Economic Uncertainty and Everyday Expectations: How Colombians See Their Financial Future by 2046
Between Fear and Aspiration, a Nation Negotiates Its Economic Future
For many Colombians, the future is measured in everyday economic terms: the price of food, the possibility of buying a home, the security of keeping a job, and the hope that the next generation will live better than the last.
The words most commonly used to describe Colombia today—uncertain, unstable, complex, and fragile—reflect more than political frustration. They speak to everyday concerns about jobs, prices, opportunities, and the ability to plan for tomorrow.
Behind the statistics lies a shared question: Will life be more secure twenty years from now than it is today?
The latest Voices for a Worthy Future: Colombia Towards 2046 survey, conducted by the Social Research Center, offers a detailed picture of how Colombians imagine their economic future. The findings reveal a country that remains deeply concerned about instability, yet continues to believe that prosperity, opportunity, and dignity are achievable goals.
The result is a portrait of a society caught between economic anxiety and economic aspiration.
For many Colombians, the future is measured in everyday economic terms: the price of food, the possibility of buying a home, the security of keeping a job, and the hope that the next generation will live better than the last.
The words most commonly used to describe Colombia today—uncertain, unstable, complex, and fragile—reflect more than political frustration. They speak to everyday concerns about jobs, prices, opportunities, and the ability to plan for tomorrow.
Behind the statistics lies a shared question: Will life be more secure twenty years from now than it is today?
The latest Voices for a Worthy Future: Colombia Towards 2046 survey, conducted by the Social Research Center, offers a detailed picture of how Colombians imagine their economic future. The findings reveal a country that remains deeply concerned about instability, yet continues to believe that prosperity, opportunity, and dignity are achievable goals.
The result is a portrait of a society caught between economic anxiety and economic aspiration.
The Economy as Colombia's Greatest Concern
Among all the risks presented in the survey, none received more attention than economic insecurity.
Nearly 65 percent of respondents (194 people) identified economic crises and inequality as one of the greatest threats facing Colombia's future. No other risk received more support. Climate change followed closely at 58.5 percent, while geopolitical conflicts, institutional distrust, and concerns about the peace process completed the list of major worries.
These findings suggest that Colombians do not view economic challenges as isolated issues. Economic security is connected to environmental sustainability, political stability, and social cohesion. A future marked by rising inequality or prolonged economic crises is seen not only as a financial problem but as a threat to the country's overall well-being.
Employment remains a significant concern as well. One in five respondents selected the disappearance of traditional jobs as a major future risk, reflecting growing uncertainty about automation, artificial intelligence, and changing labor markets.
The survey suggests that Colombians are not merely worried about finding work. They are concerned about whether the nature of work itself will fundamentally change.
What Colombians Want from the Future
While respondents express concern about economic uncertainty, their vision of the future remains remarkably ambitious.
When asked what kind of Colombia they hope to see in 2046, economic prosperity and decent work emerged as the most popular aspiration, selected by 88.3 percent of participants.
This result ranked even higher than respect for human rights, peace without armed groups, or environmental restoration.
The finding is revealing. Economic prosperity is not viewed as a secondary objective that follows social progress. Rather, it is seen as one of the foundations upon which a dignified future must be built.
Yet prosperity alone is not enough.
Respondents also expressed strong support for human rights, peace, environmental balance, and sustainability. The desired future is therefore not one of economic growth at any cost. Instead, Colombians envision development that improves living standards while preserving social and environmental well-being.
This broader vision is reflected elsewhere in the survey. Nearly 90 percent of respondents described their ideal Colombia as "sustainable," while 61.9 percent selected "empathetic" as a defining characteristic of the future.
Economic success, in the Colombian imagination, is inseparable from social responsibility.
Staying, Leaving, and Building a Life
Economic expectations strongly influence how people imagine their personal futures.
Despite widespread concerns about instability, most respondents do not see emigration as their preferred solution.
More than 61 percent imagine themselves remaining in Colombia with stable employment and home ownership by 2046. Only 5 percent foresee emigrating permanently.
These figures challenge the common assumption that Colombians primarily associate success with leaving the country.
For most respondents, the goal is not escape.
It is stability.
The results suggest that many Colombians still believe their future can be built at home, provided that economic opportunities improve and institutions become more effective.
At the same time, nearly 20 percent envision a period of temporary migration before eventually returning. This indicates that international mobility is often viewed as a strategy for advancement rather than a permanent departure.
