21 August 2019, Bogota, Colombia

The Connecting Business initiative (CBi) and UNDP in Colombia conducted a meeting  in Bogota to discuss the role of the private sector in supporting Venezuelan migrants in Colombia. More than 40 representatives from various sectors, including government, CSOs, academia, UN, media and the private sector participated.

As a result of the economic crisis, 4 mllion Venezuelans have left their homes   Most of them  are settling in neighboring countries.  Colombia hosts an estimated 1.7 million people. In addition, more than 400,000 Colombians have returned from Venezuela.

The country’s capacity to welcome an unprecedented number of people is stretched, calling for effective mechanisms for collaboration and coordination that can strengthen the support for both the migrant population as well as host communities.

The session, funded by the DG-ECHO, explored how collective private sector action through platforms like CBi could improve the scale and effectiveness of efforts. While the Government holds the main responsibility, with IOM and UNHCR as the lead agencies from the UN side, the private sector can play an important role. Participants highlighted that to minimize social tensions and follow the ‘Do No Harm’ principle, it is equally important to support Venezuelan migrants, internally displaced Colombians (IDPs) and ex-combatants.