30 entrepreneurs from Argentina and 20 from Medellín participated in a business roundtable and a forum to reach trade and investment agreements between the two territories.
The agenda included the announcement of the creation of the Argentine Digital Hub in Colombia, which aims to promote the internationalization of the exportable supply of Argentine technology from Colombia to other countries in the region. In addition, as part of the agenda with businessmen, the opening of the Consulate General of Argentina in Medellin was highlighted.
The companies came from the provinces of Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Mendoza, Santa Fe and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
This positioning action seeks to promote high value-added innovation projects of Argentine companies in the software sector specialized in government, finance, education, health, cybersecurity, e-commerce and biotechnology, among others, and to generate greater business opportunities for Argentine companies through strategic alliances with their Colombian counterparts.
For the executive director of ICA Medellin, Juan Camilo Mergesh, “this important agenda with businessmen and members of the Argentine public sector becomes a very important step in the economic, cultural and diplomatic relationship of our District with this important country in the region, added to other important milestones announced this year, such as the opening of the Argentine Consulate General in our city, the participation as guest country in the Tango Festival and the Book Festival 2023, and the memorandum signed in 2022 with Buenos Aires”.
The agenda included a program of business meetings, work seminars and visits to companies and institutions of reference, such as Ruta N and Globant. More than 200 meetings were organized with 38 companies in Medellin, over 2 days, in order to promote exports of Argentine companies linked to the Knowledge Economy sectors.
The Ambassador of Argentina in Colombia, Gustavo Dzugala, said: “we accompanied 30 software technology companies and different areas of knowledge, in order to make contact with local companies to undertake joint projects. They come to seek partnerships and set up in Medellín, which is known as a technology hub and has many tools that would be very useful for them to develop their activities here”.
Previously, the Foreign Ministry’s trade intelligence teams detected opportunities for Argentina’s export offer, especially in specialized software in the government, finance, education, health, cybersecurity, e-commerce and biotechnology sectors, among others.
The general manager of the company Encode, from Argentina, Pablo Bonada, said that “the purpose of the trip to Medellin is to learn about all the business opportunities that can be generated by exchanges with the public and private sector of this city. In my company, we are dedicated to software development and we are digital signature certifiers; we are the first private certifiers in the country and we also want to transmit this experience in Medellín”.
The Colombian market represents for Argentine companies an attractive opportunity to generate international business given the advanced development of digital processes in the local economy and its strategic location for the provision of services to different markets.
During the trade mission, working groups on internationalization and exploration of opportunities in Bogota and Medellin were formed, and visits were made to the offices of two Argentine companies based in Colombia -Mercado Libre and Globant- which shared with the delegation their experience in the local Colombian market and its entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Between 2008 and 2022, foreign investment from Argentina has been 100 million dollars for the arrival of companies such as Globant, MercadoLibre, Ternium, Acamica and Tecso, among others, which saw in the city a territory with qualified human talent, competitive costs and a culture conducive to business expansion.
In 2023, the 200th anniversary of the Argentina-Colombia relationship will be celebrated, which is why it will be the guest country at the Tango Festival and the Book Festival, to be held in the second half of the year.
In cooperation, Medellín has had a total amount of US$400,000 between 2008 and so far in 2023, in actions related to governance and peace building, educational and cultural transformation, and economic development, among others. Most of these cooperation partnerships were with the city of Buenos Aires and Santa Fe, with exchanges of best practices under the South-South cooperation modality.
It is expected that with the announcement of the opening of the Consulate General, added to the participation of Argentina as a guest country at the Tango Festival and the Book Festival 2023, and the memorandum signed in 2022 with Buenos Aires, the cultural, commercial and tourism relationship with one of the most important countries in the continent will be further strengthened.