TERTIARY SECTOR IN COLOMBIA: MAIN ACTIVITIES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

The tertiary sector of Colombia is one of the most developed. According to the National Administrative Department of Statistics of Colombia (DANE), the tertiary sector houses more than 80% of the country's workforce.

In economics, the tertiary sector is one that is in charge of commerce, services and transport activities. Unlike the primary and secondary sectors, the tertiary sector is not in charge of producing but of offering and distributing products. For this reason, it is known as the service sector.

Despite the fact that this sector does not produce goods, it contributes to the development of the other sectors, since it is through the tertiary sector that the raw material necessary for the creation of many products is imported. Likewise, the tertiary sector generates income for the country.

The National Administrative Department of Statistics of Colombia establishes that of the economic establishments that exist in the country, 48% is dedicated to commerce while 40% is destined to the offering of services.

Activities of the Colombian tertiary sector

The tertiary sector includes all those activities that are related to the provision of goods and services to a consumer.

These include commerce, telecommunications, transportation, medicine, public health, education, tourism, administration, and finance.

Trade in Colombia

Colombia has a large number of regional markets, shopping centers and other establishments for the purchase and sale of products.

Regarding international trade, Colombia is the fifth country for importing products from the United States. Likewise, Colombia has strong economic relations with Aruba.

Transportation in Colombia

In Colombia public transport varies from one city to another. In large cities, Colombians have a greater range of options when it comes to public transportation. For their part, the smaller towns lack competent transportation systems.

The most important cities are connected by mass transport systems, which are articulated in networks that cover a large amount of territory.

For example, the bus system is organized into stations that connect towns. In Bogotá, the capital of Colombia is the Transmilenio, which is an example of mass public transport.

For their part, other cities such as Medellín have underground transportation systems, such as the metro. These systems are financed by mixed funds; that is, they belong to both the government and private companies.

On the other hand, the Andes mountain range (which crosses the country from north to south) and the Amazon Jungle represent obstacles to transportation in the country. Due to these two geographical accidents, it has not been possible to develop national highways in Colombia.

Regarding air transport, Colombia was one of the pioneer nations in the creation of airlines to overcome the barriers that separated the nations. In fact, Compañía Colombia de Navegación Aérea was the second airline created in the world.

El Dorado International Airport is the largest airport in all of Latin America and is ranked number 33 worldwide. In terms of transport traffic, this airport is the second in Latin America and 45th in the world.

Other important airports in Colombia are Simón Bolívar (in Santa Marta), Palo Negro (in Bucaramanga), Rafael Núñez (in Cartagena) and Alfonso Bonilla Aragón (in Cali).

Telecommunications in Colombia

Economic activities related to telecommunications include the provision of fixed and mobile telephone networks, internet, radio, press and television. Similarly, companies in charge of advertising are included in this group.

Regarding companies in the television area, DirecTV stands out, which provides satellite television.

Arts

With regard to the arts, the Colombian government has shown interest in the export of Colombian culture (television productions, music, gastronomy, among others). This has been done in order to diversify the economy.

Colombia has an annual income of 750 million dollars from the export of cultural elements.

tourism

Tourism is one of the tertiary sector activities that has benefited the most in recent decades.

From the year 2003 to the year 2013, tourism in Colombia increased more than 9%, a figure that exceeds the average increase in tourists worldwide (6.7%).

This is largely due to its geographical position and the tourist attractions that Colombia presents.

Regarding this last point, Colombia is a country with a great variety of landscapes, as revealed by the fact that it has five geographic regions: the Caribbean region, the Pacific region, the Andean region, the Amazon region and the Orinoquía region. Each of these regions represents an attraction for different types of tourists.

For example, for lovers of the sea, Colombia has about 3,000 kilometers of coastline. In addition to this, Colombia presents the third largest coral reef in the world.

With regard to ecotourism, Colombia has 37 natural parks, which cover more than 11 million hectares and are the habitat of 10% of the total flora and fauna of the world.

Regarding the cultural and historical elements that are attractive to tourists, Colombia presents ten spaces that are Cultural Heritage according to UNESCO.

Recently Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, has become one of the most visited tourist destinations in Colombia. This is because the museums and other public areas of this city have been rehabilitated.

Health

According to the Center for Regional Economic Studies (CEER), Colombia has deficiencies in terms of health.

The reports provided by the CEER show that there is disparity in the distribution of materials from the sanitary and sanitary sector.

It should be noted that in Colombia, the health service is not only offered by the government publicly and free of charge, but there are also private companies that market these services.

Financial activities

This sector is made up of banking, insurance, the stock market and other securities markets. The Colombian financial system is made up of a set of institutions, both public and private, whose function is to capture, manage, regulate and direct the financial resources that economic agents negotiate on a daily basis: companies, individuals and state agencies.

For the year 2014, the financial sector of Colombia had a participation of 18.8% in the Gross Domestic Product of the country, which reached 756 billion pesos (about US $ 384,477 million).

The main banks in Colombia are: Banco de Bogotá, Bancolombia, Banco Davivienda, BBVA Colombia and Banco de Occidente. Next we will get to know the main banks in Colombia better.

Personal / social services

Public and private education provided through universities, colleges and schools, hairdressers and other beauty salons are also part of the tertiary sector of the economy. Gardening, laundry, drivers, etc. are also part of this sector.

It is estimated that some 4.3 million Colombians work in this subsector, according to the Department of National Statistics Administration, Dane, and it contributes 15% to the country's economy.

Professional services

This subsector of services is provided to companies and individuals and involves executive and middle level consulting, management, accounting and business administration services, advertising, legal, technological, engineering and construction services, social communication, etc.

This tertiary subsector is one of those that demands the greatest amount of specialized or professional labor, and is one of the fastest growing in the Colombian economy in recent years.

Public function

This subsector involves activities that are provided to the state through public service. It includes the activities of popular representation (high public officials) and services to the community.

It also includes the areas of security and defense that are provided in the army, the police, the firefighters, relief and civil protection, among others. Likewise, the services provided in the municipal, departmental and national legislative power, the judicial power (judges, lawyers, registrars, notaries, etc.).

Media

The media are also part of the tertiary sector of the Colombian economy. The traditional media are television, radio, and the press; However, each of them has its digital version, there are also Internet portals that offer information and entertainment content.

According to data from the Kanter Ibope pollster, 99% of Colombians watch television and spend 4.32 hours a day on average on their programming; 87% listen to the radio and 78% read printed press and another 34% read it in digital versions.

In addition, 33% of the country was connected through a smartphone.

The main communications media in Colombia are:

Press: El Tiempo, El Espectador, El Colombiano and Semana magazine

Television: the first television channel in Colombia, it was inaugurated in 1954. Currently, the main channels are RCN and Caracol.

Radio: It began to operate in 1929, through the commercial station HJN in Bogotá. The main radio stations are: RCN, Caracol, Melodía, Olímpica, Súper de Colombia and Radiopolis.

Articles of interest

Secondary sector in Colombia.

Primary sector in Colombia.

References

1. Economy of Colombia. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from wikipedia.org
2. Economy in Colombia. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from liveandinvestoverseas.com
3. Emerging Markets. Analyzing Colombia's GPD. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from investopedia.com
4. Service Sector in Colombia generates 69% of jobs. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from mincit.gov.co
5. Colombian economic outline. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from portal.santandertrade.com
6. Economic activities in Colombia. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from wikipedia.org
7. Colombia Economy. Retrieved on August 8, 2017, from heritage.org.