First Mover in Latin America: Colombia set a regional precedent by becoming the first country in Latin America to officially adopt a green taxonomy.

Balances Local Usability and Interoperability: Colombia’s Taxonomy is closely aligned with the EU Taxonomy, sharing six of its seven environmental objectives. Its main distinction lies in the inclusion of an additional objective on land use management,acknowledging the vital importance of agriculture, forestry, and cattle ranching to the national economy.

Rather than replicating the EU’s quantitative thresholds, Colombia adopted a context-sensitive approach to the land use sector. Recognising the complex regulatory, historical, and geographical context of the sector, the taxonomy avoids rigid metrics and instead defines a set of good practices for land use activities. This approach ensures greater accessibility and usability, particularly for small farmers who may not have access to the data typically required to comply with strict quantitative standards.

Robust and Collaborative Governance Structure: The development of Colombia’s Taxonomy was led, coordinated, and overseen by the Taxonomy Table (Mesa Institucional de Taxonomía), a multi-stakeholder institutional body that brought together key national entities, including the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Environment, the Financial Regulator, and National Planning Department. This collaborative governance model ensured the taxonomy’s relevance, practicality, and wide applicability, integrating perspectives from public institutions, academia, industry associations, and private sector stakeholders.