After Dane published the data on multidimensional poverty in Colombia, which fell from 16% in 2021 to 12.9% in 2022, the President of the Colombian American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham Colombia), María Claudia Lacouture, said that informal work now the major challenge to overcome poverty in the country.
“It is striking that the index in the informal sector, although falling slightly compared to 2019, remains at a high level at 72.7%; however, in the municipal capitals it was at 67.7% and in the countryside at 90.9%, which requires a warning that we must take into account if we want to continue the downward trend,” said Lacouture.
In this sense, the leader explained that the presentation of the labor reform project as it stands today would have a greater and direct impact on an increase in informality, as labor costs would rise significantly and employers would face serious difficulties in creating employment opportunities in the the same dimensions that are happening today.
“This would lead the population to opt for rumbling or informal work, which would translate into a higher likelihood of falling into poverty, a social divide that has been a historic challenge for the country,” said the president of AmCham Colombia .
He recalled that according to Fedesarrollo, 72% of those in formal employment overcome poverty.
“The call is to push labor reform to encourage more formal work, creating conditions for both companies and workers toward formality. It is also necessary to strengthen basic education, as the insecurity or absence of it is the second index influencing poverty and, in the long run, lower economic and social growth,” stressed Lacouture.
Source: El heraldo

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