Analysis, modelling, and financial perspectives of reverse mortgage implementation in Colombia.

Purpose: Increased life expectancy in recent years, together with the downward trend in fertility rates, will accelerate the aging of the Latin American population (Flamini and et al., 2018) [1]. This demographic change represents a problem for pension systems as the economic capacity to finance the retirement of the population could be insufficient in the future. This creates a favorable scenario for new financial products, including reverse mortgages. This study determines, from the supply approach, the potential of reverse mortgages in the main cities of Colombia as a complement to the financing of old age according to the guidelines of Benavides et al. (Benavides Franco et al., Jan. 2021) [2]. Methodology: The following variables were used: housing prices, interest rates, mortality rates, and the consumer price index. The econometric testing simulates the possible paths of these variables, estimates the probability of occurrence of the paths, and calculates the expected losses of bidding banks. Findings: The results show that reverse mortgages are a good complement to Colombia's pension system and confirm the feasibility of implementation at city level. It is recommended that the State stimulate the growth of this market and improve the corresponding regulatory framework. Originality: This study confirms the hypothesis that the reverse mortgages are a good complement to the pension system with city-level data. Specifically, it uses housing prices and mortality records from the main cities of the country (Bogotá, Cali, and Medellín) to capture their idiosyncrasies.

The evolution of loan volume and non-performing loans under COVID-19 innovations: The Colombian case.

Financial institutions' scale of total and non-performing loans are important figures signaling economic activity and its risk level. COVID-19 created an external shock with overarching effects on the global economy, impacting the credit activity and debtors' ability to repay their obligations. We study how Colombia's loans and non-performing loans market ratios could react to an external shock (absent of any relief measures) by developing a vector autoregressive model with exogenous variables (VARX) with the Central Bank intervention rate as an exogenous variable. We use impulse response functions to simulate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the market of loans and default levels in Colombia. Our results show that the effects remain significant over long periods.

Water pollution and environmental policy in artisanal gold mining frontiers: The case of La Toma, Colombia.

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the largest anthropogenic source of mercury emissions globally. Concern over mercury pollution increases due to its long-term impacts on human health and aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Using a participatory research methodology, we gathered social and behavioral information regarding daily practices and water usage by an ASGM community in Suárez, Colombia. Based on this information, we identified 18 sampling sites of water sources commonly used by the community. The samples were analyzed for total mercury, total coliforms, pH, electrical conductivity, and total dissolved oxygen. Physicochemical and microbiological parameters from the water assessment were compared with the drinking water thresholds set by the Colombian regulatory agencies, the EPA, and the WHO. Our results showed that the majority of the samples do not meet one or more quality and safety standards. On average, the sampling sites showed total mercury levels below the regulatory limits; however, the data had considerable variability, and in many cases, individual observations fell above the maximum concentration limit for drinking water. We discuss these results within the larger framework of the regulatory gaps for human and environmental protection in ASGM contexts. The total lack of water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure, combined with the long-term consumption of sublethal doses of mercury and other water contaminants, constitutes a significant threat to the well-being of communities and territories that necessitates further research and intervention by institutional authorities.

Phytoplankton Functional Groups in a High-Rate Algal Pond Used for the Bioremediation of Landfill Leachate / Grupos funcionales fitoplanctónicos en una laguna algal de alta tasa usada para la biorremediación de lixiviados de rellenos sanitarios

RESUMEN El análisis de comunidades fitoplanctónicas utilizando el enfoque de grupos funcionales (GF), es empleado para predecir la respuesta de la composición de especies fitoplanctónicas a la variación de las condiciones ambientales. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar por primera vez bajo condiciones de trópico americano la dinámica de los grupos funcionales de fitoplancton asociados a un sistema de laguna algal de alta tasa fotosintética (LALAT), empleada para la biorremediación de lixiviados de rellenos sanitarios, utilizando la propuesta de grupos funcionales basada en la morfología (MBFG). Se tomaron muestras de agua para análisis biológico y fisicoquímico durante siete meses. Adicionalmente, se calculó el biovolumen del fitoplancton y se realizó un análisis de correlación canónica para explicar la relación entre las variables físicoquímicas y los grupos funcionales. La LALAT trató un lixiviado de edad intermedia caracterizado por altas concentraciones de nutrientes. Se identificaron cuatro MBFG (IV, V, VI y VII). El grupo V, conformado por fitoflagelados, fue dominante durante todo el periodo de estudio. Este grupo puede sobrevivir y proliferar en ambientes con altas concentraciones de materia orgánica. Además, contribuye a la transformación de los contaminantes presentes en el lixiviado. El aumento del biovolumen de los grupos V y VII se relacionó con los periodos en los cuales la laguna presentó los menores valores de carbono orgánico disuelto. Finalmente, se encontró que el enfoque de los MBGF puede ser útil para comprender la dinámica de la comunidad de fitoplancton en la LALAT utilizado para el tratamiento de lixiviados en rellenos sanitarios.

ABSTRACT The functional group (FG) approach is used to predict the response of the composition of phytoplankton species to changes in the environmental conditions. We assessed for the first time the dynamics of phytoplankton communities in a High-Rate Algal Pond (HRAP), implemented for the bioremediation of landfill leachate, and using morphology-based functional groups (MBFG), under the American tropics conditions. These groups were later correlated with the physical and chemical variables of the system. Water samples were taken for biological, physical and chemical analysis for seven months. In addition, phytoplankton biovolumes were estimated and a canonical correlation analysis was performed to explain the relation between physical and chemical variables and FGs. Subsequently, the HRAP treated a medium-age leachate characterized by high concentrations of nutrients. Four MBFGs were identified (IV, V, VI and VII). Group V, conformed by phytoflagellates, was found to be dominant during the entire study period. This group proliferate in environments with high concentrations of organic matter, while contributing to the transformation of the contaminants present in the leachate. The largest biovolumes of Groups V and VII occurred during periods of low water levels and dissolved organic carbon. Finally, we show that the MBFG technique may be useful in understanding the dynamics of the phytoplankton community in the HRAP used for the treatment of landfill leachate.

Telangiectasia macularis eruptiva perstans: a case report

Telangiectasia macularis eruptiva perstans é forma rara de mastocitose que ocasionalmente afeta crianças. Múltiplas máculas eritematoacastanhadas e telangiectasias surgem principalmente no tronco. O prurido pode ocorrer sendo brando ou intenso. A maior parte dos pacientes apresenta quadro exclusivamente cutâneo. É descrito caso em criança de cinco anos de idade com aspectos clínicos de telangiectasia macularis eruptiva perstans que melhorou com o uso de cetotifeno