Yet Colombians do not begin from the same economic position. Nearly half of respondents (49.5 percent) described their households as belonging to a standard middle-income category—able to meet everyday needs but still vulnerable to unexpected shocks.
Another 21.1 percent reported living at the level of consumer staples, while 4.7 percent indicated that they were living in conditions of basic survival. Only 22.7 percent described themselves as economically comfortable, and just 2 percent reported living in abundance. These figures suggest that for many Colombians, economic insecurity is not simply a future concern but a present reality.
The Future of Work: Adaptation Rather Than Consensus
If there is one area where Colombians show little certainty, it is the future of work.
The survey reveals no dominant vision of how employment will evolve over the next two decades.
Instead, three competing scenarios emerge almost equally:
39.5 percent believe technology will take over routine work.
36.8 percent believe work will become more collective and community-oriented.
35.8 percent expect people to continue doing similar jobs, but under AI supervision.
The narrow differences between these options illustrate a society attempting to anticipate change without knowing exactly what form it will take.
Among younger professionals, Alexandra Ortega, a systems engineer working in Bogotá's financial sector, embodies a different kind of tension. She places high trust in the IT sector and private business (4 out of 5 each) while rating government and parliament at the lowest possible score. Like many respondents in knowledge-intensive industries, she sees innovation and market-driven institutions as more reliable engines of the future than the state.
Jaiber Andrés Mora Tocora, a systems engineer working across public and private institutions, shows a different pattern entirely. He rates nearly every institution in the survey — government, education, business, IT, academia — between 4 and 5 out of 5, an unusually high and uniform level of trust. He expects his field to be automated and to move fully online by 2046, and when asked how he feels about Colombia's future, his answer was simply: "Hope."
Artificial intelligence occupies a particularly complex place in public opinion.
On one hand, technological change and AI appear among the most frequently identified risks. On the other, the IT sector ranks among Colombia's most trusted institutions, receiving an average trust score of 3.60 out of 5.
Technology is therefore viewed simultaneously as a source of opportunity and a source of uncertainty.
Twenty-eight respondents believe their professional group may disappear entirely by 2046. Oscar Contreras, a music teacher and audio producer from Bogotá, is one of them. Asked what his field will look like in 2046, he chose this outcome for his own profession; asked to picture his own life twenty years from now, his answer was simply: "I don't have a clear horizon."
The survey also points toward emerging environmental occupations.
Fifteen percent of respondents envision future work connected to ecosystem restoration and environmental recovery, suggesting that sustainability is increasingly being understood as an economic sector rather than solely an environmental objective.
The Human Economy
One of the most revealing findings appears in the survey's open-ended questions.
When participants were asked to identify Colombia's greatest resource, the most common answer was not oil, minerals, infrastructure, or government institutions.
It was people.
Jimmy Ramírez, a chemistry teacher, captures this conviction directly. Asked what Colombia's greatest resource is, he answered: "its people, especially the education, cultural diversity and resilience of the communities." For Jimmy, as for many respondents, the path forward runs through classrooms rather than institutions.
More than 31 percent of respondents identified human talent, creativity, resilience, and work ethic as the country's most valuable asset. Biodiversity ranked second, while education ranked third.
This finding helps explain several other patterns throughout the survey.
Colombians consistently place greater trust in educational institutions, academia, science, 8and community organizations than in traditional political structures. The future is imagined less as something delivered by the state and more as something built collectively through knowledge, effort, and innovation.
Notably, almost 28 percent of participants identified themselves as entrepreneurs, reinforcing the importance of individual initiative within the country's economic imagination.
Economic Anxiety and the Emotional Landscape of the Future
Economic concerns are also reflected in how respondents feel about the years ahead.
When asked to describe their emotions regarding Colombia's future, uncertainty emerged as the dominant response, accounting for nearly 30 percent of all answers. Hope ranked second at approximately 17 percent.
When uncertainty, fear, anxiety, and concern are combined, nearly 47 percent of respondents express predominantly negative emotions about the future.
Yet the findings do not point toward despair.
Hope remains a significant emotional current throughout the survey. Many participants simultaneously acknowledge serious economic and social challenges while continuing to believe that improvement is possible.
This coexistence of concern and optimism may be one of the defining features of contemporary Colombia.
People are worried about the future.
But they have not stopped believing in it.
A Future Worth Building
The economic story emerging from the survey is neither one of confidence nor one of despair.
Colombians do not believe prosperity is guaranteed. They worry about inequality, unstable employment, institutional weakness, and the disruptions that technological change may bring. Yet the survey reveals something equally important: despite these concerns, they have not abandoned the future.
