Interview: ACI Medellín Executive Director Cristina Zambrano Shares Her Vision for the City’s Economic Growth

In January, Cristina Zambrano took over as new executive director of ACI Medellín, the city’s investment promotion agency.

As the acronym suggests, the Agency of Cooperation and Investment seeks to not just bring more revenue to the city — but to build bridges and encourage meaningful, lasting private/public partnerships that can help Colombia’s second largest city achieve a wide range of goals economic, social, development, business, and cultural goals.

To find out more about the agency’s objectives over the next four years, Finance Colombia Executive Editor Loren Moss got the chance to sit down with Zambrano.

Watch the full video conversation above or enjoy the English transcript below to learn more.

Cristina Zambrano, executive director of ACI Medellín. (Credit: ACI Medellín)

Loren Moss: You’re the new director of ACI Medellín, but you haven’t just begun. I mean, you’re very experienced already in the administration of the municipality of Medellín. Tell me a bit about the history, because, if I’m not mistaken, you started as ‘edil’ [public servant] of El Poblado in Communa 14, right?

Cristina Zambrano: That’s right. That’s right, Loren. Well, first of all, I want to thank you immensely for being here. Just like you said, I think this has already turned into a space that is very yours. And we truly thank you, from ACI, from the entity, from the district. Because it’s absolutely key and important for us to maintain a very close relationship with those great allies of the history and heart of this entity.

So, well, I’ll tell you a bit about myself. Indeed, “Paisa,” very “Paisa.” I was born, raised, and have lived almost my whole life here in this city. I say “almost my whole life” because I was abroad for a year and a half, living in London and Edinburgh. But for the rest, I have almost always worked for this city. I started my career path as a lawyer. I graduated from law school and began working at Bancolombia.

I think I was very focused at that time on the private sector, and it was the clearest path for me to follow my profession. However, while I was working at Bancolombia, my heart started beating harder for the public sector.

I remember one of the first conversations I had. My mom really belonged to the public sector. She was super, super close to the public sector, and she worked at the Compensation Fund, at public companies in Medellín, at SENA. So I believe she has always instilled in me a great love for what’s public. And the first conversation, with me working at Bancolombia, was with a person who was at the time the private secretary of the mayor at that time, David Escobar.

David Escobar was, at that time, like I mentioned, a private secretary, and the head of COMFAMA. He told me that he had also begun as an ‘edil’ in Communa 14, and asked why I wasn’t diving into public and political practices. And I said, “Hey, that’s interesting. I can continue working at Bancolombia, but I could complement a bit my work in the productive sector, with the public side.”

So that’s how I got started, and at that time I reached out and they introduced me to Mayor Federico. Federico was going into the Council of Medellín, and I accompanied him from Communa 14 as an ‘edil.’ So let’s say I started a journey that went from the public to the private, then went back to the public. But I’ve always said that my heart is very focused on the public world. And it’s been a wonderful trajectory, because I’ve had the best of both worlds, and I believe that throughout my whole professional career, I’ve come to realize how valuable it is to work with both sectors hand in hand. I’ve never been to the academy. But I think the other conversation that I’m missing is one to really understand the transformation process that this city has, which are the three players in addition to civil society.

Loren Moss: For me, with the eyes of a foreigner, something I’ve always seen as Medellín’s success was, First of all, the civil spirit that the ‘paisa’ pride has, the pride that the citizens have. Also, Medellín’s got a secret sauce. There’s been some hiccups recently, but historically the private sector has worked hand in hand with the public sector.

Here in Medellín, we’ve got some great powerhouses. You already mentioned Bancolombia. Obviously SURA, obviously Nutresa, Grupo Argos. And those are the great powerhouses of not just Medellín, but Colombia. But aside from that, aside from simply having this kind of source of income, and salaries, and taxes, businesses have had a sense of belonging, which has always supported the public sector. And  

Something that fascinates me about Medellín is that ‑- not only in Colombia, but I have experience in many countries in Latin America, the Caribbean — and normally there’s a ‘Don,’ or a ‘patrón’ or a powerful family, or two.

As are the Garces of Monterrey, Mexico. Its not that they’re bad guys, bu it fascinates me that, in Medellín, that doesn’t exist. There are no ‘caudillos,’ no chiefs. It’s like, there are no families that have more than 1% of Bancolombia’s shares, of SURA’s, and that fascinates me.

