Colombia Becomes 37th Member of OECD

Joins International Organization Promoting Policies to Improve the Economic and Social Well-being of People Worldwide

Washington, DC — Colombian President Iván Duque announced that Colombia has become the 37th member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), after having ratified the OECD Convention and deposited its instrument of accession with the French Government, the OECD Convention depository.

The announcement was made during a videoconference yesterday titled “Repowering of the Economy, OECD perspectives to face the health situation caused by COVID-19,” which was led by the Vice President of the Republic, Martha Lucía Ramírez, and which included the participation of the Chancellor Claudia Blum, the ministers of Environment and Culture, the OECD Secretary General Ángel Gurría, the OECD Chief of Staff Gabriela Ramos, several experts from the Organization, the director of the DNP, and more than 100 participants from different organizations and unions.

According to the OECD release: “OECD Member countries formally invited Colombia to join the Organization in May 2018, following a five-year accession process during which it underwent in-depth reviews by 23 OECD Committees and introduced major reforms to align its legislation, policies and practices to OECD standards. These spanned the breadth of policy fields including labour issues, reform of the justice system, corporate governance of state-owned enterprises, anti-bribery, trade and the establishment of a national policy on industrial chemicals and waste management.”

OECD Secretary General Gurría welcomed Colombia, praising the commitment of the national government in its accession process. In addition, he highlighted the success of yesterday’s first-of-its-kind videoconference, affirming that it will serve as a model for remote work with other OECD member states going forward.

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