Colombia's national budget proposal for 2016 could open the door to several years of austerity. After a decade of strong government spending, Colombia faces several years of tight budgets. On 14 July the National Council for Economic and Social Policy (Conpes) approved the finance ministry’s budget proposal for 2016. Although total expenditure is set to increase by 2.3% to US$60.5bn, there will be major cuts to investment projects, especially in the areas of mining, agriculture and housing. At a press conference, Finance Minister Mauricio Cárdenas announced that the budget represented a "policy of austerity." With global oil prices remaining depressed,…