City report
Ready to #SeeYouInBogota
olombia’s capital has long
been known for its historic
old city, La Candelaria, as
well as being a gateway to
the Andes. Now Bogota is preparing itself
for the time when it can reopen again to
the thousands of international visitors
keen to experience one of the greatest
Latin-American capitals.
To allow a safe reopening, biosafety
protocols have been established and are
being tested in the service sectors related
to the MICE industry. Of course,
progress is dependent on Colombia
getting the spread of the coronavirus
under control.
Bogota’s El Dorado International
Airport is part of this effort -third ranked
in terms of passenger numbers in Latin
America. In 2020 the airport was a four
Skytrax star rated facility and
management has, since April, been
implementing a range of biosafety
Above: Liliana
Orbegozo,
Greater Bogota
Convention
Bureau executive
director
TECHNOLOGY IS A KEY FACTOR FOR
THE PREVENTION OF COVID-19 AT
EL DORADO
10 pre-security doors at the
domestic and international
terminals
From the El Dorado Airport
application, a user can be
created in the DoradoPass
to facilitate access and
movement of users through
the terminals
Convenient
self-baggage drop
Thermal corridors with 16
advanced technology
thermographic cameras
for the automatic
verification of body
temperature in a quick,
timely and accurate way
for groups or individuals
Biometric doors in
migration (Bioming)
protocols. (See infographic).
While commercial operations have
been on pause, the terminal has also been
the main point of supply for medical
devices and medicines, processing around
30,000 tons of cargo.
The Colombian government has
launched, with the support of the World
Tourism Organisation, the Covid-19
Biosafety Check-In Certification Seal, a
kitemark designed to build confidence
among international visitors and the first
certification of its kind in Latin America.
Colombian airlines, Avianca and Viva Air,
are already certified with the Seal.
In September, Bogota moves into its
reactivation pilot scheme for restaurants
and cafeterias, which will be allowed to
use open public spaces for serving clients
with reservations, provided the required
biosafety measures in place.
Sustainability and best practices
Colombia is keen to align any ´new
normal´ with continuing its work on
sustainable and responsible tourism and
was one of the first countries to join ‘The
Future of Tourism Coalition’ promoting a
post-pandemic tourism based on pursuing
responsible growth in the sector.
“Aside from building Bogota’s
development plan based on the fulfilment
of the UN SDGs, the Covid-19 crisis has
presented the opportunity for reinforcing
best practices in sustainable mobility and
transparency,” says Liliana Orbegozo,
Greater Bogota Convention Bureau´s
(GBCB) executive director.
Bogota now has over 500km of bicycle
routes and is one of five cities singled out
by the World Economic Forum for its
promotion of the use of bicycles as the
safest and most sustainable mean of
transportation for its citizens.
Synergies for change
The GBCB is keen for the impact of
events to go far beyond economic
development, and is reaching out to aid
social development as well as contributing
to a healthier environmental footprint.
“With this in mind, we have created the
Synergies for Change Initiative,
promoting the fact that each event hosted
in Bogota contributes to achieve the
SDGs and objectives,” Orbegozo adds.
The bureau invited a group of social
enterprises to join this initiative, partly for
the different approach they would bring to
events and their participants. The
enterprises involved included: Chocó to
Dance, Alcagüete, Waré Crafts,
Magicians without borders, Munay, and
Distrito Chocolate.
“It is important to highlight that events
arriving to Bogotá contribute to economic
development, but most of all to the
empowerment and strengthening of
vulnerable people and communities, and
help to prevent climate change,” Orbegozo
says.
The GBCB’s strategies for attracting
events and positioning the city at both
domestic and international levels have led
to the bureau confirming 12 international
events for Bogota up to 2025, while 22
bids are being worked on. In all, the
bureau liaises with 83 clients, mostly from
priority markets such as Brazil, Mexico,
the Caribbean, and the United States.
The 12 international events on the
books are anticipated to bring 22,000
participants and represent an economic
benefit for Bogota of 81bn pesos
(US$21.4m dollars). The events include
blockhain conference Devcon VI in 2021
and the World Congress of Neurosurgery
in 2021.
The GBCB recently took part in a first
hybrid event at the Bogota Marriott Hotel
recently, which connected with audiences
from more than 15 countries in Latin
America. That event alone allowed the
bureau to reach 3,500 people with its
messages.
When the moment of safe reopening
finally arrives, it is clear that Bogota will
be ready with a big welcome.
ISSUE 107 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / 39