Colombia’s president travels to Brazil with agenda focused on economic reactivation

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Colombian president will be in Brazil until Tuesday and will also address other issues such as the production of anti-coronavirus vaccines, protection of the Amazon, fighting the effects of climate change, attention to migrants, defense of democracy in the region and security.

MEETING WITH BOLSONARO

Duque will begin his visit in São Paulo for the business part in his agenda, and on Tuesday he will meet with President Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia at the Planalto Palace.

The two presidents will review the status of bilateral relations and sign 7 cooperation instruments that seek to reactivate the economies of the 2 nations affected by the pandemic.

The bilateral agreements and instruments concern police cooperation, export and investment promotion, water and basic sanitation, technical training, agriculture, research, and air services.

Among them is the agreement between the Colombian National Police and the Brazilian Federal Police to fight drug trafficking, psychotropic substances, and related crimes.

On Tuesday, Duque will also meet with the presidents of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco, and the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira, to whom he will explain the implementation of the Colombia peace agreement, among other matters of his policy.

He will also meet with the secretary-general of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (OTCA) María Alexandra Moreira.

BUSINESS IN SÃO PAULO

In São Paulo, Duque will meet with executives in the areas of innovation and technology, food, logistics, banking, health, and airline companies interested in opening more direct routes to Colombian destinations.

With these contacts, he hopes to expand the markets for Colombian products, facilitate Brazilian investments in Colombia, promote tourism, and provide more space for joint projects in science, technology and innovation.

In addition, he also seeks to finalize cooperation agreements in the production of vaccines, strengthen the production of biofuels, green hydrogen and renewable energies, and support the construction of a center for advanced manufacturing 4.0, within the framework of the 4th industrial revolution.

VENEZUELAN MIGRATION

Colombia also has attention to Venezuelan migrants as a strategic issue related to the defense of democracy in the region and border security, as both countries have a frontier with Venezuela.