How to do Business in Colombia?

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How to do business in another country (Colombia)
Introduction
Whenever the country is mentioned, it is always associated so much with its frequent drug wars. However, on another image, Colombia is one of the most interesting nations on its continent. The Republic of Colombia is the second largest country in South America and was named after Christopher Columbus. Since her independence in 1810, the country’s population has significantly increased to 48 million. The political landscape of Colombia is based on the constitution of 1991 that divides the government into 3 arms; executive, judiciary, and legislative. The country’s geography has 6 main regions; Andes mountain range region, Pacific coastal region, Caribbean coastal region, the plains, Amazon rainforest region, and the insular region. Despite the difference in geographic features, each of these regions presents unique business environments.
Business structure/style
Business structures in Colombia are similar to universally accepted structures. As a result, many businesses in the country subscribe to corporation, Simplified Shares Corporation, or limited liability structures. Each of these structures has unique features relating to incorporation requirements, fiscal features, and shareholder responsibility. However, foreign businesses wishing to enter the Colombian market usually prefer simplified share corporation structure. This structure offers tax benefits to foreign companies, facilitates procedures, and reduces the requirements that must be fulfilled during registration (Ogliastri, p 250).
Under the three structures, decisions are mostly undertaken by CEOs and departmental managers. However, in case of major decisions, CEOs must get an approval from shareholders as stipulated by the Colombian Chamber of Commerce. Internally, movement of business products from one region to another is faster due to favorable policies and efficient transportation infrastructure. However, cross border trade is very expensive and exceeds the OECD set standard by around three times (Rodríguez, p 22). This is because the country’s economic integration has created overlapping tariffs, which imply that a single product may be subjected to more than ten different duties.
Religion and Culture
Colombia’s cultural heritage and religion is mainly influenced by ancient European settlers, African slaves, and the Amerindian civilization. The constitution recognizes Spanish and English as official languages. As a result, communication in the country is subtle and depends on the geographic region. For instance, businesses in the Andes mountain range region communicate in Spanish while those in Bogota communicate in English. Additionally, the country’s culture does not recognize punctuality as an essential value. As a result, punctuality in Colombia is far more relax...