Norman Maurice Armitage (born 13 June 1945) is a Colombian businessman, politician, and philanthropist who served as the mayor of

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,227,642 residents according to the 2018 census. The city spans with of urban area, making Cali the second ...

, the third-largest city in

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

, and the economic hub of Southwestern Colombia from 2016 to 2019.

Education and early career

Armitage studied Law at University, and then went to work in steel mining. He bought his first company SIDOC (Siderúrgica de Occidente) which he still owns. Armitage also owns the Ingenio de Ocidente which is an

Agribusiness Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy, in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise. The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit w ...

company whose main product is refined sugar and owns 3,000 hectares of land which is used for production. Armitage is also a shareholder of Cementos San Marcos, and is a part of the board of directors of the Cali Chamber of Commerce and Fenalco Valle.

Social Work

Armitage is well known for his philanthropy and social work in the suburbs such as Siloé. He is a firm believer in the peace process to end the armed conflict in Colombia and previously volunteered to put his foundation to use to help destroy the weapons when the (M19) demobilised. All of the companies owned by Armitage split a share of the profits with their employees every 3 months, and he also advocates paying more than the standard minimum wage to his workers.

Mayor of Cali (2016-2019)

Peace in Colombia

Due to his past experiences, including when he was kidnapped, Armitage became more involved in charitable causes and organizations which sought to bring peace to Colombia. Subsequently when President Juan Manuel Santos announced to the world and the Colombian people that he was holding peace talks with the FARC in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, Maurice Armitage then formed part of a group of victims who travelled to Havana to take part in the peace talks and help the Government.

Personal life

Armitage is married to Patricia Tello Dorronsoro and they have two daughters. Armitage's father was English, and his mother was from Antioquia. Armitage was a cousins of former Colombian senator and politician,

Esmeralda Arboleda Cadavid Maria Esmeralda Arboleda Cadavid (January 7, 1921 – 16 April 1997) was a Colombian politician, suffragist and the first woman elected to the Senate of Colombia, serving from 1958 to 1961. A leader of the women's suffrage movement in Colombia ...

as well as Arboleda's sister, Mireya Arboleda, a classical pianist.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Armitage, Norman Maurice 1945 births Living people Mayors of Cali University of Valle Colombian philanthropists Colombian people of English descent