2014 Medellin Blog: Welcoming Remarks
Deputy Mayor Luis Felipe Hoyos explained Medellin's transformation into an innovation center.
Speakers:
- Ragnhild Melzi, Senior Director, Public Policy Programs and Corporate Relations, Americas Society/Council of the Americas
- Victor Traverso, Director and Representative, CAF, Colombia
- Luis Felipe Hoyos, Medellin Deputy Mayor of Economic Development, Internationalizations, IT, and Public-Private Partnerships
Opening the conference, AS/COA's Ragnhild Melzi spoke about the importance of small- and medium-sized businesses, noting that these firms are responsible for 80 percent of jobs created in Colombia. She said the country needs to take more risks when it comes to investing in entrepreneurship, which is key to Medellin's transformation.
Medellin Deputy Mayor Luis Felipe Hoyos gave an overview of the city's evolution. In 1991, Medellin’s homicide rate was 380 per 100,000. Now, it stands at 38, meaning U.S. cities Detroit and New Orleans have higher homicide rates. Economic growth, a drop in unemployment, and a reduction in inequality helped transform Medellin in the last two decades, he explained. The key has been good governance and continuity across administrations, he said.
Public works have served as a transformative force in the city, Hoyos explained. Investments in infrastructure connected the poorest to the rest of the city, and libraries and parks in slums have changed the face of Medellin. This process is ongoing; the government plans to open 10 music halls in the city's impoverished neighborhoods, and where a prison now stands, a university will be built. A museum was created to pay homage to the victims of the city's past violence, and Medellin is creating a science and technology district.
Watch a video of the remarks (en español):