So, tell me about the importance, for you who have gone through it, of bringing back that tradition of cooperation, including here as an Agency of Cooperation and Investment (ACI). In Cali, it’s West Pacific. In Bogotá, it’s Invest in Bogotá. But here it’s an Agency of Cooperation and Investment. Tell me about its importance and your goals for the next 4 years, or 3 and a half.

Cristina Zambrano: 3 and 10 months [Laughs.]

Loren Moss: Exactly! Returning to that topic, and besides that, what your main objectives and goals are in this position

Cristina Zambrano: Alright, great, Loren. So, just like you said, Medellín has had a big charm, because, well, let’s not forget that not many years ago I was here ‑- I believe all of us were — when Medellín was the most dangerous city in the world. And by most dangerous in the world I mean in the highest indexes of the most terrifying cities it would reach around 160 deaths per every 100,000 inhabitants. Medellín reached 380 deaths per every 100,000 inhabitants. I mean, it was a city that, in the words of many people from that time, they would basically say, “It’s a failed state. It’s a failed city.”

How did we manage to recover in what seems to me such a short amount of time? Because this was a very drastic transformation that Medellín has undergone, like I said, in what seems to me like a short time. And the only way we made it to where we are today is the teamwork, absolutely determined, of all the actors, right? I believe we were all struggling with such great difficulties. We couldn’t go any lower. We definitely had to look up. We came together and started working hand in hand. And let’s say in this entity, as such, that’s completely clear and it shows on the day to day and through our tasks, in how we manage all the projects the district of Medellín has, or its metropolitan area, which, as you know, CITRA works for its associates, and its associates are the district.

As a central entity, various public companies from Medellín, and the metropolitan area, which are all the other municipalities from the area. So, that’s how we, in our day-to-day lives, always have to work in favor of those strategic projects, which impacts all of us as an area — because I’m going a bit outside of Medellín — and it’s how we look for strategic allies, capable of carrying out those strategic projects that we have, right? That’s what we do. And we indeed, this entity is already 22 years old. I had the opportunity when we were in Federico’s previous administration, to become a part of his board of directors. So I hold it very close to my heart. At that time I was working as the director of public-private alliances.

And at this moment let’s say that it’s on a different field, since this is a much more international matter, right? The other one is work with the local or national productive sector on some specific infrastructure projects and other matters. But in this sense, it’s working with international allies, and it’s been absolutely wonderful what we’ve come across in the less than 2 months that I’ve been here. That’s how those networks, so well established, based on trust, have been very close to us for many years. Each time there are more networks that want in, and all the networks want to strengthen again some bonds of trust that perhaps were starting to deteriorate. But everyone is still here, and they still believe in this city and its development.

So we work with all those allies. We keep attracting investments.

As for real investment, I believe at the beginning this entity was set up when Medellín needed to change the face it had for the world. To change its image. And that job was so wonderfully done. So much so that now the investment comes on its own, yeah? I believe that’s a magnificent reality that we need to understand, and it’s that back then we had to go to convince and bring in these investors, sell them this city, tell them how great we were. But at the moment the reality is that investment comes more so on its own.

Now the world’s got its eyes set on Medellín. And I’ve been to a marvelous event with ProColombia, which is our natural ally in everything related to the attraction of investments. I was in Bogotá last week for two days of a super strategic work, with each one of the hosts they’ve got around the world, and everyone was telling me, “Sell to Colombia,” or “Colombia needs Medellín to be able to sell itself.”

It’s amazing how in the portfolio of how we sell Colombia, some regions have to appear in that map no matter what, because people immediately open their eyes and understand it. And that’s our job as ACI, as an entity. It’s about highlighting all those things we’ve been doing right, showing them and handing them over to all those allies, because they’re our ambassadors around the world. They help us attract investment, and I believe this city is now very well-established and clear on the fronts on which they’ve been working, doing good work. It’s been bearing fruit wonderfully, so we need to keep strengthening that. I’ll point out, for example, the Industry 4.0. No doubt, Medellín is already a district of science, technology and innovation.

Loren Moss: It’s known worldwide for that. And something you said fascinates me: last night I was having dinner with a US Embassy officer, and he was telling me that the embassy is based in Bogotá. But that all of them, if they could, would leave the embassy empty and move out to Medellín. Don’t you agree?

