Colombia Firm Energy Market

A firm energy market for Colombia is presented. Firm energy—the ability to provide energy in a dry period—is the product needed for reliability in Colombia’s hydro-dominated electricity market. The firm energy market coordinates investment in new resources to assure that sufficient firm energy is available in dry periods. Load procures in an annual auction enough firm energy to cover its needs. The firm energy product includes both a financial call option and the physical capability to supply firm energy. The call option protects load from high spot prices and improves the performance of the spot market during scarcity. The market provides strong performance incentives through the spot energy price. Market power is addressed directly: existing resources cannot impact the firm energy price. Since load is hedged from high spot prices, the market can rely on high prices to balance supply and demand during dry periods, rather than rationing.Auctions

Comments Concerning Proposed United States-Andean Free Trade Agreement

Vogt presents two cases of US multinational corporations that benefit from violence against unionists in Colombia. He argues that a trade agreement with Colombia would normalize the violence instead of fight against it

The Proposed U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement

[Excerpt] The proposed U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement, also called the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), was signed by the United States and Colombia on November 22, 2006. The agreement must be approved by Congress before it can enter into force. Upon congressional approval, it would immediately eliminate duties on 80% of U.S. exports of consumer and industrial products to Colombia. An additional 7% of U.S. exports would receive duty-free treatment within five years of implementation, and most remaining tariffs would be eliminated within 10 years of implementation. The agreement also contains other provisions in services, investment, intellectual property rights protection, labor, and the environment. About 90% of U.S. imports from Colombia enter the United States duty-free under trade preference programs or through normal trade relations, while U.S. exports to Colombia face duties of up to 20%. It is possible that the 112th may consider implementing legislation for the proposed CFTA. Negotiations for the agreement were conducted under the trade promotion authority (TPA), also called fast-track trade authority, that Congress granted the President under the Bipartisan Trade Promotion Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-210). The authority allowed the President to enter into trade agreements that would receive expedited congressional consideration (no amendments and limited debate). Implementing legislation for the CFTA (H.R. 5724/S. 2830) was introduced in the 110th Congress on April 8, 2008, under TPA. The House leadership, however, took the position that the President had submitted the implementing legislation without adequately fulfilling the TPA requirement for consultation with Congress. On April 10, 2008, the House voted 224-195 to make the provisions establishing expedited procedures, inapplicable to the CFTA implementing legislation (H.Res. 1092). In his January 2011 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama mentioned the importance of opening foreign markets for U.S. goods and services, and strengthening U.S. trade relations with Colombia. In 2010, the Administration initiated a new National Export Initiative (NEI), which includes a component that calls for opening new markets for U.S. exports by resolving outstanding issues on the pending CFTA. The Obama Administration also has made a case for pursuing free trade agreements as part of the National Security Strategy of the United States, though the CFTA is not specifically mentioned in the report. The congressional debate surrounding the agreement has mostly centered on the violence issues in Colombia. Some members of Congress oppose the agreement because of concerns about violence against union members and other terrorist activity in Colombia. However, numerous members of Congress support the CFTA and take issue with these charges, stating that Colombia has made progress in recent years to curb the violence in the country. They also contend that the agreement would open the Colombian market for U.S. exporters. Other policymakers argue that Colombia is a crucial ally of the United States in Latin America and that if the trade agreement is not passed, it may lead to further violence in the region. For Colombia, a free trade agreement with the United States is part of its overall economic development strategy. The United States is Colombia’s leading trade partner. Colombia accounts for a very small percentage of U.S. trade (0.8% in 2009), ranking 22nd among U.S. export markets and 27th as a source of U.S. imports. Economic studies on the impact of a U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement (FTA) have found that, upon full implementation of an agreement, the impact on the United States would be positive but very small due to the small size of the Colombian economy when compared to that of the United States (about 1.6%)

