[{"bbox": [85, 151, 1145, 202], "category": "Text", "text": "discrimination, which will allow progress towards a fairer society, with better living conditions and economic security for all\"."}, {"bbox": [85, 217, 1145, 350], "category": "Text", "text": "Although migration flows from Venezuela may be decreasing compared to previous years and the economic situation in the neighbouring country shows modest signs of improvement, the reality is that Venezuelan migrants continue to enter the country. They already represent around 6% of the population in Colombia and most of them are young people willing to stay and build a new life. After their regularisation, a priority and a major challenge for the new government is their socio-economic integration."}, {"bbox": [85, 362, 1145, 496], "category": "Text", "text": "The Action will address these challenges in support of public policy in the document from the National Council on Economic and Social Policy CONPES number 4100 \"Strategy for the Integration of the Venezuelan Migrant Population as a Factor of Development for the Country\"³. This policy aims to promote an institutional response to the social, economic, and cultural integration needs of the Venezuelan migrant population in order to materialise the contribution to the development and prosperity of the country."}, {"bbox": [85, 507, 1145, 641], "category": "Text", "text": "The programme will focus on promoting income-generating opportunities for migrants and host communities through entrepreneurship and employment. This will be done by promoting sector policies coordination (trade, social inclusion and labour) at the national level and by partnering with local authorities, private sector, civil society and communities, to create green and decent employment and economic opportunities for men, women and marginalised groups such as people with disabilities and LGTBIQ+ population."}, {"bbox": [85, 652, 1145, 786], "category": "Text", "text": "The programme is linked to Priority Area 1 – Peace and Specific Objective 2: Addressing inequalities as root causes of violence and poverty of the MIP (2021-2024). This Action is in line with the EU’s priorities and the Colombian government’s commitments towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 10 on reduced inequality, and SDG 1 on poverty and SDG 5 on gender equality. Colombia is committed to reducing multidimensional poverty to 8.4% and inequality, expressed in GINI, to 0.480 points by 2030."}, {"bbox": [85, 797, 1145, 905], "category": "Text", "text": "The Action builds upon EU Budget Support programme \"Green Economy\" (a top-up to this action is foreseen with the budget support component) and an important number of regional projects in the Latin American region (LAC) and Team Europe initiatives underway supporting the attention and integration of migrants with a community-based approach."}, {"bbox": [85, 916, 1145, 1046], "category": "Text", "text": "The Action will also support Colombia's commitments to gender equality, as outlined in the CONPES 4080 on gender equity. It will notably contribute to the realisation of the EU Gender Action Plan 2021-2025 GAP III, in particular to its thematic areas of engagement \"Promoting economic and social rights and empowering girls and women\", and \"Addressing the challenges of harnessing the opportunities offered by green transition and digital transformation\"."}, {"bbox": [85, 1063, 300, 1091], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 2 RATIONALE"}, {"bbox": [85, 1108, 228, 1134], "category": "Section-header", "text": "### 2.1 Context"}, {"bbox": [85, 1149, 1145, 1362], "category": "Text", "text": "Colombia is a stable and likeminded democracy. As an upper middle-income country, it has a solid macroeconomic framework. It signed a trade agreement with the EU in 2013 and recently entered the OECD. The country has made great efforts to increase inclusion of vulnerable and marginalised people, create a better business environment and implement development oriented public policies and structural reforms; important challenges remain: very deep social inequalities; weak State presence in many rural areas; weak land governance; and corruption. In addition, the estimated 2.5 million Venezuelan migrants currently living in Colombia and their host communities need support to avoid xenophobia and excessive pressure on basic services, land and natural resources and to realise their full potential to contribute to the country's inclusive growth."}, {"bbox": [85, 1373, 1145, 1481], "category": "Text", "text": "EU relations with Colombia are close; they have recently gained a higher profile thanks to the signature of the *Memorandum of Understanding on an Agenda of enhanced political and sectoral dialogue and cooperation for the next decade* in September 2021 and the *Joint Declaration for a Dialogue on Environment, Climate Action and Sustainable Development*, signed in February 2022."}, {"bbox": [85, 1492, 1145, 1572], "category": "Text", "text": "Despite the difficulties that President Duque's government had to face in the area of public health (due to the Covid 19 crisis), the ensuing economic recession and social discontent, perhaps its main legacy will be to leave behind the ten-year Temporary Protection Status granted to Venezuelans, which has set a global example of solidarity."}, {"bbox": [85, 1620, 977, 1646], "category": "Footnote", "text": "³ CONPES 4100, July 2022 https://colaboracion.dnp.gov.co/CDT/Conpes/Econ%C3%B3micos/4100.pdf"}, {"bbox": [1038, 1681, 1145, 1706], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 4 of 32"}]