Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in Colombia

The report analyzes the bioeconomy landscape in Colombia, identifying a predominant 'bio-resources' vision that balances economic growth with environmental sustainability. Through a multi-stakeholder workshop, it explores sectoral visions for agriculture, biochemistry, bio-pharmaceuticals, and bioenergy, emphasizing the need for territorial development and the use of residual biomass. The document highlights critical sustainability gaps, including the risk of biodiversity loss if species are valued only for commercial advantage, the lack of formal land property rights for 60% of rural properties, and poor road infrastructure, with 75% of tertiary roads in poor condition. It concludes that a holistic, decentralized governance approach is necessary to align the bioeconomy with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

• The predominant vision for the bioeconomy in Colombia is the 'bio-resources' vision, which seeks to combine economic growth with environmental sustainability, although different sectors integrate elements of bio-technology and bio-ecology visions.
• Colombia's official definition of the bioeconomy focuses on the efficient and sustainable management of biomass and biodiversity to create value-added products and services through innovation.
• The bioenergy sector aims for biomass to contribute at least 30% of the energy matrix, primarily by utilizing residual biomass to produce heat, electricity, and fertilizers.
• There is a significant risk that focusing on the commercial competitiveness of biodiversity may lead to the overexploitation of high-value species or the loss of less-commercial varieties.
• Rural development in the bioeconomy is severely hindered by land tenure issues, with 60% of rural properties lacking formal property rights, and poor infrastructure, where 75% of tertiary roads are in poor condition.
• The International Mission of Experts 2019 recommended that the bioeconomy should generate 100,000 new jobs and represent 10% of Colombia's GDP by 2030.

APA

Canales, N., & González, J. G. (2020). Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in Colombia. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/sei-pr-bioeconomy-colombia-apr-2020-canales-.pdf

Chicago

Canales, Nella, and Juanita Gómez González. Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in Colombia. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2020. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/sei-pr-bioeconomy-colombia-apr-2020-canales-.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Canales |first1=Nella |last2=González |first2=Juanita Gómez |title=Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in Colombia |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=March 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/sei-pr-bioeconomy-colombia-apr-2020-canales-.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canales2020policy, author = {Canales, Nella and González, Juanita Gómez}, title = {{Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in Colombia}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = mar, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/sei-pr-bioeconomy-colombia-apr-2020-canales-.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }