This book addresses the country’s developments, advances and challenges for the consolidation of mechanisms that contribute to regional development, in particular those related to territorial planning, as well as territorial functionalities.

The different chapters were constructed with input from consultancies with RIMISP, Fedesarrollo and other consultants, thanks to the cooperation delegated by the European Union to GIZ in Colombia, in the framework of the project Strengthening and consolidation of local and regional capacities for planning, land-use planning and peacebuilding – ForPaz.

During the first two decades of 21st century, Colombia’s economic activity was booming in comparison to other economies in the region.
This dynamism was accompanied by a notable improvement in social conditions, in particular a significant reduction in poverty levels, which fell by almost 22 percentage points, from 49% in 2002 to 27% in 2018, according to the definition of monetary poverty.

However, the health and economic crisis caused by the COVID 19 pandemic has put the socio-economic gains at risk, while generating additional pressure which has exacerbated existing gaps. From a territorial perspective, the pandemic has had heterogeneous impacts in the country’s different departments and municipalities, with a direct impact on the quality of life, business fabric and territorial finances. In this scenario, the rapid recovery of the country requires an approach that overcomes political-administrative divisions, promotes better investments, promotes the generation of own resources, facilitates collaborative work between territorial entities and seeks coordination between territorial planning instruments to take advantage of their potential and achieve greater efficiency in spending.

This territorial approach was included in the National Development Plan 2018-2022 ‘Pact for Colombia, Pact for Equity’, based on strategies that seek to strengthen horizontal multilevel governance and the development of territorial planning; issues that acquire greater relevance as responses to the territorial challenges imposed by the pandemic.

The National Planning Department is grateful for the contribution of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and has made this input available to the public for their use. Analysis and reflection at a time when the country is moving towards the review and development of its decentralisation model and faces challenges as a result of the pandemic. It is hoped that this input will feed into the planning exercises of the territorial entities and the discussions on how to guarantee a more efficient provision of goods and services.

This publication has been supported by the Peacebuilding Support Programme in Colombia ProPaz, in the framework of the ForPaz component, co-financed by the European Union and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and its Colombian counterparts, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). This document was produced within the framework of the contract ‘Elaboration of input and recommendations on decentralisation, territorial associativity and regional development supported by the ForPaz programme’, implemented by RIMISP.