Colombia Struggles to Fill Power Vacuum

By Sergio Guzmán

Sergio Guzmán is Control Risks’ principal Colombia, Bolivia, and Suriname analyst. He provides business, security, and political risk analysis for the Andean Region and has particular experience in the Colombian Conflict, International Conflict Resolution, and Development. Before joining Control Risks, Guzmán was the Lead Specialist for Latin America and the Caribbean and Eastern Europe and Central Asia for Accion International, a global microfinance organization. He also worked at the Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere Affairs of the U.S. Congress, and at the Inter-American Dialogue. Guzmán holds a Masters in International Economics and International Relations from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He is a native Spanish speaker, and also speaks English and Portuguese.

The stability of Colombia has improved significantly over the past year, according to the Fund for Peace’s 2017 Fragile States Index, which measures 12 social, political, and economic indicators to determine a country’s vulnerability. Colombia’s progress is due largely to the peace agreement the government reached with the armed FARC insurgency group and comes on the heels of a trend of improved governance. But is this improvement all it seems? And where are the remaining pressure points in the coastal South American country? The Cipher Brief’s Kaitlin Lavinder asked these questions to Sergio Guzmán, Colombia analyst at Control Risks based in the Colombian capital Bogotá, who says the main sources of violence in Colombia remain.

The Cipher Brief: Do you think that the assessment from the Fragile States Index, that Colombia is on an improving trend of stability, is accurate?

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