With government backing and eyes on boosting trade with China, a group of Colombian businesspeople has been pushing plans to build the Tribugá port, a controversial commercial project on the country’s Pacific Ocean that could clash with the country’s nascent ecotourism industry.
The deep-water port is slated for the forest-lined Gulf of Tribugá, a symbol of Colombia’s immense natural wealth and epicentre of its tourism drive. The unique inlet is a principal stop in humpback whales’ annual migration and a major attraction.
Local Afro-Colombian communities hope to develop economies based on sustainable tourism by capitalising on the area’s biodiversity and improved security following the 2016 peace agreement with the former FARC guerrillas. They are at odds with the port.