Most respondents still imagine themselves building their lives in Colombia. They continue to believe that education, innovation, and hard work can create opportunities. When asked about the country's greatest resource, they pointed not to natural wealth or government institutions, but to people—their talent, resilience, creativity, and capacity to adapt.
That may be the survey's most significant economic finding.
The challenge facing Colombia is not a lack of ambition. Colombians know what they want: decent work, economic security, peace, sustainability, and the opportunity to live with dignity. The challenge is creating the conditions that make those aspirations attainable.
Behind every percentage in this survey lies a personal calculation about the future: whether a family will be able to buy a home, whether a young person will find meaningful work, and whether the next generation will enjoy greater opportunities than the last.
The numbers reveal uncertainty. But they also reveal determination.
For now, the future remains unwritten. And despite everything, most Colombians still believe it is worth building.
Among all the risks presented in the survey, none received more attention than economic insecurity.
Nearly 65 percent of respondents (194 people) identified economic crises and inequality as one of the greatest threats facing Colombia's future. No other risk received more support. Climate change followed closely at 58.5 percent, while geopolitical conflicts, institutional distrust, and concerns about the peace process completed the list of major worries.
These findings suggest that Colombians do not view economic challenges as isolated issues. Economic security is connected to environmental sustainability, political stability, and social cohesion. A future marked by rising inequality or prolonged economic crises is seen not only as a financial problem but as a threat to the country's overall well-being.
Employment remains a significant concern as well. One in five respondents selected the disappearance of traditional jobs as a major future risk, reflecting growing uncertainty about automation, artificial intelligence, and changing labor markets.
The survey suggests that Colombians are not merely worried about finding work. They are concerned about whether the nature of work itself will fundamentally change.
What Colombians Want from the Future
While respondents express concern about economic uncertainty, their vision of the future remains remarkably ambitious.
When asked what kind of Colombia they hope to see in 2046, economic prosperity and decent work emerged as the most popular aspiration, selected by 88.3 percent of participants.
This result ranked even higher than respect for human rights, peace without armed groups, or environmental restoration.
The finding is revealing. Economic prosperity is not viewed as a secondary objective that follows social progress. Rather, it is seen as one of the foundations upon which a dignified future must be built.
Yet prosperity alone is not enough.
Respondents also expressed strong support for human rights, peace, environmental balance, and sustainability. The desired future is therefore not one of economic growth at any cost. Instead, Colombians envision development that improves living standards while preserving social and environmental well-being.
This broader vision is reflected elsewhere in the survey. Nearly 90 percent of respondents described their ideal Colombia as "sustainable," while 61.9 percent selected "empathetic" as a defining characteristic of the future.
Economic success, in the Colombian imagination, is inseparable from social responsibility.
Staying, Leaving, and Building a Life
Economic expectations strongly influence how people imagine their personal futures.
Despite widespread concerns about instability, most respondents do not see emigration as their preferred solution.
More than 61 percent imagine themselves remaining in Colombia with stable employment and home ownership by 2046. Only 5 percent foresee emigrating permanently.
These figures challenge the common assumption that Colombians primarily associate success with leaving the country.
For most respondents, the goal is not escape.
It is stability.
The results suggest that many Colombians still believe their future can be built at home, provided that economic opportunities improve and institutions become more effective.
At the same time, nearly 20 percent envision a period of temporary migration before eventually returning. This indicates that international mobility is often viewed as a strategy for advancement rather than a permanent departure.
Yet Colombians do not begin from the same economic position. Nearly half of respondents (49.5 percent) described their households as belonging to a standard middle-income category—able to meet everyday needs but still vulnerable to unexpected shocks.
Another 21.1 percent reported living at the level of consumer staples, while 4.7 percent indicated that they were living in conditions of basic survival. Only 22.7 percent described themselves as economically comfortable, and just 2 percent reported living in abundance. These figures suggest that for many Colombians, economic insecurity is not simply a future concern but a present reality.
The Future of Work: Adaptation Rather Than Consensus
If there is one area where Colombians show little certainty, it is the future of work.
The survey reveals no dominant vision of how employment will evolve over the next two decades.
Instead, three competing scenarios emerge almost equally:
39.5 percent believe technology will take over routine work.
36.8 percent believe work will become more collective and community-oriented.
35.8 percent expect people to continue doing similar jobs, but under AI supervision.
The narrow differences between these options illustrate a society attempting to anticipate change without knowing exactly what form it will take.