Energy and Sustainability 2015

The 6th International Conference on Energy and Sustainability was held in Medellin, Colombia, organised by the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (UPB), Colombia and the Wessex Institute (WIT), UK

Labor Rights Comments to United States Trade Representatives Regarding Colombia Free Trade Agreement

Comments submitted to the United States Trade Representative following a request for comments concerning the Free Trade Agreement with the Republic of Colombia. They describe labor rights violations in Colombia and the role of the Colombian government in the repression of labor rights. The document urges the US government to support labor rights by requiring preconditions to be met by Colombia before entering into a trade agreement

The multicolored Asian lady beetle : Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) ; a not so new invasive insect in Colombia and South America

The first reports of the multicolored Asian lady beetle Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) in Colombia appeared in 2011. However, based on museum insect specimens, the introduction of H. axyridis in Colombia occurred in 1989 or earlier, making it the second oldest record of the species in South America after the deliberate releases of the species in Argentina in 1986. Currently in Colombia, H. axyridis is well established and is here recorded from the States of Antioquia, Caldas, Cauca, Cundinamarca, Nariño, Tolima and Valle del Cauca.Los primeros reportes de la mariquita multicolor asiática Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) aparecieron en el 2011. Sin embargo, con base en colecciones de insectos en museos, la introducción de H. axyridis en Colombia ocurrió en 1989 o antes, haciendo que este sea el segundo registro más antiguo de esta especie en Sur América, después de las liberaciones intencionales de la especie en Argentina en 1986. Actualmente en Colombia, H. axyridis está bien establecida y aquí se reporta en los departamentos de Antioquia, Caldas, Cauca, Cundinamarca, Nariño, Tolima y el Valle del Cauca

Proposed Colombia Free Trade Agreement: Labor Issues

[Excerpt] This report examines three labor issues and arguments related to the pending U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement (CFTA): violence against trade unionists; impunity (accountability for or punishment of the perpetrators); and worker rights protections for Colombians. For general issues relating to the CFTA, see CRS Report RL34470, U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement: Economic and Political Implications, by M. Angeles Villarreal. For background on Colombia and its political situation and context for the agreement, see CRS Report RL32250, Colombia: Issues for Congress, by Colleen W. Cook and Clare Ribando Seelke. Opponents of the pending U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement (CFTA) argue against it on three points: (1) the high rate of violence against trade unionists in Colombia; (2) the lack of adequate punishment for the perpetrators of that violence; and (3) weak Colombian enforcement of International Labor Organization (ILO) core labor standards and labor laws. Proponents of the agreement argue primarily for the proposed Colombia FTA on the basis of economic and national security benefits. Accordingly, they argue, the CFTA would: support increased exports, expand economic growth, create jobs, and open up investment opportunities for the United States. They also argue that it would reinforce the rule of law and spread values of capitalism in Colombia, and anchor hemispheric stability. Proponents specifically respond to labor complaints of the opponents, that (1) violence against trade unionists has declined dramatically since President Álvaro Uribe took office in 2002; (2) substantial progress is being made on the impunity issue as the government has undertaken great efforts to find perpetrators and bring them to justice; and (3) the Colombian government is taking steps to improve conditions for workers. If Congress were to approve the Colombia FTA, it would be the second FTA (after Peru) to have some labor enforcement “teeth.” Labor provisions including the four basic ILO core labor standards would be enforceable through the same dispute settlement procedures as for all other provisions (i.e., primarily those for commercial interests.) Opponents argue that under CFTA, only the concepts of core labor standards, and not the details of the ILO conventions behind them, would be enforceable. Proponents point to recent Colombian progress in protecting workers on many fronts. They argue that approval of the FTA and the economic growth in Colombia that would result is the best way to protect Colombia’s trade unionists. They also argue that not passing the agreement would not resolve Colombia’s labor issues. Opponents argue that delaying approval of the proposed CFTA further would give Colombia more time to keep improving protections for its workers. This report will be updated as events warrant