Cristina Zambrano: Yes. [Laughs.] That’s how they are…

Loren Moss: And there is no consulate here. There is one in Barranquilla, I think. Or on the coast. I’m not sure where, but what’s certain is that everyone wants to run away and move to Medellín.

Cristina Zambrano: That’s right.

Loren Moss: And it has its fame, but even then it’s very important to keep selling the city. It’s key because there’s a lot of competition.

Because there are other agencies that promote investments, there are other places. There are others like Costa Rica, which is also really well-established in the IT field. For example, there are already countries in the Caribbean, such as Jamaica, which is famous for its call centers, and Trinidad, in finances.

So, what is the importance of continuing to sell Medellín? Or continuing to attract, or to have incentive programs? Or, aside from that, simply to tell the story, because even though Medellín has already got fame, it’s not like everyone in the world knows. Some people are living under a rock or something.

Cristina Zambrano: Totally.

Loren Moss: But there are people thinking, “Yeah, OK, we know about Medellín. But we need to do our due diligence, we need to analyze. So, tell me about the role, the part ACI Medellín plays in that, and your vision regarding what you want to achieve by, I don’t know, in 2028. If we look back, in retrospect, to you, to define that this has been a success, what are the things you want to achieve?

Cristina Zambrano: Great. Well, indeed I think what you’re saying is true. There are so many cities in the world. Like I’m saying, each one of us has a different calling, and undoubtedly, each one has to continue strengthening, or pushing forward that name and that number of strategies that Medellín has. Medellín has a huge competitive advantage, and that is its institutionalism. Medellín as such is the second biggest public conglomerate in Colombia, after Ecopetrol.

Right? This means that when a company, an investor, a cooperator comes to us, they’re coming to the second biggest public conglomerate. We have a series of companies, because we’re talking about, I think, we’re over 35 companies taking part in the conglomerate. Each one with a role, each one with some kind of support that could be provided to that investor or that cooperator, each one with different opportunities. So, without a doubt, that’s an advantage we have. More so from the private standpoint, obviously, the work with the chambers of commerce.

The work with, for instance, compensation funds. Which is a figure that doesn’t exist in the world. An investor doesn’t yet understand so clearly why they have to provide that 4%.

Loren Moss: I can’t translate it! They are like well, “What’s ‘Caja de Compensación’?” “How do I explain it?

Cristina Zambrano: Compensation [Laughs.]

Loren Moss: What’s worse is that I’ve never seen this concept outside of Colombia. It’s like, I’m affiliated with COMFAMA. And they are like, “It’s not a syndicate?””No, it’s not a syndicate.” When I try to explain it to foreigners. “Well, it has like an amusement park, with a roller coaster, and it helps you buy a house,” and people are like, “What?”

Cristina Zambrano: [Laughs] And healthcare, and education, and they provide courses…

Loren Moss: And the hardest one is ‘cesantías’.

Cristina Zambrano: Yes.

Loren Moss: There’s no word, and it’s not translatable. 

Cristina Zambrano: Yes.

Loren Moss: “And okay, what is ‘cesantías’?” It’s like a pension, but it’s not a pension…you use it like, when… [Laughs.]

Cristina Zambrano: Yes, yes, it’s complex. But see, that’s important, it’s interesting, because that private sector is several organizations, like I’m telling you, each one with a strategic role, and we are all absolutely interconnected with each other. And that’s very appealing to a future investor. And the investor knows they’re settling in a territory that’s not inventing many things. That is improving some with certainty, and that has many challenges to improve. But it is not making things up. And here each of us presents this ecosystem, and in one way or another people feel more at ease, like “Oh, these people are like, prepared.”

Well, as for what you were saying, I believe that here, understanding that we’re going to have some indicators in the development plan is key. Indicators that throughout many years of this entity have been very standard. Each time we need to increase them more, right? We start from a baseline and the idea is, obviously, to improve and surpass them. So, we have an amount of attraction of investment, which, right now is about $1,250 million USD, which is still under discussion, because you know that until we get the development plan approved, we still have two months left to discuss it, well, we’re not sure how the indicators are going to turn out.

