Pacific Coast Economies Extraction and Its Effects on Colombia
In a significant development, the Capital Airports Holdings Company (CAH), a fully owned subsidiary of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), has announced plans to invest nearly $2 million to modernize and expand the airport of Quibdó, the capital city of the Chocó department in Colombia.
The agreement includes a concession for the operation of the airport, with a duration of 15 to 20 years. This move aims to connect Quibdó to global markets through international flights, potentially boosting the local economy and offering new opportunities for the region.
Quibdó, a city with limited access to basic amenities such as water pipes, sewage systems, and healthcare services, also has one of the highest poverty indices in the country and a history of corruption. Decentralized measures aimed to promote a more active social policy and political participation in Quibdó have led to local institutions and actors gaining responsibilities without receiving power.
The expansion will increase the cargo capacity of Quibdó, ensuring China has a monopoly on all the exports of the agricultural, forestry, and mining sectors of the region. Over the past decade, extractive industries such as gold mining have been developing and expanding their operations in Chocó, with massive environmental and social impacts.
The next government, in partnership with local communities, should closely monitor Chinese investments in Chocó. Foreign investments should mutually benefit the investor and the local community, promoting technological transfer and local capacity building.
The attention of the Chinese economy has been turned towards the market for high-tech products like smartphones. However, in many cases, the production of commodities in Chocó is controlled by illegal armed groups that also control cocaine production and drug trafficking in the region.
The Pacific Alliance, formed by Colombia, Chile, Mexico, and Peru, seeks to form a regional commercial bloc and build stronger economic ties with the Asia-Pacific region. The granting of licenses for the development of mining activities in the territory of indigenous and Afro-descendant communities without previously consulting them is a violation of their territorial rights.
According to a recent report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the profits from illegal mining in Chocó are laundered locally in sectors such as real estate. Between 2010 and 2014, the construction sector recorded the highest economic growth rate (13%) in Quibdó, followed by the real estate and financial services sectors (8.2%). Many affected areas by mining in Chocó are within territories inhabited by these communities, such as the Consejo Comunitario Mayor de la Asociación Campesina Integral de Atrato (Acia).
The responsibility for monitoring Chinese investments in Chocó and ensuring they are conducted in a reasonably responsible and sustainable manner typically lies with the local and national government authorities of Colombia, including investment regulatory bodies and environmental agencies. By 2014, gold mining activities had destroyed 36,185 hectares of tropical forest in Chocó, according to El Tiempo, a national Colombian newspaper.
The decrease in metal imports by China since 2012 does not include precious metals such as gold. The concession of the airport to CAH promotes 'neoliberal' economic development in Quibdó, a city that has been grappling with societal challenges for years. It remains to be seen how this investment will impact the local community and the environment in the long run.
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