‘There are more than 100 UK business operating out of Colombia, including giants like Virgin, BT, and Shell. The South American nation is ranked as the 34th easiest country to do business in by the World Bank, but ranks first in the Caribbean and Latin America.
The UK has the fifth largest export market in Latin America, and a new business can be set up there in as little as 11 days.
The trouble is, Bogota, the capital of Colombia, is over 5,000 miles away from the UK, which means commuting is out of the question if you’re doing business there. And so you’ll need a low-cost and value-for-money international conference call provider.
And a conference call can be set up in a few simple steps, here’s how…
How to set up a Conference Call between the UK and Colombia
Visit ConferenceCall.co.uk and pick up your free PIN before clicking on the ‘Invite Participants’ tab, which will generate an email template. You then need to enter the time, date and subject of the conference call and then select the relevant dial-in codes for UK and Colombia.
You then simply need to copy the invitation, paste it into an email and send it to up to 100 participants.
Dial-in numbers to call
At the allotted time participants dial the following numbers and enter your PIN:
– UK participants dial 0843 373 0843 (from landlines) or 83000 (from mobiles)
– Colombia participants dial (57-1)5086941 (from landlines) or +44 843 373 0999 (from mobiles)
Your conference call can now begin.
What’s the best time to call Colombia from the UK
Bogota is over 5,000 miles from the UK and the local time is five hours behind GMT – so probably best to leave your business calls until after lunch.
Where is Colombia?
Situated in located in northwestern South America, Colombia has coastlines along Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, and is bordered by Venezuela and Brazil to the east, Peru and Ecuador to the south, and Panama to the west.
What’s the FCO advice for traveling to Colombia?
Despite their being a problem with high levels of crime, most visits to Colombia pass without incident – but you need to really be vigilant.
Street crime is a problem in major cities, including Bogota, Medellin, Cali and the Caribbean coast, where violent mugging and pickpocketing can be a problem, as can theft aft gun point, particularly in the Candelaria area of Bogotá.
Avoid deprived areas of cities and take care on city streets, especially after dark or if you are on your own. Don’t carry large amounts of money or wear valuable watches or jewellery and avoid using your mobile phone in the street.
Only use pre-booked taxis and be wary of fake police officers who will try to look for counterfeit money – if you are approached by police, ask to be taken to the nearest CAI (‘Centro de Atencion Inmediata’ – local police station).
Drugs and street violence are a concern, and nationwide strikes are an ongoing problem.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all but essential travel to:
- the departments of Arauca and Guaviare (except their capital cities)
- the department of Chocó (except its capital Quibdó, the whale-watching towns of Nuquí and Bahía Solano, and the tourist site of Capurganá)
- the Ariari region of southern Meta (except the tourist site of Caño Cristales – if travelling to Caño Cristales, travel by air to and from the town of La Macarena with a reputable tour company)
- the South Pacific, Sanquianga and Telembi regions of Nariño
- the Western region of Cauca
- Buenaventura in the department of Valle del Cauca
- the Urabá and Bajo Cauca regions of Antioquia
- the region of Southern-Bolíva
- the region of Southern-Córdoba
- the Catatumbo region of Norte de Santander
- Orito, San Migue, Valle del Guamuez, Puerto Caicedo, Puerto Guzmán, Puerto Asis and Puerto Leguizamo in Putumayo
- Cartagena del Chairá, San Vicente del Caguan, Puerto Rico, El Doncello, Paujil and La Montañita in Caquetá
- the municipality of Puerto Carreño in Vichada, except the departmental capital
- within 5km of the Venezuelan border and within 5km of the Ecuadorian border, except for the border crossing on the Pan-American highway, at Ipiales.
For more information, go to GOV.UK
If you have business interests in Colombia, it’s probably best to avoid travelling there and conducting meetings via conference call instead.
