The Grupo Bancolombia Foundation toured the territory seeking to understand where the barriers are that prevent greater productive inclusion and the gaps in human capital. that must be closed to improve employability rates. It was a necessary trip in a country where access to higher education in rural areas is still less than 9 percent. The journey was possible through the Diagnostic of productive inclusion for young rural and dispersed rural populations in Colombia, carried out thanks to an alliance between the Grupo Bancolombia Foundation, the Aurelio Llano Posada Foundation and the Interra Foundation.
This instrument was applied through surveys to 2,798 people, of which 1,031 were rural youth beneficiaries of education funds from the Grupo Bancolombia Foundation and allies, and 1,767 were rural youth in general. Three focus groups were carried out with operators and allies, four focus groups with young people, eight interviews with foundations and public institutions offering employability and entrepreneurship, as well as six interviews with higher education institutions and 20 interviews with companies and unions.
Among the findings is that one in three students who enter the higher education system does not complete their studies. Desertion in Colombia is a problemand the situation is more acute in technical and technological programs. While 35.4 percent of the people who live in the municipal capitals achieved a level of higher education, only 8.3 percent of those over 17 years of age who live in the countryside have a degree at this level. Furthermore, 42.9 percent of young people consider that the greatest difficulty in accessing a job is the lack of formal job offers in the territory. In the dispersed rural area this perception increases to 52.1 percent.
“Our work will only be successful if we can make young people and families see the opportunities clearly. We don’t want young people to connect with boring or low-paying jobs. The opportunities detected are in the field of software engineering, computer science, data analytics, technology in food agroindustry management and gastronomy, among others,” said María Fernanda Díaz Trujillo, director of the Grupo Bancolombia Foundation.
In light of this diagnosis, The Foundation’s commitment is to continue connecting educational opportunities relevant to young people so that they improve their socioeconomic conditions and learn skills for work.