Brookings: Medellin Best in Latin America for Economic Growth
A new study by the Washington, D.C.-based Brookings Institution found that Medellin surpassed all other Latin American cities in terms of per-capita economic growth (gross domestic product, or GDP).
“Medellin was the highest-performing Latin American metro area in 2014” and 12th overall in the Asia-Pacific region area studied, which includes Colombia, according to Brookings.
The researchers cited a “thriving construction sector” in Medellin, which “contributed to overall increases in GDP per capita of 4.3% and employment [growth] of 3.5% percent,” according to the study.
“Within Latin America, Bogota, Guadalajara and Medellin all outperformed their respective national economies,” according to the researchers. However, Medellin was the only city in Latin America that ranked in the top 20 cities for best economic performance throughout the Asia Pacific region, which includes China, Latin America, North America and Southeast Asia.
As noted in a related report from local Medellin newspaper El Colombiano, Medellin jumped 33 places between 2013 and 2014 in the Brookings survey of 100 cities in the region, leaping over Bogota, Mexico City, Lima and Santiago, Chile.