We have an amount of attraction of cooperation, right? So we have no choice but to work for those purposes. But I think, answering your question: By going a bit beyond the indicators of a plan. As I was saying, this entity has been accomplishing them for many years, and let’s hope of course that we will be capable of accomplishing and surpassing them. But I believe here we have some really big goals, and it’s how we’re capable of, well, let’s say this entity when it was founded 22 years ago, like I told you it’s about to be, it was formed over a set period of time of 25 years. Therefore in the year 2027, this entity is to be reassessed, no matter what. Right? It’s obligated to be reconsidered, to take a look at what it’s been doing right, what could be improved, what needs to change. And it seems to me that this has been an entity that’s been absolutely key, counting with a very strong corporate government, because it is in charge of two really complex matters related to allies that are very much based on trust. It’s just that one-

Loren Moss: True.

Cristina Zambrano:  It doesn’t draw in a cooperator overnight. Cooperation is a long-lasting affair. Cooperation is, just to give you an example, today we signed an agreement with public companies from Medellín. And the government of Copenhagen. This cooperation that was materialized today in the signing of an agreement, had been discussed for three years. So these very long-term relationships, or relationships with investors, which we’re already discussing; if they don’t count with an ecosystem, from the institutional point of view, with legal security, tax security, stability in many aspects, well, they’re simply not going to be settling here.

Those are two matters which are so key that the corporate government becomes way too relevant. This entity must be protected, right? So, because we have that goal or challenge, so big that it’s already been established for 2027, of revising this entity, I believe we need to start thinking about that starting today, right? About what we will become. About what Medellín needs. Over the course of 22 years, it has truly changed some things. Like I’m telling you, this entity was born with a purpose. It kept changing. Some additional matters started to be included according to how the world has been moving. So, at the moment we’re dealing with a very complex topic, and I don’t know how is it going to end, because I think we’re just starting to think which legal form this entity should have in order to continue being stable in its corporate government through the years. What strategic projects does it need to be focusing on to not be thinking of the city every four years, but instead long, long-term?

I’m telling you, both matters are very long-lasting. This number of matters turns us all into a work team. And I believe that as a district, as a conglomerate and as a metropolitan area, it makes us think of this entity as absolutely open to having whatever discussions are needed. With the private sector, national and international; with national and international cooperación; with everything regarding the Council of Medellín.

This is a public entity that will have to go through the Council of Medellín and through 21 councilors that have to approve whatever we propose should happen here. Of course, with the whole district, and the whole conglomerate, and each one of the entities. And because we can strengthen it each time, let’s say I realize more and more that at least in this administration, we are completely interconnected with one another; each one of us plays a role and is very clear on what we’ll be focusing on. All of us, and I mean all of us, from the secretaries’ point of view, even many of the directors of decentralized entities call me, very interested in getting ACI Medellín to provide them support in the execution of their strategic projects. So I believe we have to think big.

Loren Moss: You touched on a very important topic: trust. It’s important when the people trust the government, the agencies. It’s also important for foreigners. One thing when I talk to investors, to executives, they are afraid of going where there’s uncertainty, where there are scandals; where there’s drama.

When an experienced administration restores this trust, the investors think long-term: “Ah, is it safe to invest in Medellín?” Not in the sense that I’m going to get mugged or something like that. But safe in that I know for sure that our investment will be protected, will be stable, there won’t be a storm of scandals and stuff to the point our shareholders or our clients will ask us ‘Why are you there?”

It’s an extreme case, but look at what happened in Nicaragua. Nicaragua was kind of attracting many outsourcing companies, the BPOs. And then it all collapsed. And there were some companies, I remember talking with the executives, “What are you going to do?” And the executives were conflicted, “Look, I know that’s bad for us, but we don’t want to abandon our loyal employees either. Because if we go, they won’t have anything.”

Cristina Zambrano: That’s right.

Loren Moss: It’s an extreme case. But the thing is, people go “Look, we don’t need that drama, let’s go to another city in Colombia,” whenever things are rough here.

Cristina Zambrano: Definitely.

Loren Moss: But when there’s an administration with trustworthy people. When you see all the books with all the expenses. When you see that there’s a cooperative governance. When you can say,”What did ACI Medellín spend resources on? What did City Hall spend on?” And it’s not on, like, pet care. Not on, like, the sky. But on the things that the city needs. And believe me! Because our readers, our audience, are the foreign executives. Here in Colombia we already have analytic values, we have a portfolio. 

