Colombia

Location

• Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama
• only South American country with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea

Population

Notable Population Centers

City	Population	Note
Bogotá	7,674,366	Capital
Cali	2,392,877
Medellín	1,999,979
Barranquilla	1,206,319
Cartagena	914,552
Cúcuta	777,106
Soacha	655,025
Bucaramanga	581,130
Ibagué	529,635
Santa Marta	499,192

Size

• 439,733 square miles
• 1,138,910 square kilometers
• slightly less than twice the size of Texas

History

Colombia was one of three countries that emerged after the dissolution of Gran Colombia in 1830 -- the others are Ecuador and Venezuela. A decades-long conflict among government forces, paramilitaries, and antigovernment insurgent groups heavily funded by the drug trade -- principally the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) -- escalated during the 1990s. In the wake of the paramilitary demobilization in the 2000s, new criminal groups arose that included some former paramilitaries. After four years of formal peace negotiations, the Colombian Government signed a final accord with the FARC in 2016 that called for its members to demobilize, disarm, and reincorporate into society and politics. The accord also committed the Colombian Government to create three new institutions to form a 'comprehensive system for truth, justice, reparation, and non-repetition,' including a truth commission, a special unit to coordinate the search for those who disappeared during the conflict, and a 'Special Jurisdiction for Peace' to administer justice for conflict-related crimes. Despite decades of internal conflict and drug-trade-related security challenges, Colombia maintains relatively strong and independent democratic institutions characterized by peaceful, transparent elections and the protection of civil liberties.

Climate

tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands

Terrain

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

Languages

Spanish (official) 98.9%, indigenous 1%, Portuguese 0.1%; 65 indigenous languages exist (2023 est.)major-language sample(s): La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Religions

Roman Catholic 63.6%, Protestant 17.2% (Evangelical 16.7%, Adventist 0.3%, other Protestant 0.2%), Jehovah's Witness 0.6%, Church of Jesus Christ 0.1%, other 0.3%, believer, 0.2%. agnostic 1%, atheist 1%, none 14.2%, unspecified 1.8% (2023 est.)

Government

presidential republic

• Constitution: history: several previous; latest promulgated 4 July 1991amendment process: proposed by the government, by Congress, by a constituent assembly, or by public petition; passage requires a majority vote by Congress in each of two consecutive sessions; passage of amendments to constitutional articles on citizen rights, guarantees, and duties also require approval in a referendum by over one half of voters and participation of over one fourth of citizens registered to vote
• Political Parties and Leaders: n/a
• Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
• Legal System: civil law system influenced by the Spanish and French civil codes
• Executive Branch: chief of state: President Gustavo Francisco PETRO Urrego (since 7 August 2022)head of government: President Gustavo Francisco PETRO Urrego (since 7 August 2022)cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the presidentelection/appointment process: president directly elected by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds, if needed, for a single 4-year termmost recent election date: 29 May 2022, with a runoff held on 19 June 2022election results: 2022: Gustavo Francisco PETRO Urrego elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Gustavo Francisco PETRO Urrego (PHxC) 40.3%, Rodolfo HERNÁNDEZ Suárez (LIGA) 28.2%, Federico GUTIÉRREZ Zuluaga (Team for Colombia / CREEMOS) 23.9%, other 7.6%; percent of vote in second round - Gustavo Francisco PETRO Urrego 50.4%, Rodolfo HERNÁNDEZ Suarez 47.3%, blank 2.3%2018: Iván DUQUE Márquez elected president in second round; percent of vote - Iván DUQUE Márquez (CD) 54%, Gustavo Francisco PETRO Urrego (Humane Colombia) 41.8%, other/blank/invalid 4.2%expected date of next election: 31 May 2026note 1: the president is both chief of state and head of governmentnote 2: reforms in 2015 eliminated presidential reelection
• Judicial Branch: highest court(s): Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (consists of the Civil-Agrarian and Labor Chambers each with 7 judges, and the Penal Chamber with 9 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 magistrates); Council of State (consists of 27 judges); Superior Judiciary Council (consists of 13 magistrates)judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the Supreme Court members from candidates submitted by the Superior Judiciary Council; judges elected for individual 8-year terms; Constitutional Court magistrates - nominated by the president, by the Supreme Court, and elected by the Senate; judges elected for individual 8-year terms; Council of State members appointed by the State Council plenary from lists nominated by the Superior Judiciary Councilsubordinate courts: Superior Tribunals (appellate courts for each of the judicial districts); regional courts; civil municipal courts; Superior Military Tribunal; first instance administrative courts
• Legislative Branch: legislature name: Congress (Congreso)legislative structure: bicameral

Demographic Profile

n/a

Economy

• prior to COVID-19, one of the most consistent growth economies; declining poverty; large stimulus package has mitigated economic fallout, but delayed key infrastructure investments; successful inflation management; sound flexible exchange rate regime; domestic economy suffers from lack of trade integration and infrastructure
• Budget: revenues: $116.49 billion (2023 est.)expenditures: $123.966 billion (2023 est.)note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated
• Credit Rating: n/a
• Natural Resources: petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower
• Industries: textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds
• Agricultural Products: sugarcane, oil palm fruit, milk, rice, plantains, potatoes, bananas, maize, chicken, avocados (2023)note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage
• Land Use: agricultural land: 37.6% (2022 est.)arable land: 2.2% (2022 est.)permanent crops: 2.2% (2022 est.)permanent pasture: 33.2% (2022 est.)forest: 52.9% (2022 est.)other: 9.4% (2022 est.)
• Labor Force by Occupation: n/a
• Imports
• Imported Commodities: refined petroleum, cars, broadcasting equipment, aircraft, packaged medicine (2023)note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars
• Import Partners: USA 26%, China 22%, Brazil 6%, Mexico 5%, Germany 4% (2023)note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
• Exports
• Exported Commodities: crude petroleum, coal, gold, coffee, refined petroleum (2023)note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars
• Export Partners: USA 27%, Panama 9%, India 5%, China 5%, Netherlands 4% (2023)note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports