Evaluating the Sustained Impact of an Extreme Poverty-Free Zones in Colombia

The SIPA team has been asked by Fundación Bavaria to evaluate its engagement within one of the major poverty reduction programs in Colombia – Red Unidos, Zonas Libres de Pobreza Extrema – and propose programmatic areas of improvement. Particularly, the team has examined the impact of a poverty free zone in the municipality of Tocancipá. The team has collected survey data from 128 participating families and has used an existing dataset to inform analyses based on income and a proprietary multidimensional Weighted Poverty Index. Moreover, it has conducted focus groups to further substantiate the findings. Based on its analysis, the team proposes various recommendations in the areas of, among others, stakeholder interaction, program execution, and methodology, to both Fundación Bavaria and the relevant government agency, Departamento para la Prosperidad Social.