated in December 2016) of €95 billion is supplemented by a direct bilateral contribution of €3 million.

Cultural, scientific and technical cooperation

France-Colombia Year 2017 was a key event in the bilateral partnership, especially as it was the first such event organized with a Spanish-speaking country and the second with a Latin American country, after Brazil.

Colombia has long-standing, vibrant relations with France, particularly as regards research and student mobility. France is the third-largest destination for Colombian students after the United States and Spain, with nearly 4,000 students enrolled in higher education institutions in 2015-2016. Colombia has the second-largest contingent of Latin American students in France, behind Brazil. Many inter-university agreements, and the agreement on mutual recognition of diplomas and study periods signed in 2011, encourage student mobility and ties in the area of scientific research. With more than 24,000 students in 2015 and a network of 12 branches, the Alliance Française branch in Colombia is a world leader in teaching French. In the cultural field, Colombia films are often screened in French film festivals dedicated to Latin America, held in Biarritz, Nantes and Amiens.

At institutional level, France provides significant technical cooperation in combating drug trafficking, particularly through the Ministry of the Interior and the Interministerial Drug Control Training Centre (CIFAD).

In the context of the peace process, France, which has been providing financial support since the end of 2012 for the organizations involved in resolving the conflict, including the Colombian National Centre for Historical Memory, the Colombian Education and Agriculture Ministries, the Peace Process Support Mission (Misión de Apoyo al Proceso de Paz – MAPP/OEA) and the UNHCR, actively encourages the implementation of the Victims and Land Restitution Law. New projects have been launched since 2015 with our Colombian partners in the fields of land governance (land occupancy), agricultural training and transitional justice.

The Franco-German “Antonio Nariño Human Rights Prize", which was created in 2010, is awarded each year to activists and NGOs active in the defence of human rights.

The French Global Environment Facility (FFEM) is developing cooperation in ecotourism, crafts and carbon credit implementation.