MEDELLÍN Antioquia is a department of Colombia, whose capital is Medellin. It is the second

most industrialized region of the country and main exporter of non-traditional

products, providing a high potential for investment in agro-industrial and

manufacturing sectors. Its way to the Caribbean Sea gives it not only national but

international competitiveness.

Its capital, Medellin, is the second most important city in Colombia. Its

architecture, urban planning and the continuity of its policies of social and

economic development, has made it a city with a competitive infrastructure and

the highest levels of quality of life in the country.

Medellin is a dynamic center of commerce, industry and technology. 20% of the

country's largest companies are located in the city; some of them are international

multilatina companies with a great international projection.

In 2013 Medellin was recognized by the Wall Street Journal, Citi Group, and the

Urban Land Institute as the most innovative city in the world and by 2021 is

projected as the innovation capital of Latin America through its Medellinnovation

district.

The city has a modern urban public transport system comprising metro, metrocable

Metroplús and tram (under construction); and it has 2 airports: José María Córdova

International, located in the municipality of Rio Negro, which is connected with

the major cities of the United States and with strategic hubs in Central and South

America through 10 international air routes; and Olaya Herrera aimed at regional

and domestic flights.

Potencial sectors

Agribusiness Sector

Cocoa

Antioquia has 471,456 suitable hectares for cocoa crops, mainly in the

municipalities of Caucasia, Puerto Berrío and Turbo.

Antioquia is home to the National Company of Chocolates, main buyer of cocoa in

Colombia; is part of the Group Nutresa who is the largest Latin American food

industry group.

Horticulture

The department has different climatic zones ranging from 1 to more than 4000

meters above sea level, with 35,654 km2 of its territory in warm weather, 15,854

km2 in mild weather and 10,302 km2 in cold weather, allowing the cultivation of

different products (Avocado, Pineapple, Mango and others)

Antioquia has 1.4 million suitable hectares for horticultural development projects:

"Hass" avocado crops Development for gourmet oil extraction and processing of pulps.

Citrus crops processing for the extraction of pulps, juices and concentrates for both domestic consumption and export.

The department is the largest exporter of processed food in the country, with

exports exceeding U.S. $ 1,000 million in 2014.

MANUFACTURING SECTOR

Textile and Fashion

One of the strategic clusters of the city is the Textile / Making, Design and Fashion.

Medellin has a long tradition in this industry that generates about 30% of total

employment. The sector exported 484 million in 2013, accounting for 48.7 of the total

sector in Colombia.

Medellín has become a city of world-class fairs and fashion events, performing

Colombiatex and Colombiamoda.The first one, closed in 2014 with business

expectations for around USD267 million and the second, the same year, around of

USD308 million.

In Medellin, brands like Tommy Hilfiger, DKNY, Ralph Lauren, Liz Claiborne,

Nautica, Oscar de la Renta, Dockers, Timberland, Hush Pupies, Hanes, among

others are made. Likewise, among those produced under license are Diesel,

Fiorucci, Americanino, Naf, Esprit, Girbaud, Levis and Used Jeans Company.

Construction

The Construction sector accounts for more than 8% of GDP of Antioquia, with a

base of more than 11,400 companies and over USD12,500 million of assets.

Medellin has the construction cluster, consisting of the most relevant sector

entities such as CAMACOL, Real Estate Association of Medellin and Antioquia,

Colombian Chamber of Infrastructure, among others.

The sector contributed with the 6.8% of employment in the city between October

and December 2014.

According to DANE, the total area of culminated works in the metropolitan area of

Medellín and Rionegro was 3,155,532 in 2014. This shows an increase of 8.5% over

the same period last year.

Medellin it´s home to the company Cementos Argos, the country's leading cement

company with operating incomes of USD2,908 million in 2014.

Automotive

Antioquia exported USD637 million in motor vehicles in 2013, with an increase of

118% compared to 2012.

Since 2013, in the Metropolitan Area of the Aburrá Valley, the business network

for the manufacture of high technology was formed. This alliance brings together

6 of the country's leading companies in these sectors with domestic sales

accounting for 30% of home appliances, 16% of cars, 73% of motorcycles and 23%

of elevators in the country. They generate 9120 direct jobs and their economic

activities account for 8% of Metropolitan GDP.

The network works in attracting national and international suppliers and

technologies of interest to make the supply chain more competitive

Energy

In Antioquia, about 30% of the country's electricity is generated and the 55% of

total generation is managed. Here stand companies like EPM (property of the

municipality of Medellin), ISAGEN and ISA.

Medellin and Antioquia have an Energy Cluster consisting of 1.641 enterprises

(1608 are small and medium) which total assets of U.S. $ 26.052 million and exports

of $138 million in 2013.Relating to exports, 78% corresponds to electric power and

22% to computers and devices.

In Antioquia, the country's largest hydroelectric power plant is constructed,

Hidroituango. It will cost $ 5.000 million and will provide 17% of the national power

grid.

Aircraft.

