Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others are Ecuador and Venezuela). A four-decade long conflict between government forces and anti-government insurgent groups, principally the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) heavily funded by the drug trade, escalated during the 1990s. The insurgents lack the military or popular support necessary to overthrow the government, and violence has been decreasing since about 2002. However, insurgents continue attacks against civilians and large areas of the countryside are under guerrilla influence or are contested by security forces. More than 31,000 former paramilitaries had demobilized by the end of 2006 and the United Self Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) 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 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. However, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders. In January 2011, Colombia assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2011-12 term.

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

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

9,000 sq km (2008)

2,132 cu km (2000)

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

44,725,543 (July 2011 est.)

1.156% (2011 est.)

17.49 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

5.26 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

-0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

BOGOTA (capital) 8.262 million; Medellin 3.497 million; Cali 2.352 million; Barranquilla 1.836 million; Bucaramanga 1.065 million (2009)

2.15 children born/woman (2011 est.)

0.5% (2009 est.)

160,000 (2009 est.)

14,000 (2009 est.)

urban: 99% of population

rural: 73% of population

total: 92% of population

urban: 1% of population

rural: 27% of population

total: 8% of population (2008)

urban: 81% of population

rural: 55% of population

total: 74% of population

urban: 19% of population

rural: 45% of population

total: 26% of population (2008)

mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1%

Roman Catholic 90%, other 10%

Spanish (official)

4.8% of GDP (2009)

republic; executive branch dominates government structure

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, San Andres y Providencia, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca, Vaupes, Vichada

20 July 1810 (from Spain)

Independence Day, 20 July (1810)

5 July 1991; amended many times

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

bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Senate or Senado (102 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (166 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

four roughly coequal, supreme judicial organs; Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (highest court of criminal law; judges are selected by their peers from the nominees of the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms); Council of State (highest court of administrative law; judges are selected from the nominees of the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms); Constitutional Court (guards integrity and supremacy of the constitution; rules on constitutionality of laws, amendments to the constitution, and international treaties); Superior Judicial Council (administers and disciplines the civilian judiciary; resolves jurisdictional conflicts arising between other courts; members are elected by three sister courts and Congress for eight-year terms)

Alternative Democratic Pole or PDA [Clara LOPEZ]; Conservative Party or PC [Fernando ARAUJO]; Green Party [Luis GARZON]; Liberal Party or PL [Rafael PARDO]; National Integration Party or PIN [Angel ALIRIO Moreno]; Radical Change or CR [German VARGAS Lleras]; Social National Unity Party or U Party [Juan Francisco LOZANO Ramirez]

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, CAN, Caricom (observer), CDB, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, 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 Columbia, 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

The SANTOS administration has highlighted five "locomotives" to stimulate economic growth: extractive industries; agriculture; infrastructure; housing; and innovation. Colombia is third largest exporter of oil to the United States. President SANTOS, inaugurated in August 2010, introduced unprecedented legislation to better distribute extractive industry royalties and compensate Colombians who lost their land due to decades of violence. He also seeks to build on improvements in domestic security and on President URIBE's promarket economic policies. Foreign direct investment reached a record $10 billion in 2008, but dropped to $7.2 billion in 2009, before beginning to recover in 2010, notably in the oil sector. Pro-business reforms in the oil and gas sectors and export-led growth, fueled mainly by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act, have enhanced Colombia's investment climate. Inequality, underemployment, and narcotrafficking remain significant challenges, and Colombia's infrastructure requires major improvements to sustain economic expansion. Because of the global financial crisis and weakening demand for Colombia's exports, Colombia's economy grew only 2.7% in 2008, and 0.8% in 2009 but rebounded to around 4.4% in 2010. In late 2010, Colombia experienced its most severe flooding in decades, with damages estimated to exceed $6 billion. The government has encouraged exporters to diversify their customer base beyond the United States and Venezuela, traditionally Colombia's largest trading partners; the SANTOS administration continues to pursue free trade agreements with Asian and South American partners and a trade accord with Canada is expected to go into effect in 2011, while a negotiated trade agreement with the EU has yet to be approved by the EU parliament. Improved relations with Venezuela have eased worries about restrictions on bilateral trade, but the business sector remains concerned about the pending US Congressional approval of the US-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement.

$435.4 billion (2010 est.)

$417.4 billion (2009 est.)

$411.4 billion (2008 est.)

$285.5 billion (2010 est.)

4.3% (2010 est.)

1.5% (2009 est.)

3.5% (2008 est.)

$9,800 (2010 est.)

$9,600 (2009 est.)

$9,500 (2008 est.)

21.27 million (2010 est.)

11.8% (2010 est.)

12% (2009 est.)

45.5% (2009)

58.5 (2009)

53.8 (1996)

22.8% of GDP (2010 est.)

44.8% of GDP (2010 est.)

45.3% of GDP (2009 est.)

3.1% (2010 est.)

4% (2009 est.)

3% (31 October 2010)

5.5% (31 December 2009)

12.98% (31 December 2009 est.)

17.18% (31 December 2008 est.)

$31.83 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$24.41 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$104.9 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$82.39 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$123 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$96.66 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$217.3 billion (31 December 2010)

$133.3 billion (31 December 2009)

$87.03 billion (31 December 2008)

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

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

5.5% (2010 est.)

50.58 billion kWh (2007)

38.59 billion kWh (2007)

876.7 million kWh (2007)

39.4 million kWh (2007)

785,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)

288,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

294,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)

16,540 bbl/day (2007 est.)

1.9 billion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

9 billion cu m (2008 est.)

8.1 billion cu m (2008 est.)

900 million cu m (2008 est.)

0 cu m (2008 est.)

112 billion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$-5.946 billion (2010 est.)

$-4.991 billion (2009 est.)

$40.24 billion (2010 est.)

$32.08 billion (2009)

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

US 42%, EU 12.6%, China 5.2%, Ecuador 4.5% (2010 est.)

$36.26 billion (2010 est.)

$32.49 billion (2009)

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

US 25.5%, China 13.4%, Mexico 9.4%, Brazil 5.9%, Germany 4.1% (2010 est.)

$28.5 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$25.35 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$57.74 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$52.9 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$84.62 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$75.22 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$19.2 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$16.2 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Colombian pesos (COP) per US dollar -

1,869.9 (2010)

2,157.6 (2009)

2,243.6 (2008)

2,013.8 (2007)

2,358.6 (2006)

7.5 million (2009)

42.16 million (2009)

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

.co

2.527 million (2010)

22.538 million (2009)

990 (2010)

2 (2010)

gas 4,801 km; oil 6,334 km; refined products 3,309 km (2010)

18,000 km (2010)

Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Puerto Bolivar, Santa Marta, Turbo

National Army (Ejercito Nacional), Republic of Colombia Navy (Armada Republica de Colombia, includes Naval Aviation, Naval Infantry (Infanteria de Marina, IM), and Coast Guard), Colombian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea de Colombia, FAC) (2011)

18-24 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; service obligation - 18 months (2004)

3.4% of GDP (2005 est.)

in December 2007, ICJ allocates San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina islands to Colombia under 1928 Treaty but does 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 167,000 hectares in coca cultivation in 2007, a 6% increase over 2006, producing a potential of 535 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 2005, aerial eradication dispensed herbicide to treat over 130,000 hectares but aggressive replanting on the part of coca growers means Colombia remains a key producer; 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 25% between 2006 and 2007; most Colombian heroin is destined for the US market (2008)