The vulnerability to which the coronavirus exposed us forces us to work together in a new and better normality, now. The result will depend on how we are able to support those who need it most.
“Colombia has historically been a country with great inequalities and a great difference between those of us who are fortunate enough to be able to meet our needs and more, and those who do not even have access to drinking water, hygiene, education and health, that is why I think the time has come. to close that gap and ensure that all Colombians have access to health, education and work, and businessmen are called to play a great role in this pending task. A few years ago they were not visible, due to the lack of communication and technologies such as those that exist today and we cannot continue making ourselves the ones we do not see ”.
The words, written by Luis F. Vélez, the creator and manager of Perfect Love, give a fairly close look at the reality of an unequal country that, with the pandemic, saw the gap between those who have more economic possibilities and those who struggle grow more for getting the newspaper thing. It is enough to analyze the indicators that DANE has published throughout the year to see the destruction of employment (more than five million in a single month), the disparity that women experience when it comes to labor equity (even a double-digit drop ), the weak GDP growth in a year of crisis and the vulnerability to which as a society we are exposed due to the coronavirus.
For this reason, just when we are making balance sheets, it is necessary to go further and try to answer, why is a more supportive Colombia necessary? Juan Carlos Ortiz, president of DDB Latina and one of the most important publicists in the United States, comments that the pandemic created a collective problem and to get out of there a collective purpose is needed, “from this we are not going to come up with individual solutions.” And then he makes an analysis to take into account: “One of the most important factors that has been generated in society during the pandemic is vulnerability; people feel vulnerable because they do not know if they will continue with work, if they will continue to receive money, if they will be in good health. With such a high vulnerability, it is very important to find a collective purpose, and not with an individual solution because in the face of such big problems that does not work, that generates dispersion and division. That is why it is very important to establish a collective purpose and that it can be spoken as a campaign for the world, that is to retake the fundamental values. For me, solidarity is a fundamental value and if society takes it up again and understands that with it it can get ahead, it can overcome the problem of vulnerability, and a stronger future will be built ”.
Using a simile, he puts it in the following way: “Solidarity is a shoal effect, because the solution is not to see a fish to one side and one to the other, no; is when you see the shoal moving at the same time. That is a collective action in solidarity, a solidarity purpose; Each fish is connected by credibility and believes in the fish next door: that is solidarity. This is a historic opportunity for Colombia as a country and as a brand, where if we show an act of solidarity to get out of a problem as complex as this of the vulnerability that the pandemic brought us, it is showing a case of success for the whole world. Colombia was a brand to which the pandemic brought many problems and assumes the value of solidarity as the purpose of the country, not only will it give a profound inward demonstration of how to take on a problem, but it would also give an example of inspiration that would be tremendously commented in the world, it would be a wonderful opportunity ”.
Follow the news of El Espectador on Google NewsMiguel Ángel Charria Liévano, executive president of Bancamía, in conversation with El Espectador , affirms that “the pandemic has made inequalities in our country more evident and it is up to us as a team to show the best of our humanity to accompany the reactivation process.” He refers to the fact that, beyond the speeches, we must go to action: “From our side we are working on financing the microentrepreneurs we serve and new ventures, because we are convinced that if from different fronts we add and solidarity multiplies, 2021 will be a year with a more effective transition where we can resume the path as a nation, because social and economic improvement comes from all sectors, but the result depends on how we are able to push those who need it most ” .
So if we want to build well, we must also look to all sides. Álex Torrenegra, a Colombian businessman and investor who owns the most important voice bank in the United States, sees it from the business world like this: “Collaboration is extremely important for the members of a society to move forward and be competitive. In Colombia we could use much more of that collaboration, more of that support among ourselves. I wonder why in Colombia we help each other so little? I have read several theories in this regard: Colombians have not united because we do not have strong enemies in common, Latin America has been a relatively peaceful region of the world, we see the countries that are close as brothers and we do not see them as battle enemies, and That is fine on the one hand, but on the other this leads us to look for enemies inside, and it is incredible how in Colombia, despite the fact that we are 99% similar, we focus on fighting in small differences, when we should work together from the that makes us similar. The world is very big and is full of cultures that support each other, move forward, and we are not doing it. That leaves us more and more behind. The way to ensure a good future for the new generations is by joining forces ”.
As Ortiz said well, this has to be a collective issue and not an individual one, that is why it is crucial to know the government’s position: “The transition towards a better normality, which is what comes after the pandemic, means being especially aware of a more sustainable economic model, and that implies several fronts: the environmental, that is why we took out the sustainable tourism bill; socially, it means job creation; sustainable business, with companies that take into account the triple account, that is why the formulation of companies for the benefit of collective interest, which among others places us among the three countries in the world that have adopted this instrument so that more companies have that commitment with communities, suppliers and clients with the Government, with new, more inclusive business models. But I believe that one of the central elements in the transition towards a better normality is to build a Colombia that creates in associative and solidarity models in a greater way, and that means providing many more cooperative spaces, more associativity, seeking a genuine sense of solidarity. ”, Says José Manuel Restrepo, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism.
Regarding the economic reactivation, he says: “we need two components: to work as a team: public and private sector, local and national government, institutions and citizenship. And the second is to build and strengthen our deep sense of solidarity. Many experienced difficult times and need support. Accompany during adversity, such as what happened in Providencia, Chocó, Antioquia and Norte de Santander with a sense of solidarity. I believe that solidarity is a principle of action of the economic model that Colombia has been building, which must deepen as a response to that better new normal that will happen after the pandemic ”.