Avianca, Colombia's leading airline, will build an aeronautical center for

maintenance, repair and operation of aircraft near Jose Maria Cordova Airport in

Rionegro. With the project, the company hopes to be a source of technical

knowledge and a benchmark of quality in the processes of aeronautical engineering

in the region.

Aeronautical cluster: in order to provide local solutions for the aviation and

aerospace sector, a group of 16 companies came together to form the Aviation

Cluster. The aim of the cluster is to unite capacities to respond to the needs of

the aviation industry, not only military, but civil. It covers the aeronautical and

metalworking sectors and the information and communications technologies- ICT.

Jose Maria Cordova Airport in Rionegro, which serves the city of Medellín, is the

headquarters of the F-AIR COLOMBIA, main event specialized in the aviation

industry.

SERVICES SECTOR

Cinema

First film commission in the country that offers a one stop shop for advice on

procedures and production permits. It also has an image bank to assess possible

locations for filming, directory of technical personnel required in production, and

additional incentives to return 15% in logistics and movie expenses generated in

the city.

Software and IT Services Medellin is the only city in the country with a Science, Technology and Innovation

public policy with a budget USD$ 240 million to run until 2021, focused on the ICT,

Energy and Health sectors.

It is the only city in the country that plans to develop a technology district called

Medellinnovation, and that has a public corporation (Ruta N) running a municipal

innovation policy.

In the vicinity of the district, in the building of Ruta N, companies like Hewlett-

Packard are currently located with one of its global service centers; Holcim with

their transactional services regional center; and the Purdue University (Indiana,

USA) will open its first office in Latin America.

Ruta N, with the support of the ACI -Agency for Cooperation and Investment of

Medellin and the Metropolitan Area- develops the "Landing" strategy. This strategy

provides conditions that facilitate the start of operations and integration into the

local innovation ecosystem to domestic and foreign companies in the health,

energy and ICT sectors wishing to settle in the building of Ruta N. Among the

companies participating in this strategy are Globant, Pipeline Studios, Algar

Technology, Isoco, Blokwise among others.

One of the strategic cluster of the city is the Information and Communication

Technologies -ICT that has 2,779 registered companies. One of the most important

companies is UNE, first broadband provider in the country with access to its 4

major submarine cables (Maya1, Arcos, Sam1 and CFX).

Health - Medical and Dental Services

Medellin Health City is the city brand created by the Cluster of Medical and Dental

Services that identifies both medical and dental services and procedures in the

city. The cluster consists of a network of clinics and hospitals with more than 2300

beds, 88 operating rooms, and 1,035 medical specialists and subspecialists. In

dentistry services, has over 140 dental specialists.

According to the Cluster of Medical and Dental Services, medical services in Medellín

cost 20, 30 or 50 percent lower than in the United States depending on specialty or type

of intervention.

The city has two special free zones of health from companies in the cluster: San

Vicente de Paul University Hospital-Rio Negro- and Soma Clinic-Sabaneta.

In the last three years, to the 7 institutions of the city belonging to “Health Without

Borders” entered USD26 million for 14,600 outpatient care, a figure that seeks to

be increased 10% in 2017.

In the ranking of best clinics and hospitals in Latin America of American Economy

(2014), the city has one located in the top ten (Hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe) and

six located in the top 47 medical centers.

In 2011, Medellin received the international award for leadership in health care

and medical tourism, awarded by the Medical Tourism Association (Chicago, USA)

Biotechnology

The main universities in the city created the Biointropic alliance since 2008, entity

whose proposal is to identify, develop, integrate, implement and accelerate

innovations that add value and provide commercial application to biodiversity and

biotechnology in the region.

According to the World Wild Foundation, Urabá, one of the 9 regions of Antioquia,

is located in one of the mega-diverse areas of the world. Its geographical location

generates a concentration of ecological processes of continental range that

generate unique biodiversity conditions and a geostrategic position in commercial

terms.

Hospitality and Tourism Infrastructure

The city has 5,662 rooms / 9.169 beds. By 2016, 7 projects of new hotels totaling

775 additional rooms.

The reception in the last five years of events such as the General Assembly of the

Organization of the American States (OAS), the Assembly of the Inter-American

Development Bank (IDB), the Latin American Congress of Culture, the Seventh

World Urban Forum of UN-Habitat, the completion of the fourth Global Forum of

the Bicycle in 2015 and the Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

This notes the positioning of the city as a center of international events.

According to the report of the International Congress and Convention Association

(ICCA), Medellin is ranked 73 in the world ranking of 371 cities with high capacity

for events.

Every year various festivals that enrich its cultural tourism are organized in the

city, such as the International Festival Altavoz, the second most important in the

country in the rock genre; Feria de las Flores, (Flower Festival) which in 2013 was

attended by about 6,800 foreign and 10,600 Colombians from other cities; Festival

of Performing Arts, where, in 2013, 143 artistic performances were held;

International Clown & Mime Festival with 16 years of experience; International

Poetry Festival in 2006 was awarded with an alternative Nobel Prize; Festival of

Lights, that every year in the month of December brings all the Christmas events

held in the city; Festival of Books and Culture, ranked as one of the four best in

Latin America, among others.