The pandemic generated one of the largest economic downturns in the history of the country and the city. According to the Bogota Chamber of Commerce, in 2020, 55,012 companies ceased to operate in Bogota and in the 59 municipalities where the CCB operates, that is, 11% less compared to 2019. Although in 2021, 5% of active companies recovered compared to 2020, there is still a backlog of 6% of companies to recover to achieve pre-pandemic levels.

In terms of production, the country lost 62.1 trillion pesos in 2020 compared to 2019, which represented a 7% drop. In 2021, there was an effective recovery of 2.8% of production compared to 2019. For the case of Bogota, the dynamics are similar, as the pandemic destroyed 6.4% of production, but by 2021 there is already a recovery of 3.2% compared to 2019.

There are economic activities that have shown a sustained recovery in the city. For example, the sector of artistic, entertainment and recreational activities (one of the most affected by the confinements) grew 30.9% in 2021 over 2020 and also had an expansion of 18.5% compared to 2019; this after having fallen 9.5% in 2020. In the same direction go the industry and commerce sectors, which in 2020 fell 13.7% and 13.5% and for 2021 presented growth of 3.6% and 1.1% respectively, if compared to 2019. This shows that those sectors most affected by the pandemic have already recovered.

On the contrary, the mining and quarrying sector, a major contributor to the national GDP, grew the least in 2021 compared to 2020, with a variation of 0.4%. Likewise, its production level is still down, with 15.2% less than in 2019. This shows that the sector has some major challenges for the recovery of the income level.

The balance in the red also persists in the construction sector, which fell by 22.6% in 2021 compared to 2019 for the country. In fact, in 2020 it showed decreases of up to 40.3% for the country and 51.9% for Bogota in the second quarter of this year. This last figure is also due to the fact that the civil works sector, since the pandemic began, has not shown a single quarter of growth with sustained drops above 30% during the first three quarters of 2021 in Bogota.

Visible challenges for economic growth Although economic figures in Colombia are positive, there are still pending balances in employment recovery and entrepreneurship.

In 2021, almost all sectors showed lower employment levels than those seen in 2019. For example, the accommodation sector in Colombia, which had a growth of 2.4% last year, compared to 2019, achieved this with 22% less staff. In other words, the sectors are recovering, but with a smaller number of employees.

The situation in Bogota is not very different. Although the city recovered its production in 2021, it has not yet achieved the employment levels it had before the pandemic. Ten of the 12 economic activities show positive production in 2021 compared to 2022, but in terms of employment, almost all sectors are lagging behind the year before the pandemic.

A similar case occurs with the business fabric. In Bogota, sectors such as manufacturing and commerce are producing more with fewer companies. In fact, between these two sectors there is a challenge to recover about 8,000 enterprises in order to have a level of business activity similar to that observed prior to the pandemic. In the same scenario is the accommodation and food services sector which, although it grew 10% this year in active companies with respect to 2020, it is still 17% behind 2019. In this sector, 7,378 companies have yet to recover.

In total, the region must recover 30,507 businesses to return to pre-pandemic levels.

Roadmap for recovery The Bogota Chamber of Commerce proposes a roadmap for the next decision makers to place at the center of their public policies the integral recovery of the business fabric, hand in hand with the generation of employment and the promotion of entrepreneurship.

In the first place, it is necessary to consolidate the confidence of businessmen so that they can make decisions to invest and hire personnel. To this end, it is proposed to implement a fiscal and monetary policy that generates a business environment of greater certainty for decision making and risks associated with increasing their levels of employment and capital.

Second, progressively reverse the trend of the tax scheme towards individuals, as is the case in the rest of the OECD countries. In this way, households and entrepreneurs will be able to do business without tax schemes that affect them. The latter can be strengthened with the promotion of the Simple Regime for smaller companies, a segment in which there are more companies without sophisticated accounting schemes, as evidenced by the Great Survey of Entrepreneurship conducted by the CCB.

Third, generate incentives to attract foreign investment for technology transfer, through entities such as the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, ProColombia and investment attraction agencies such as Invest in Bogota.

Fourth, recover the dynamics of the construction sector, especially civil works, by increasing state investments in roads, public spaces, sea and air ports. This is a sector that not only boosts the economy but also generates new enterprises and is highly intensive in employment.

Fifth, generate clear support schemes for the generation of employment, especially in the most affected groups such as young people and women. These incentives, such as the PAEF, should be maintained, since they not only generate employment, but also facilitate decisions to lead enterprises to grow in a sustained manner.

Sixth, strengthen the one-stop business window to reduce processing times and simplify business activities. This will speed up formalization processes, company creation, growth and even exports; this will have a direct impact on the dynamics of entrepreneurship and employment.

Seventh, encourage financing for companies, through Bancoldex and the National Guarantee Fund, to compensate for the increase in interest rates. These schemes should also focus on expanding access for new entrepreneurs to invest more and generate more employment.

And finally, strengthen the programs of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, ProColombia, Innpulsa and other entities for business strengthening, counting on the Chambers of Commerce as main allies in the territory, so that programs such as productivity factories, internationalization and hundreds of initiatives of chamber of commerce origin can be replicated throughout the territory.