British Virgin Islands (2002) | Colombia (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.4% (male 2,401; female 2,351)
15-64 years: 72.7% (male 7,962; female 7,509) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 565; female 484) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.3% (male 6,683,079/female 6,528,563)
15-64 years: 64.5% (male 13,689,384/female 14,416,439) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 996,022/female 1,279,548) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish | coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 984 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 101
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 40 under 914 m: 12 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 883
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 35 914 to 1,523 m: 275 under 914 m: 572 (2006) |
Area | total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada |
total: 1,138,910 sq km
land: 1,038,700 sq km water: 100,210 sq km note: includes Isla de Malpelo, Roncador Cay, and Serrana Bank |
Area - comparative | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672 by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. | Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others are Ecuador and Venezuela). A 40-year conflict between government forces and anti-government insurgent groups and illegal paramilitary groups - both 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, but insurgents continue attacks against civilians and large swaths of the countryside are under guerrilla influence. Paramilitary groups challenge the insurgents for control of territory and the drug trade. Most paramilitary members have demobilized since 2002 in an ongoing peace process, although their commitment to ceasing illicit activity is unclear. The Colombian Government has stepped up efforts to reassert government control throughout the country, and now has a presence in every one of its municipalities. However, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders. |
Birth rate | 15.09 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 20.48 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $46.82 billion
expenditures: $48.77 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Road Town | name: Bogota
geographic coordinates: 4 36 N, 74 05 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds | tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands |
Coastline | 80 km | 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) |
Constitution | 1 June 1977 | 5 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
conventional long form: Republic of Colombia
conventional short form: Colombia local long form: Republica de Colombia local short form: Colombia |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 5.58 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $36.1 million (1997) | $32.35 billion (2005 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador William B. WOOD
embassy: Calle 22D-BIS, numbers 47-51, Apartado Aereo 3831 mailing address: Carrera 45 #22D-45, Bogota, D.C., APO AA 34038 telephone: [57] (1) 315-0811 FAX: [57] (1) 315-2197 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Carolina BARCO Isakson
chancery: 2118 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-8338 FAX: [1] (202) 232-8643 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Washington, DC |
Disputes - international | none | Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; dispute with Venezuela over maritime boundary and Los Monjes Islands near the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian-organized illegal narcotics, guerrilla, and paramilitary activities penetrate all of its neighbors' borders and have created a serious refugee crisis with over 300,000 persons having fled the country, mostly into neighboring states |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $NA |
Economy - overview | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959. | Colombia's economy has been on a recovery trend during the past two years despite a serious armed conflict. The economy continues to improve thanks to austere government budgets, focused efforts to reduce public debt levels, an export-oriented growth strategy, and an improved security situation in the country. Ongoing economic problems facing President URIBE range from reforming the pension system to reducing high unemployment. New exploration is needed to offset declining oil production. On the positive side, several international financial institutions have praised the economic reforms introduced by URIBE, which succeeded in reducing the public-sector deficit below 1.5% of GDP. The government's economic policy and democratic security strategy have engendered a growing sense of confidence in the economy, particularly within the business sector. Coffee prices have recovered from previous lows as the Colombian coffee industry pursues greater market shares in developed countries such as the United States. |
Electricity - consumption | 39.1 million kWh (1999) | 48.83 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 1.082 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 48.4 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 42 million kWh (1999) | 50.43 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m note: nearby Pico Simon Bolivar also has the same elevation |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) | deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed | mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1% |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,320.75 (2005), 2,628.61 (2004), 2,877.65 (2003), 2,504.24 (2002), 2,299.63 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 15 May 1995) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August 2002); Vice President Francisco SANTOS (since 7 August 2002) cabinet: Cabinet consists of a coalition of the two dominant parties - the PL and PSC - and independents elections: president and vice president elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 28 May 2006 (next to be held in May 2010) election results: President Alvaro URIBE Velez reelected president; percent of vote - Alvaro URIBE Velez 62%, Carlos GAVIRIA Diaz 22%, Horacio SERPA Uribe 12%, other 4% |
Exports | $6.2 million | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand | petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers |
Exports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | US 41.8%, Venezuela 9.9%, Ecuador 6.3% (2005) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) | three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width), blue, and red; similar to the flag of Ecuador, which is longer and bears the Ecuadorian coat of arms superimposed in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $311 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 6% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 12.5%
industry: 34.2% services: 53.3% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.4% (2000 est.) | 5.2% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 30 N, 64 30 W | 4 00 N, 72 00 W |