Among younger professionals, Alexandra Ortega, a systems engineer working in Bogotá's financial sector, embodies a different kind of tension. She places high trust in the IT sector and private business (4 out of 5 each) while rating government and parliament at the lowest possible score. Like many respondents in knowledge-intensive industries, she sees innovation and market-driven institutions as more reliable engines of the future than the state.
Jaiber Andrés Mora Tocora, a systems engineer working across public and private institutions, shows a different pattern entirely. He rates nearly every institution in the survey — government, education, business, IT, academia — between 4 and 5 out of 5, an unusually high and uniform level of trust. He expects his field to be automated and to move fully online by 2046, and when asked how he feels about Colombia's future, his answer was simply: "Hope."
Artificial intelligence occupies a particularly complex place in public opinion.
On one hand, technological change and AI appear among the most frequently identified risks. On the other, the IT sector ranks among Colombia's most trusted institutions, receiving an average trust score of 3.60 out of 5.
Technology is therefore viewed simultaneously as a source of opportunity and a source of uncertainty.
Twenty-eight respondents believe their professional group may disappear entirely by 2046. Oscar Contreras, a music teacher and audio producer from Bogotá, is one of them. Asked what his field will look like in 2046, he chose this outcome for his own profession; asked to picture his own life twenty years from now, his answer was simply: "I don't have a clear horizon."
The survey also points toward emerging environmental occupations.
Fifteen percent of respondents envision future work connected to ecosystem restoration and environmental recovery, suggesting that sustainability is increasingly being understood as an economic sector rather than solely an environmental objective.
The Human Economy
One of the most revealing findings appears in the survey's open-ended questions.
When participants were asked to identify Colombia's greatest resource, the most common answer was not oil, minerals, infrastructure, or government institutions.
It was people.
Jimmy Ramírez, a chemistry teacher, captures this conviction directly. Asked what Colombia's greatest resource is, he answered: "its people, especially the education, cultural diversity and resilience of the communities." For Jimmy, as for many respondents, the path forward runs through classrooms rather than institutions.
More than 31 percent of respondents identified human talent, creativity, resilience, and work ethic as the country's most valuable asset. Biodiversity ranked second, while education ranked third.
This finding helps explain several other patterns throughout the survey.
Colombians consistently place greater trust in educational institutions, academia, science, 8and community organizations than in traditional political structures. The future is imagined less as something delivered by the state and more as something built collectively through knowledge, effort, and innovation.
Notably, almost 28 percent of participants identified themselves as entrepreneurs, reinforcing the importance of individual initiative within the country's economic imagination.
Economic Anxiety and the Emotional Landscape of the Future
Economic concerns are also reflected in how respondents feel about the years ahead.
When asked to describe their emotions regarding Colombia's future, uncertainty emerged as the dominant response, accounting for nearly 30 percent of all answers. Hope ranked second at approximately 17 percent.
When uncertainty, fear, anxiety, and concern are combined, nearly 47 percent of respondents express predominantly negative emotions about the future.
Yet the findings do not point toward despair.
Hope remains a significant emotional current throughout the survey. Many participants simultaneously acknowledge serious economic and social challenges while continuing to believe that improvement is possible.
This coexistence of concern and optimism may be one of the defining features of contemporary Colombia.
People are worried about the future.
But they have not stopped believing in it.
A Future Worth Building
The economic story emerging from the survey is neither one of confidence nor one of despair.
Colombians do not believe prosperity is guaranteed. They worry about inequality, unstable employment, institutional weakness, and the disruptions that technological change may bring. Yet the survey reveals something equally important: despite these concerns, they have not abandoned the future.
Most respondents still imagine themselves building their lives in Colombia. They continue to believe that education, innovation, and hard work can create opportunities. When asked about the country's greatest resource, they pointed not to natural wealth or government institutions, but to people—their talent, resilience, creativity, and capacity to adapt.
That may be the survey's most significant economic finding.
The challenge facing Colombia is not a lack of ambition. Colombians know what they want: decent work, economic security, peace, sustainability, and the opportunity to live with dignity. The challenge is creating the conditions that make those aspirations attainable.
Behind every percentage in this survey lies a personal calculation about the future: whether a family will be able to buy a home, whether a young person will find meaningful work, and whether the next generation will enjoy greater opportunities than the last.
The numbers reveal uncertainty. But they also reveal determination.
For now, the future remains unwritten. And despite everything, most Colombians still believe it is worth building.
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