Bioeconomía subnacional: Visiones y hoja de ruta en el Valle del Cauca, Colombia

This research paper by the Stockholm Environment Institute describes a participatory process to define a subnational bioeconomy vision and roadmap for the Valle del Cauca department in Colombia. Through workshops with stakeholders from the agricultural, agro-industrial, and nature tourism sectors, the document identifies a convergence toward a 'bioresources' and 'bioecology' paradigm that balances economic growth with environmental sustainability and social inclusion.

• The Valle del Cauca department possesses significant bioeconomy potential due to its 35 ecosystems, including mangroves, páramos, and forest reserves, and is the third-ranked department in Colombia for research groups in health, agro, environment, and biodiversity.
• Historically, bioeconomy progress in Valle del Cauca has been dominated by the sugar cane industry, which provides 87.7% of national sugar cane production and contributes 72% of the national production of sugar cane ethanol.
• The agricultural sector's 2050 vision focuses on 'bioresources', aiming for climate-smart multifunctional systems (such as silvopasture and agroforestry) and the development of high-nutrition food products, biofertilizers, and biocontrols to reduce agrochemical use.
• The agro-industrial sector's 2050 vision emphasizes the creation of 'social rural biorefineries' to produce high-value items like bioplastics and lactic acid from resources such as 'papa china' (Colocasia esculenta), with a goal of establishing at least 15 such refineries in the department.
• The nature tourism sector's 2050 vision blends 'bioresources' and 'bioecology' archetypes, targeting 8% annual economic growth and the creation of 8 tourist centers focused on wildlife (e.g., dolphins, whales, birds) to promote conservation.
• A critical barrier to subnational bioeconomy implementation in Valle del Cauca is inadequate infrastructure; only 42.3% of tertiary roads connecting rural areas are paved, and many are in poor condition.
• The proposed governance model for the region suggests a 'quadruple helix' innovation framework involving the State, industry, academia, and civil society, with the Chamber of Commerce of Cali (CCC) as a potential coordinator.
• The document identifies Buenaventura as a strategic priority for a 'blue bioeconomy' and a potential bio-industrial pole, leveraging marine resources that have been previously overlooked in departmental competitiveness agendas.
• Environmental and social challenges persist in the region, including the overutilization of 30% (622,000 hectares) of the soil by agriculture and livestock, and a multidimensional poverty rate of 19.4% in dispersed rural areas.

APA

Canales, N., Trujillo, M., & Purkey, D. (2021). Bioeconomía subnacional: Visiones y hoja de ruta en el Valle del Cauca, Colombia. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/canales-ortiz-working-paper-bioeconomia-regional-valle-del-cauca-21062021.pdf

Chicago

Canales, Nella, Mónica Trujillo, and David Purkey. Bioeconomía subnacional: Visiones y hoja de ruta en el Valle del Cauca, Colombia. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2021. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/canales-ortiz-working-paper-bioeconomia-regional-valle-del-cauca-21062021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Canales |first1=Nella |last2=Trujillo |first2=Mónica |last3=Purkey |first3=David |title=Bioeconomía subnacional: Visiones y hoja de ruta en el Valle del Cauca, Colombia |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=June 2021 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/canales-ortiz-working-paper-bioeconomia-regional-valle-del-cauca-21062021.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canales2021bioeconoma, author = {Canales, Nella and Trujillo, Mónica and Purkey, David}, title = {{Bioeconomía subnacional: Visiones y hoja de ruta en el Valle del Cauca, Colombia}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/canales-ortiz-working-paper-bioeconomia-regional-valle-del-cauca-21062021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }