Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others are Ecuador and Venezuela). A five-decade-long conflict between government forces and antigovernment insurgent groups, principally the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) heavily funded by the drug trade, escalated during the 1990s. More than 31,000 former paramilitaries had demobilized by the end of 2006 and the United Self Defense Forces of Colombia as a formal organization had ceased to function. In the wake of the paramilitary demobilization, emerging criminal groups arose, whose members include some former paramilitaries. The insurgents lack the military or popular support necessary to overthrow the government, but continue attacks against civilians. Large areas of the countryside are under guerrilla influence or are contested by security forces. In November 2012, the Colombian Government started formal peace negotiations with the FARC aimed at reaching a definitive bilateral cease-fire and incorporating demobilized FARC members into mainstream society and politics. The Colombian Government has stepped up efforts to reassert government control throughout the country, and now has a presence in every one of its administrative departments. Despite decades of internal conflict and drug related security challenges, Colombia maintains relatively strong democratic institutions characterized by peaceful, transparent elections and the protection of civil liberties.

Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama

4 00 N, 72 00 W

South America

slightly less than twice the size of Texas

3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km)

tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands

flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains (Llanos)

highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m

petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower

arable land 1.4%; permanent crops 1.6%; permanent pasture 34.5%

10,900 sq km (2012)

the majority of people live in the north and west where agricultural opportunities and natural resources are found; the vast grasslands of the llanos to the south and east, which make up approximately 60% of the country, are sparsely populated

highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts

deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions

only South American country with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea

47,220,856 (July 2016 est.)

mestizo and white 84.2%, Afro-Colombian (includes multatto, Raizal, and Palenquero) 10.4%, Amerindian 3.4%, Roma <.01, unspecified 2.1% (2005 est.)

Spanish (official)

Roman Catholic 90%, other 10%

Colombia is in the midst of a demographic transition resulting from steady declines in its fertility, mortality, and population growth rates. The birth rate has fallen from more than 6 children per woman in the 1960s to just above replacement level today as a result of increased literacy, family planning services, and urbanization. However, income inequality is among the worst in the world, and more than a third of the population lives below the poverty line.

Colombia experiences significant legal and illegal economic emigration and refugee flows. Large-scale labor emigration dates to the 1960s; Venezuela and the United States continue to be the main host countries. Colombia is the largest source of Latin American refugees in Latin America, nearly 400,000 of whom live primarily in Venezuela and Ecuador. Forced displacement remains prevalent because of violence among guerrillas, paramilitary groups, and Colombian security forces. Afro-Colombian and indigenous populations are disproportionately affected. A leading NGO estimates that 5.2 million people have been displaced since 1985, while the Colombian Government estimates 3.6 million since 2000. These estimates may undercount actual numbers because not all internally displaced persons are registered. Historically, Colombia also has one of the world's highest levels of forced disappearances. About 30,000 cases have been recorded over the last four decades - although the number is likely to be much higher - including human rights activists, trade unionists, Afro-Colombians, indigenous people, and farmers in rural conflict zones.

1.02% (2016 est.)

16.3 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)

5.4 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)

-0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)

the majority of people live in the north and west where agricultural opportunities and natural resources are found; the vast grasslands of the llanos to the south and east, which make up approximately 60% of the country, are sparsely populated

BOGOTA (capital) 9.765 million; Medellin 3.911 million; Cali 2.646 million; Barranquilla 1.991 million; Bucaramanga 1.215 million; Cartagena 1.092 million (2015)

21.4

64 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

2.02 children born/woman (2016 est.)

79.1% (2009/10)

7.2% of GDP (2014)

1.47 physicians/1,000 population (2010)

1.5 beds/1,000 population (2012)

urban: 96.8% of population

rural: 73.8% of population

total: 91.4% of population

urban: 3.2% of population

rural: 26.2% of population

total: 8.6% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 85.2% of population

rural: 67.9% of population

total: 81.1% of population

urban: 14.8% of population

rural: 32.1% of population

total: 18.9% of population (2015 est.)

0.48% (2015 est.)

146,000 (2015 est.)

2,300 (2015 est.)

20.7% (2014)

3.4% (2010)

4.7% of GDP (2014)

presidential republic

32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital district* (distrito capital); Amazonas, Antioquia, Arauca, Atlantico, Bogota*, Bolivar, Boyaca, Caldas, Caqueta, Casanare, Cauca, Cesar, Choco, Cordoba, Cundinamarca, Guainia, Guaviare, Huila, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Narino, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Quindio, Risaralda, Archipielago de San Andres, Providencia y Santa Catalina (colloquially San Andres y Providencia), Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca, Vaupes, Vichada

20 July 1810 (from Spain)

Independence Day, 20 July (1810)

several previous; latest promulgated 5 July 1991; amended many times, last in 2015 (2016)

civil law system influenced by the Spanish and French civil codes

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

Alternative Democratic Pole or PDA [Clara LOPEZ]

Conservative Party or PC [David BARGUIL]

Democratic Center Party or CD [Alvaro URIBE Velez, Oscar Ivan ZULUAGA]

Green Alliance [Jorge LONDONO, Antonio SANGUINO, Luis AVELLANEDA, Camilo ROMERO]

Liberal Party or PL [Horacio SERPA]

Citizens Option (Opcion Ciudadana) or OC (formerly known as the National Integration Party or PIN) [Angel ALIRIO Moreno]

Radical Change or CR [Carlos Fernando GALAN]

Social National Unity Party or U Party [Roy BARRERAS, Jose David NAME]

Central Union of Workers or CUT

Colombian Confederation of Workers or CTC

General Confederation of Workers or CGT

National Liberation Army or ELN

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC

BCIE, BIS, CAN, Caricom (observer), CD, CDB, CELAC, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, Pacific Alliance, PCA, UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width), blue, and red; the flag retains the three main colors of the banner of Gran Colombia, the short-lived South American republic that broke up in 1830; various interpretations of the colors exist and include: yellow for the gold in Colombia's land, blue for the seas on its shores, and red for the blood spilled in attaining freedom; alternatively, the colors have been described as representing more elemental concepts such as sovereignty and justice (yellow), loyalty and vigilance (blue), and valor and generosity (red); or simply the principles of liberty, equality, and fraternity

Andean condor; national colors: yellow, blue, red

Colombia's consistently sound economic policies and aggressive promotion of free trade agreements in recent years have bolstered its ability to weather external shocks. Colombia depends heavily on energy and mining exports, making it vulnerable to a drop in commodity prices. Colombia is the world's fourth largest coal exporter and Latin America's fourth largest oil producer. Economic development is stymied by inadequate infrastructure, inequality, poverty, narcotrafficking and an uncertain security situation.

Declining oil prices have resulted in a drop in government revenues. In 2014, Colombia passed a tax reform bill to offset the lost revenue from the global drop in oil prices. The SANTOS administration is also using tax reform to help finance implementation of a peace deal between FARC and the government. Colombian officials estimate a peace deal may bolster economic growth by up to 2%.

Despite austerity measures put in place by the SANTOS administration, GDP and foreign direct investment fell in 2015, while the El Nino weather phenomenon caused food and energy prices to rise, with inflation spiking to 6.8%. In order to combat inflation, the Central Bank raised interest rates four times during the last four months of 2015, ending the year with a 25 basis point increase to 5.75%. Unemployment has continued to decrease and hit a record low of 8.9% in 2015, but the rate is still one of Latin America's highest. Nevertheless, Colombia’s GDP growth rate makes it the region’s best performer among large economies in 2015.

Real GDP growth averaged 4.8% per year from 2010-2014, continuing a decade of strong economic performance, before dropping in 2015. All three major ratings agencies upgraded Colombia's government debt to investment grade in 2013 and 2014, which helped to attract record levels of investment, mostly in the hydrocarbons sector. However, Standard & Poor’s downgraded its long-term outlook from stable to negative in early 2016. The change, due largely to falling government revenues, could cause Colombia to lose its investment-grade bond status.

The SANTOS Administration's foreign policy has focused on bolstering Colombia's commercial ties and boosting investment at home. Colombia has signed or is negotiating Free Trade Agreements (FTA) with more than a dozen countries; the US-Colombia FTA went into force in May 2012. The US and Colombia have benefitted from the FTA, but Colombia’s ability to take full advantage of its enhanced access to American markets continues to be constrained by lack of export diversification. Nontariff measures remain a point of contention for bilateral trade relations. Truck scrappage regulation, and restrictions on liquor, pharmaceutical, and ethanol imports are top irritants in the bilateral trade relationship. Colombia is a founding member of the Pacific Alliance - a regional trade block formed in 2012 by Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru to promote regional trade and economic integration. In 2013, Colombia began its accession process to the OECD.

$667.4 billion (2015 est.)

$647.5 billion (2014 est.)

$620.3 billion (2013 est.)

$293.2 billion (2015 est.)

3.1% (2015 est.)

4.4% (2014 est.)

4.9% (2013 est.)

$13,800 (2015 est.)

$13,600 (2014 est.)

$13,200 (2013 est.)

21.3% of GDP (2015 est.)

21.1% of GDP (2014 est.)

21.1% of GDP (2013 est.)

coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; shrimp; forest products

textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds

2% (2015 est.)

24.17 million (2015 est.)

8.9% (2015 est.)

9.1% (2014 est.)

27.8% (2015 est.)

53.5 (2012)

56.9 (1996)

28.1% of GDP (2015 est.)

-3.4% of GDP (2015 est.)

49.6% of GDP (2015 est.)

46% of GDP (2014 est.)

calendar year

5% (2015 est.)

2.9% (2014 est.)

5.75% (18 December 2015)

4.75% (31 December 2011)

11.45% (31 December 2015 est.)

10.87% (31 December 2014 est.)

$32.82 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$39.13 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$177.5 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$161.7 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

$133.8 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$150.6 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$262.1 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$201.3 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$208.5 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

-$19.04 billion (2015 est.)

-$19.57 billion (2014 est.)

$38.12 billion (2015 est.)

$56.92 billion (2014 est.)

petroleum, coal, emeralds, coffee, nickel, cut flowers, bananas, apparel

US 27.5%, Panama 7.2%, China 5.2%, Spain 4.4%, Ecuador 4% (2015)

$52.04 billion (2015 est.)

$61.55 billion (2014 est.)

industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity

US 28.8%, China 18.6%, Mexico 7.1%, Germany 4.2% (2015)

$46.22 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$46.81 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$107.3 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$102.3 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$149.7 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$141.9 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$47.3 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$43.08 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

Colombian pesos (COP) per US dollar -

2,741.8 (2015 est.)

2,001.1 (2014 est.)

2,001.1 (2013 est.)

1,798 (2012 est.)

1,848 (2011 est.)

68 billion kWh (2014 est.)

60 billion kWh (2014 est.)

800 million kWh (2014 est.)

47 million kWh (2014 est.)

16 million kW (2014 est.)

32.1% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

67.2% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

0.7% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

1.006 million bbl/day (2015 est.)

711,900 bbl/day (2013 est.)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

2.3 billion bbl (1 January 2016 es)

323,700 bbl/day (2013 est.)

299,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)

97,820 bbl/day (2013 est.)

76,180 bbl/day (2013 est.)

12.68 billion cu m (2014 est.)

11.73 billion cu m (2014 est.)

950 million cu m (2014 est.)

0 cu m (2013 est.)

134.7 billion cu m (1 January 2016 es)

74 million Mt (2013 est.)

combination of state-owned and privately owned broadcast media provide service; more than 500 radio stations and many national, regional, and local TV stations (2007)

.co

HJ, HK (2016)

836 (2013)

3 (2013)

gas 4,991 km; oil 6,796 km; refined products 3,429 km (2013)

24,725 km (18,300 km navigable; the most important waterway, the River Magdalena, of which 1,488 km is navigable, is dredged regularly to ensure safe passage of cargo vessels and container barges) (2012)

National Army (Ejercito Nacional), Republic of Colombia Navy (Armada Republica de Colombia, ARC, includes Naval Aviation, Naval Infantry (Infanteria de Marina, IM), and Coast Guard), Colombian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea de Colombia, FAC) (2012)

18-24 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; service obligation is 18 months (2012)

3.28% of GDP (2012)

3.06% of GDP (2011)

3.63% of GDP (2010)

in December 2007, ICJ allocated San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina islands to Colombia under 1928 Treaty but did not rule on 82 degrees W meridian as maritime boundary with Nicaragua; managed dispute with Venezuela over maritime boundary and Venezuelan-administered Los Monjes Islands near the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian-organized illegal narcotics, guerrilla, and paramilitary activities penetrate all neighboring borders and have caused Colombian citizens to flee mostly into neighboring countries; Colombia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Jamaica, and the US assert various claims to Bajo Nuevo and Serranilla Bank

illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator with 83,000 hectares in coca cultivation in 2011, a 17% decrease over 2010, producing a potential of 195 mt of pure cocaine; the world's largest producer of coca derivatives; supplies cocaine to nearly all of the US market and the great majority of other international drug markets; in 2012, aerial eradication dispensed herbicide to treat over 100,549 hectares combined with manual eradication of 30,486 hectares; a significant portion of narcotics proceeds are either laundered or invested in Colombia through the black market peso exchange; important supplier of heroin to the US market; opium poppy cultivation is estimated to have fallen to 1,100 hectares in 2009 while pure heroin production declined to 2.1 mt; most Colombian heroin is destined for the US market (2013)