Ep7 S14 Women Shaping Industrial Policy and Transformation in the Global South

In this episode, Dr. Craig Zelizer speaks with Dr. Soraya Caro Vargas, a leader in industrial policy, gender equity, and international cooperation. From serving as Colombia’s Vice Minister of Business Development to designing the country’s first industrial policy in two decades, Soraya brings a rich, cross-sectoral perspective on how to build more inclusive and sustainable economies in the Global South.

Based in Bogotá, with academic roots in Colombia, Italy, and India, Soraya shares how her experiences in government, academia, and diplomacy have shaped her career—and her deep commitment to bringing policy closer to people and territory.

Why Listen

• Industrial policy in practice: What it takes to design and implement a national policy aligned with energy transition, health, defense, and bioeconomy goals
• Leadership as a woman in male-dominated fields: How Soraya navigates power, gender dynamics, and systemic barriers while staying grounded in ethics
• The unexpected PhD journey: Doing a doctorate at Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) as a diplomat’s spouse—and why it's not just about the title, but about building knowledge
• Why territory matters in policy: “You cannot govern from the desk in Bogotá” — how she helped shift Colombia’s national policy toward more localized and inclusive processes
• Skills for impact: Communication, negotiation, working across sectors, and how to learn them through practice, not just theory

Resources from the Episode

• UNAD - Universidad Nacional Abierta y a Distancia: Colombia’s National Open University, leading virtual and hybrid education for over 300,000 learners
• Colombia’s Reindustrialization Policy: A national strategy centered on energy transition, health innovation, bioeconomy, and defense
• ACOPI - Asociación Colombiana de las Micro, Pequeñas y Medianas Empresas: Represents Colombia's small and medium-sized businesses and played a key role during the FTA negotiations
• Latin American Women Leaders Network (private initiative): A high-level network of 600+ women shaping policy, enterprise, and academia
• OECD Work on Informality: Referenced in Soraya’s experience with informality in policy contexts
• ProColombia: Colombia’s national trade, tourism, and investment promotion agency

Bio

Soraya Caro Vargas has extensive experience in designing and implementing strategies and public policies focused on inclusive and sustainable development, social economy, industrialization, and the internationalization of markets. As an academician and researcher, she has significantly contributed to Latin America's economic engagement with emerging Asian countries like India and Turkey. A key aspect of her professional work is her ability to coordinate common interests and commitments among public and private actors, articulating efforts and resources for inclusive economic development and new industrialization.

As Colombia's Vice Minister of Business Development, she led the country's first public industrialization policy of the century (Conpes 4129/2023), focusing on achieving sustainable goals established by the National Plan of Development 2022-2026, emphasizing the protection of natural endowment and the energy transition economy. She successfully advocated for strategic regulations aimed at promoting the formalization of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). She founded two pioneering initiatives: the Centre for Studies on Contemporary India and South Asia (CESICAM) and the Centre for Turkish and Caucasus Studies at Universidad Externado de Colombia. She has also served on boards of directors, demonstrating her ability to lead and inspire change around Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Currently, Soraya Caro Vargas is advising the National Open and Distance University (UNAD) on strategies for cooperation and new sources of finance for virtual education and research.

She was awarded a scholarship by the European Union's Erasmus program to pursue a Master's degree in Economic Law at the University of Bologna. In 2013, she became the first Latin American to earn a PhD in Political Science from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).

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