- Implementation Support Agency (ISA): Inter-American Development Bank
- Total project financing: $317.59 million
- Funding from GCFF: $17.59 million
- GCFF Financing Approval Date: 09/30/2021
- Project Closing Date: 11/26/2024
- % Disbursed: 100%
- Status: Under implementation
About the project
On November 3rd, 2021, the Board of Executive Directors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) approved the financing to support Colombia’s reform program for the social and economic inclusion of the Venezuelan migrant population in Colombia (CO-L1272 (Loan) and CO-J0014 (GCFF Grant)), to be disbursed under: (1) Loan Agreement No. 5389/OC-CO, financed with resources from the Bank’s Ordinary Capital through Resolution DE-90/21 in the amount of $300 million; and (2) from the Non-Reimbursable Financing Agreement GRT/FF-18938-CO with resources from the Global Concessional Financing Facility” (“GCFF”) through Resolution DE-91/21, up to the amount of $17,589,000 million. The corresponding Loan Agreement and Non-Refundable Financing Agreement was signed by the authorities of the Government of Colombia (GoC) and the Bank on November 26th, 2021. The present operation has been designed as a Loan in Support of Policy Reforms, under the programmatic modality in accordance with the provisions set forth in document.
Objectives of the Program
The general objective of the Program is to contribute to the effective socioeconomic integration of Venezuelan migrants. The specific objectives will:
1. increase regularization and information management of the Venezuelan migrant population;
2. expand access of Venezuelan migrants to social services and protection against human trafficking; and
3. promote the recognition of labor competencies of the Venezuelan migrant population.
Project Implementation Status
(As of December 31, 2022)
- The present operation constitutes the first of a series of two technically linked but contractually independent operations and is intended to finance the following components: (1) institutional strengthening for the effective management of migration towards inclusion processes; (2) institutional articulation for access to social services and protection against human trafficking; and (3) promoting the economic integration of the migrant population through the recognition of competencies.
- The IADB Migration Unit with the GOC achieved the following progress with the public policy conditions that correspond to the operation components that contribute to the general and specific objectives as of Q3 2022: 1. Institutional strengthening to facilitate the effective management of migration towards inclusion processes: Improvement in the registration and characterization of Venezuelan migrants, who are documented and undocumented in Colombia, through the Temporary Statute for the Protection of Venezuelan Migrants (ETPMV). As of Q3 2022, the GoC had delivered 1.5 million of special protection permits (PPT) and more than 2.3 million of Venezuelans registered in the demographic and socioeconomic characterization database of Migracion Colombia in the same period, exceeding the IADB initial established goal (1.5 million of migrants).
- Improvement in the development of tools to design migration public policy-based evidence through the support of the National Planning Department (DNP) in the design and development of the Multidimensional Index of Socioeconomic Integration of the Venezuelan migrant population in Colombia. DNP has adopted the index methodology as a tool of the Migration Observatory (OMV for the Spanish acronym). The first measurement was calculated using 2020 data from 23 departments under analysis (plus Bogotá D.C.). The average value obtained was 5.6 points out of 10, which allows to infer that Venezuelans had an “acceptable” degree of integration (between 5 and 6 points in the scale). For the second measurement, 2021 data was added and for the 23 departments under analysis (plus Bogotá D.C.) the IMI was 5.5 points, 0.1 percentage point less than in 2020.
- Strengthening the Information System of migration statistics through the National Statistics Department (DANE). As a result, the national government has a geographical viewer software of the Venezuelan migrants with indicators for their social and economic characterization financed by the IADB Migration Unit. Institutional coordination for access to social services and protection against human trafficking.
- There was an increase in the number of Venezuelan migrants affiliated to the General Social Security Health System (SGSSS). The Ministry of Health reported that 924.391 migrants had affiliated as of August 2022, compared to 448.894 migrants in 2021, an increase of 105,9%. These results far exceeded the initial goal of 425.000 affiliated migrants to the Healthcare system.
- There was a higher number of Venezuelan migrant students at all educational levels who have been enrolled in the Colombian educational system. The Ministry of National Education has reported that 586.529 migrants were enrolled as of October 2022, which represented an increase of 222.006, 61%. These results exceeded the initial target of 475.000 migrants enrolled in the Colombian educational system.
- There has been an increase of 2.5% of the average budget for 2022 allocated to the implementation of public policies for the prevention, assistance, and fight against human trafficking at the national level
- Venezuelan migrants with recognized labor competencies. The National Learning Service (SENA) has certified 1,840 migrants labor competencies in 2022 primarily through the “Saber Hacer Vale” Program. The target is to certify at least 5,400 migrants.
- SENA recognized the labor competencies of 811 Venezuelan migrant women in 2022, exceeding the initial target of 1,971 migrant women certified. SENA certified 2.108 female migrants labor competencies, bringing a total of 2,919 of Venezuelan migrant women certified.
- There has been a steady increase of Venezuelan migrants who have validated their professional degrees. According to the Ministry of National Education, 2,638 migrant degrees were validated as of June 2022, which represents an increase of 24.5% but still a gap of 4,513 beneficiaries to reach the 7,151 targets.