Geography - note | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico | only South American country with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea |
Heliports | - | 2 (2006) |
Highways | total: 177 km
paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 7.9%
highest 10%: 34.3% (2004) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center | illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 2004 was 114,100 hectares, virtually unchanged from 2003, but down one-third from its peak of 169,800 ha); producing a potential of 430 mt of pure cocaine; the world's largest producer of coca derivatives; supplying most of the US market and the great majority of cocaine to other international drug markets; important supplier of heroin to the US market; opium poppy cultivation fell 50% between 2003 and 2004 to 2,100 hectares yielding a potential 3.8 metric tons of pure heroin, mostly for the US market; in 2004, aerial eradication treated over 130,000 hectares of coca but aggressive replanting on the part of growers means Colombia remains a key producer; a significant portion of non-US narcotics proceeds are either laundered or invested in Colombia through the black market peso exchange |
Imports | $230 million (2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery | industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity |
Imports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | US 28.5%, Mexico 8.3%, China 7.6%, Brazil 6.5%, Venezuela 5.7% (2005) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 20 July 1810 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1985) | 3.7% (2005 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center | textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds |
Infant mortality rate | 19.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 20.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 24.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2000) | 5% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate) | BCIE, CAN, CDB, CSN, FAO, G-3, G-15, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 9,000 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction | 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) |
Labor force | 4,911 (1980) | 20.52 million (2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture: 22.7%
industry: 18.7% services: 58.5% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 6,004 km
border countries: Brazil 1,643 km, Ecuador 590 km, Panama 225 km, Peru 1,496 km (est.), Venezuela 2,050 km |
Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 2.01%
permanent crops: 1.37% other: 96.62% (2005) |
Languages | English (official) | Spanish |
Legal system | English law | based on Spanish law; a new criminal code modeled after US procedures was enacted into law in 2004 and is gradually being implemented; judicial review of executive and legislative acts |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - VIP 7, CCM 1, NDP 5 |
bicameral Congress or Congreso consists of the Senate or Senado (102 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2010); House of Representatives - last held 12 March 2006 (next to be held in March 2010) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PSUN 20, PC 18, PL 17, CR 15, PDI 11, other parties 21; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 36, PSUN 30, PC 29, CR 20, PDA 42, other parties 42 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.85 years
male: 74.9 years female: 76.84 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 71.99 years
male: 68.15 years female: 75.96 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.5% male: 92.4% female: 92.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | South America |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 70,285 GRT/6,946 DWT
ships by type: passenger 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 17 ships (1000 GRT or over) 42,413 GRT/58,737 DWT
by type: cargo 13, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 3 registered in other countries: 7 (Antigua and Barbuda 2, Panama 5) (2006) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | - | Army (Ejercito Nacional), National Navy (Armada Nacional, includes naval aviation, marines, and coast guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $3.3 billion (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 3.4% (FY01) |
National holiday | Territory Day, 1 July | Independence Day, 20 July (1810) |
Nationality | noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
noun: Colombian(s)
adjective: Colombian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) | highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts |
Natural resources | NEGL | petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 10.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 4,360 km; oil 6,140 km; refined products 3,158 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] | Clandestine Communist Party of Colombia or PCC [Jaime CAICEDO]; Colombian Conservative Party or PC [Carlos HOLGUIN Sardi]; Alternative Democratic Pole or PDA [Samuel MORENO Rojas]; Liberal Party or PL [Cesar GAVIRIA]; Social National Unity Party or PSUN [Juan Manuel SANTOS]
note: Colombia has about 60 formally recognized political parties, most of which do not have a presence in either house of Congress |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | two largest insurgent groups active in Colombia - Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and National Liberation Army or ELN; largest illegal paramilitary group, a roughly organized umbrella group of disparate paramilitary forces, is United Self-Defense Groups of Colombia or AUC |
Population | 21,272 (July 2002 est.) | 43,593,035 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 49.2% (2005) |
Population growth rate | 2.16% (2002 est.) | 1.46% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Road Town | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999) |
Radios | 9,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 3,304 km
standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 2%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) | Roman Catholic 90%, other 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: submarine cable to Bermuda |
general assessment: modern system in many respects
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system; domestic satellite system with 41 earth stations; fiber-optic network linking 50 cities international: country code - 57; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching centers; 8 submarine cables |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,000 (1996) | 7,678,800 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 21.85 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) | 60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997) |
Terrain | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly | flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.72 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2.54 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3% (1995) | 11.8% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | none | 18,000 km (2005) |