De la descentralización a la regionalización: nuevo escenario de la guerra y oportunidad para la paz

Colombia, as other Latin-American countries, is facing the challenge of re-designing its internal and external policies according to neoliberal policies, economical aperture, decentralization, as well as political and territorial transformations. This situation creates tensions about the geographical unity of the Colombian State. In this article, we consider the trends that have marked these transformations for about 20 years, and weigh the social, political, institutional and economical circumstances that have affected them. We also present the concerns of the Colombian State about the future: dissolution of the State unity, or regional development based on a social agreement with equity, development and democracy.