Revision of the Anastrepha benjamini species group and the A. pallidipennis complex (Diptera: Tephritidae)

The shape of the facial carina in Altastreplia is discussed. Although taxonomically useful, the protrudent form probably occurs by convergence in different species groups. Two species groups in which the carina is usually produced are revised. The belljamini species group includes: belljamini Lima (from southeastern Brazil), gigantea Stone (from Panama), magna, n. sp. (from Colombia and Venezuela), and superj1ua Stone (from Panama). Host data for this group are limited to only one record of benjamilli from a species of Pouteria (Sapotaceae). The pallidipennis complex, which is included in the pseudoparallela species group, is recognized to include: amnis Stone (from southern Brazil and possibly Trinidad), curitis Stone (from Colombia, Peru, and northern Brazil), pallida, n. sp. (from Panama), pallidipennis Greene (from Colombia and Venezuela), and vele::i, n. sp. (from Colombia). These species breed in fruit of Passij10ra (Passifloraceae) (P. ambigua Hems., ligularis Juss., Idtida H.B.K., quadrallgularis L., and seemannii Griseb.). The relationships of these Anastrepliaspecies are discussed, and diagnoses and ill ustrations are provided to permit their identification. A neotype is designated for A. consobrina (Loew), and the identity of this species is clarified.Se discute la forma de la carina de la cara en Anastreplia. Aunque esta caracteristica es util taxonomicamente, probablemente la forma producida ocurre por convergencia en varios grupos de especies. Se revisan dos grupos de especies que normalmente tiene una carina producida. EI grupo benjamini incluye: benjamini Lima (del sureste de Brasil), gigantea Stone (de Panama), magna, sp. n. (de Colombia y Venezuela), y superj1ua Stone (de Panama). Datos de huespedes del grupo belljamini incluyen solo un registro de benjamini en una especie de Pouteria (Sapotaceae). EI complejo pallidipennis, que es una parte del grupo pseudoparallela incluye: amnis Stone (del sur de Brasil y tal vez de Trinidad), curitis Stone (de Colombia, Peru, y el norte de Brasil), pallida, sp. n. (de Panama), pallidipennis Greene (de Colombia y Venezuela), y velezi, sp. n. (de Colombia). Estas cinco especies se alimentan de frutos de Passij10ra (passifloraceae) (P. ambiguaHemsJ., ligularisJuss., nitida H.B.K., quadrangularis L., y seemannii Griseb.). Se discuten las relaciones de estas Anastrepila especies y se proveen diagnoses e ilustraciones para su identificacci6n. Se designa un neotipo de A. consobrina (Loew) , y se establece la identidad de esta especie

The War on Illegal Drug Production and Trafficking: An Economic Evaluation of Plan Colombia.

This paper provides a thorough economic evaluation of the anti-drug policies implemented in Colombia between 2000 and 2006 under the so-called Plan Colombia. The paper develops a game theory model of the war against illegal drugs in producer countries. We explicitly model illegal drug markets, which allows us to account for the feedback effects between policies and market outcomes that are potentially important when evaluating large scale policy interventions such as Plan Colombia. We use available data for the war on cocaine production and trafficking as well as outcomes from the cocaine markets to calibrate the parameters of the model. Using the results from the calibration we estimate important measures of the costs, effectiveness, and efficiency of the war on drugs in Colombia. Finally we carry out simulations in order to assess the impact of increases in the U.S. budget allocated to Plan Colombia, and find that a three-fold increase in the U.S. budget allocated to the war on drugs in Colombia would decrease the amount of cocaine that succesfully reaches consumer countries by about 17%.Hard drugs, conflict, war on drugs, Plan Colombia

Legislative Alert: US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement Labor Action Plan

[Excerpt] As the debate about the US-Colombia FTA comes to a head, advocates of the agreement have been making claims both about the remarkable progress in labor conditions in Colombia as well as the position of the AFL-CIO with respect to the adequacy of the Labor Action Plan (LAP)