But we and our readers are from abroad, who have assets in Colombia, who have investments in Colombia, and they wonder, and sometimes they ask us, “Hey, what’s going on with that?” It really matters to them. Companies think, “We don’t want to get involved in long-term projects, because later on…I don’t know, some crazy thing, or whatever, happens.”

And it’s something I discussed once, for instance, with some investors. “Why do you not take part in the tenders of, like, tunnels and stuff?” He replied, “Look at what’s happening now with the concessions with the tolls.”

Cristina Zambrano: Stalled.

Loren Moss: So what you’re saying is so important, to go to the conventions and to the conferences, the trips and all that. But as important as all of that is to have that governance and trust.

Cristina Zambrano: That’s right. That’s right, Lore. And, let’s say there is a very key, a very complex matter there. This trust is not easily acquired. This trust is relationships that take a lot, and it’s taken us a lot of effort as a city to work for them. The current mayor is a mayor who has earned trust over a trajectory.

I’m not just talking about the four years he had been mayor of this city already. I’m also talking about the other years as a councilor. I’m talking about his whole personal and family history, and a lot of other things. Thanks to all that today he has the trust of many. Obviously, us citizens who voted for him, we trust him.

As a national productive company that supports him, which is present to work hand in hand on international matters. I’ve realized personally how I see all the embassies are absolutely active, and I always ask the team, “Hey, is this normal? All the embassies want to be here?” “And all the councils want to have a meeting?”

Now everyone wants to. They tell me, “That’s not so easy, it’s not like that.” Ah…I’m overwhelmed because definitely everyone wants to have a spot with the mayor now. And that’s why I’m saying, that’s not something you accomplish on only four years.

Loren Moss: It’s the truth.

Cristina Zambrano: That has been achieved over a long period of time. That’s how it is with investment, and I believe that we as a city have known how to do it, and how to maintain it. Yesterday I was in a meeting, with the mayor, and he mentioned — I’m not sure anymore whether it was the ambassador of Denmark or of Israel — because we had four meetings in a row! But he told the ambassador, “there’s one thing of Medellín that’s really key: It’s the talent.”

Loren Moss: True.

Cristina Zambrano: “It’s the talent.” Right? So we started a discussion around this subject that is talent, and indeed, the people from this territory are talented and have proven it. And we had to live such a complex life story, so much so that now we are resilient, we are innovative, we are always running around. But we don’t give up so easily in the face of obstacles. This is something the private investment itself has realized, and they come looking for the talent, right?

Beyond the pretty mountains, the pretty landscape, and the marvelous weather, there are so many things here. And investors come looking for talent!

Loren Moss: And ‘berracos’ (talented people) I think is the Word.

Cristina Zambrano: Yeah!

Loren Moss: Because people here want to work. People here aren’t looking for free food, they’re looking for opportunities.

Cristina Zambrano: That’s right.

Loren Moss: They search for opportunities. “Which is the new company?” “Where can we work?” “Where are there opportunities?”

Cristina Zambrano: Indeed. And notice that the society itself is so nice because it’s when they see value in the things that both the private and the public sectors do. Right? Because both of us have to show ourselves to society, and show them the value of what we do in our day to day. And it’s the same society that in the future will demand the most from us, and the one that demands from us when we’re in the wrong too, right?

Loren Moss: Right.

Cristina Zambrano: Somehow, what you’ve been saying, which is related to the national government and everything that’s currently going on, and to the reforms, and the lack of resources and support for Antioquia, as such, has been a pretty, pretty complex matter.

Look how society itself starts demanding from the national government: “Why are you not looking at Antioquia?” “Why are you not going to finish the 4Gs?” “Let’s see where is the support for the tram on the 80, which you had already committed to?”

The whole society starts mobilizing in favor of a matter that, as you say, very ‘berracos.’ “We like working, and we like thriving and we like earning every one of the pesos we get with the sweat of our labor.

So I think that’s also reflected in the investment. It’s exactly the same. Let’s say those investors come, hire local talent, and realize that indeed there are some really interesting dynamics here, thanks to which we can work hand in hand. Surely some pretty complex challenges, but here we are in our day-by-day.