Mayor of Bogotá, Claudia López sat down with Richard Martínez, the vice-president-elect on behalf of the countries that make up the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Mayor López welcomed the VP to his new position and brought him up to speed on the various projects that the IDB has underway. By now, Vice-president Martinez has been made aware of the issues that the mayor and the president of the IDB, Mauricio Claver-Carone addressed during their visit to Washington D.C. last October.
“We are grateful for the invaluable support given to us by the IDB in the best interests of Bogotá,” stated Mayor López at the opening stages of the meeting,“The advantage of working with you, is that you get involved in the financing of projects, not only that, you can advance political change."
To which Vice president Martinez responded, “I want to thank you for this welcome, we were closely following COP26 and the voice of the South American cities played a very important role. We are very satisfied with the relationship that the IDB has enjoyed with Bogotá and we look forward to the many projects we plan to move forward together.”
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One of the topics under discussion was progress being made on the city’s transport system, the first Metro line. Specifically, the request for resources for the completion of the 2.8 km, that connects Calle 72 to Calle 100. The mayor was pleased to state that, “It is my commitment to the city to set down the foundation for the Metro’s second line and the extension to Calle 100.”
Likewise, several avenues of co-operation were explored, among them, projects related to the Climate Action Plan (PAC). This covered several topics to review, especially those related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emission (GHG), sustainable construction and eco-friendly waste management/disposal solutions.
Mayor Claudia López reminded her public that, “The reason we were invited to COP26 is because we have tabled Latin America’s the most ambitious plan to reduce emissions of particle pollution. On top of that, we also need to move towards a more sustainable scheme, one that provides incentives for the separation of waste at the source and the transformation of waste into clean energy.”
At this meeting, lines of work were further analyzed to provide a clearer perspective to the issue of the migrant population. Solutions need to be raised that facilitate the registration process in the Temporary Statute of Protection and social and economic inclusion.
Some attention needs to be paid to the individual care that people need in order to facilitate their access to the labour market. Any and all opportunities must be explored that further the aims of the District Care System, a project in which the IDB has provided financing and technical assistance: a project that seeks to benefit every possible person within its reach.
By the end of the meeting, Vice-President Richard Martínez brought the night to a close as he ratified the IDB's support for the capital of Colombia. “The IDB is committed to recovering from COVID and reducing socio-economic gaps. We are here to address the concerns of Bogotá and to learn how we can continue to lend support.”
This meeting was also attended by the District Secretary for Women, Diana Rodríguez; the Secretary of Social Integration, Xinia Navarro; the District Director of International Relations, Luz Amparo Medina; and on behalf of the IDB, the representative of the IDB in Colombia, Ignacio Corlazzoli; the head of the Migration Division, Felipe Muñoz; and the Transportation Division’s specialist, Paula Cruz.
