Colombia (2001) | Iceland (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital district* (distrito capital); Amazonas, Antioquia, Arauca, Atlantico, 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, Distrito Capital de Santa Fe de Bogota*, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca, Vaupes, Vichada | 8 regions; Austurland, Hofudhborgarsvaedhi, Nordhurland Eystra, Nordhurland Vestra, Sudhurland, Sudhurnes, Vestfirdhir, Vesturland |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
31.88% (male 6,507,282; female 6,354,454) 15-64 years: 63.37% (male 12,452,182; female 13,117,707) 65 years and over: 4.75% (male 859,967; female 1,057,796) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.7% (male 33,021/female 32,021)
15-64 years: 66.5% (male 100,944/female 98,239) 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 15,876/female 19,287) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp | potatoes, green vegetables; mutton, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 1,091 (2000 est.) | 98 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
92 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 36 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
999 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 64 914 to 1,523 m: 321 under 914 m: 613 (2000 est.) |
total: 93
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 61 (2006) |
Area | total:
1,138,910 sq km land: 1,038,700 sq km water: 100,210 sq km note: includes Isla de Malpelo, Roncador Cay, Serrana Bank, and Serranilla Bank |
total: 103,000 sq km
land: 100,250 sq km water: 2,750 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Montana | slightly smaller than Kentucky |
Background | Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and Venezuela). A 40-year insurgent campaign to overthrow the Colombian Government escalated during the 1990s, undergirded in part by funds from the drug trade. Although the violence is deadly and large swaths of the countryside are under guerrilla influence, the movement lacks the military strength or popular support necessary to overthrow the government. While Bogota continues to try to negotiate a settlement, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders. | Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Limited home rule from Denmark was granted in 1874 and complete independence attained in 1944. Literacy, longevity, income, and social cohesion are first-rate by world standards. |
Birth rate | 22.41 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.64 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$22 billion expenditures: $24 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $6.995 billion
expenditures: $6.761 billion; including capital expenditures of $467 million (2005 est.) |
Capital | Bogota | name: Reykjavik
geographic coordinates: 64 09 N, 21 57 W time difference: UTC (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands | temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers |
Coastline | 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) | 4,970 km |
Constitution | 5 July 1991 | 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944; amended many times |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Colombia conventional short form: Colombia local long form: Republica de Colombia local short form: Colombia |
conventional long form: Republic of Iceland
conventional short form: Iceland local long form: Lydveldid Island local short form: Island |
Currency | Colombian peso (COP) | - |
Death rate | 5.69 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $34 billion (2000 est.) | $3.073 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Anne W. PATTERSON 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Carol VAN VOORST
embassy: Laufasvegur 21, 101 Reykjavik mailing address: US Department of State, 5640 Reykjavik Place, Washington, D.C. 20521-5640 telephone: [354] 562-9100 FAX: [354] 562-9118 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Luis Alberto MORENO Mejia chancery: 2118 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-8338 FAX: [1] (202) 232-8643 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Washington, DC consulate(s): Atlanta |
chief of mission: Ambassador Helgi AGUSTSSON
chancery: Suite 1200, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-1704 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6653 FAX: [1] (202) 265-6656 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | maritime boundary dispute with Venezuela in the Gulf of Venezuela; territorial disputes with Nicaragua over Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank | Iceland disputes Denmark's alignment of the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line; Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm |
Economic aid - donor | - | $6.7 million $NA |
Economic aid - recipient | $40.7 million (1995) | - |
Economy - overview | Colombia is poised for muted growth in the next several years, marking continued recovery from the severe 1999 recession when GDP fell by about 4%. President PASTRANA's well-respected economic team is working to keep the economy on track, maintaining low interest rates, for example. In accordance with its IMF loan agreement, the administration also is taking steps to improve the public sector's fiscal health. However, many challenges to improved prosperity remain. Unemployment was stuck at a record 20% in 2000, contributing to the extreme inequality in income distribution. Two of Colombia's leading exports, oil and coffee, face an uncertain future; new exploration is needed to offset declining oil production, while coffee harvests and prices are depressed. The lack of public security is a key concern for investors, making progress in the government's peace negotiations with insurgent groups an important driver of economic performance. Colombia is looking for continued support from the international community to boost economic and peace prospects. | Iceland's Scandinavian-type economy is basically capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system (including generous housing subsidies), low unemployment, and remarkably even distribution of income. In the absence of other natural resources (except for abundant geothermal power), the economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, which provides 70% of export earnings and employs 4% of the work force. The economy remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to fluctuations in world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum, and ferrosilicon. Government policies include reducing the current account deficit, limiting foreign borrowing, containing inflation, revising agricultural and fishing policies, and diversifying the economy. The government remains opposed to EU membership, primarily because of Icelanders' concern about losing control over their fishing resources. Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and service industries in the last decade, and new developments in software production, biotechnology, and financial services are taking place. The tourism sector is also expanding, with the recent trends in ecotourism and whale watching. Growth had been remarkably steady in 1996-2001 at 3%-5%, but could not be sustained in 2002 in an environment of global recession. Growth resumed in 2003, and estimates call for strong growth until 2007, slowly dropping until the end of the decade. |
Electricity - consumption | 40.532 billion kWh (1999) | 8.619 billion kWh (2004) |
Electricity - exports | 27 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 35 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 43.574 billion kWh (1999) | 8.619 billion kWh (2004) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
22.27% hydro: 76.19% nuclear: 0% other: 1.54% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico Cristobal Colon 5,775 m note: nearby Pico Simon Bolivar also has the same elevation |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Hvannadalshnukur 2,110 m (at Vatnajokull glacier) |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions | water pollution from fertilizer runoff; inadequate wastewater treatment |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Transboundary Air Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1% | homogeneous mixture of descendants of Norse and Celts 94%, population of foreign origin 6% |
Exchange rates | Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,241.43 (January 2001), 2087.90 (2000), 1,756.23 (1999), 1,426.04 (1998), 1,140.96 (1997), 1,036.69 (1996) | Icelandic kronur per US dollar - 62.982 (2005), 70.192 (2004), 76.709 (2003), 91.662 (2002), 97.425 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Andres PASTRANA (since 7 August 1998); Vice President Gustavo BELL Lemus (since 7 August 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Andres PASTRANA (since 7 August 1998); Vice President Gustavo BELL Lemus (since 7 August 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet Cabinet consists of a coalition of the two dominant parties - the PL and PSC - and independents elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 31 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2002); vice president elected by popular vote for a four-year term in a new procedure that replaces the traditional designation of vice presidents by newly elected presidents; election last held 31 May 1998 (next to be held NA May 2002) election results: no candidate received more than 50% of the total vote, therefore, a run-off election to select a president from the two leading candidates was held 21 June 1998; Andres PASTRANA elected president; percent of vote - 50.3%; Gustavo BELL elected vice president; percent of vote - 50.3% |
chief of state: President Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON (since 1 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Geir H. HAARDE (since 7 June 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: president, largely a ceremonial post, is elected by popular vote for a four-year term (no term limits); election last held 26 June 2004 (next to be held June 2008); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually the prime minister election results: Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON 85.6%, Baldur AGUSTSSON 12.5%, Astthor MAGNUSSON 1.9% |
Exports | $14.5 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers | fish and fish products 70%, aluminum, animal products, ferrosilicon, diatomite |
Exports - partners | US 50%, EU 14%, Andean Community of Nations 16%, Japan 2% (2000 est.) | UK 17.9%, Germany 16.4%, Netherlands 13%, US 8.1%, Spain 7.7%, Denmark 4.3% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | 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 | blue with a red cross outlined in white extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $250 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
19% industry: 26% services: 55% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 8.6%
industry: 15% services: 76.5% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,200 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 5.6% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 72 00 W | 65 00 N, 18 00 W |
Geography - note | only South American country with coastlines on both North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea | strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental Europe |
Highways | total:
110,000 km paved: 26,000 km unpaved: 84,000 km (2000) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1% highest 10%: 44% (1999) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of coca, opium poppies, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 1999 - 122,500 hectares, a 20.3% increase over 1998); cultivation of opium in 1999 increased to 7,500 hectares from 6,100 hectares in 1998; potential production of opium in 1999 - 75 metric tons, a 25% increase over 1998; potential production of heroin in 1999 - nearly 8 metric tons, as compared with 6 tons in 1998; the world's largest processor of coca derivatives into cocaine; supplier of about 90% of the cocaine to the US and the great majority of cocaine to other international drug markets, and an important supplier of heroin to the US market; active aerial eradication program | - |
Imports | $12.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 15,470 bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, foodstuffs, textiles |
Imports - partners | US 35%, EU 16%, Andean Community of Nations 15%, Japan 5% (2000 est.) | Germany 13.4%, US 9.1%, Sweden 8.6%, Denmark 7.3%, Norway 7.2%, UK 5.9%, China 5.3%, Netherlands 5%, Japan 4.7% (2005) |
Independence | 20 July 1810 (from Spain) | 1 December 1918 (became a sovereign state under the Danish Crown); 17 June 1944 (from Denmark) |
Industrial production growth rate | 11% (2000 est.) | 14.2% (2005 est.) |
Industries | textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds | fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production; geothermal power, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 23.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 3.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 9% (2000) | 4% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CAN, Caricom (observer), CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G- 3, G-11, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 18 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 5,300 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | four, coequal, supreme judicial organs; Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justical (highest court of criminal law; judges are selected from the nominees of the Higher Council of Justice for eight-year terms); Council of State (highest court of administrative law, judges are selected from the nominees of the Higher Council of Justice 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); Higher Council of Justice (administers and disciplines the civilian judiciary; members of the disciplinary chamber resolve jurisdictional conflicts arising between other courts; members are elected by three sister courts and Congress for eight-year terms) | Supreme Court or Haestirettur (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice); eight district courts (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice) |
Labor force | 18.3 million (1999 est.) | 165,900 (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 46%, agriculture 30%, industry 24% (1990) | agriculture: 10.3%
industry: 18.3% services: 71.4% (2003) |
Land boundaries | 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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
4% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 39% forests and woodland: 48% other: 8% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0.07%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.93% (2005) |
Languages | Spanish | Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken |
Legal system | based on Spanish law; a new criminal code modeled after US procedures was enacted in 1992-93; judicial review of executive and legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | civil law system based on Danish law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | 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 (163 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 8 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2002); House of Representatives - last held 8 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2002) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PL 50%, PSC 24%, smaller parties (many aligned with conservatives) 26%; seats by party - PL 58, PSC 28, smaller parties 16; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PL 52%, PSC 17%, other 31%; seats by party - PL 98, PSC 52, indigenous parties 2, others 11 |
unicameral Parliament or Althing (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Independence Party 33.7%, Social Democratic Alliance 31%, Progressive Party 17.7%, Left-Green Movement 8.8%, Liberal Party 7.4%; seats by party - Independence Party 22, Social Democratic Alliance 20, Progressive Party 12, Left-Green Alliance 5, Liberal Party 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
70.57 years male: 66.71 years female: 74.55 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 80.31 years
male: 78.23 years female: 82.48 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91.3% male: 91.2% female: 91.4% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama | Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the UK |
Map references | South America, Central America and the Caribbean | Arctic Region |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total:
13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 53,322 GRT/69,444 DWT ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 4, container 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 1 ship (1000 GRT or over) 3,354 GRT/480 DWT
by type: passenger/cargo 1 registered in other countries: 34 (Antigua and Barbuda 8, Bahamas 1, Belize 2, Faroe Islands 4, Gibraltar 1, Malta 4, Norway 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 10) (2006) |
Military - note | - | under a 1951 bilateral agreement, Iceland's defense was provided by a US-manned Icelandic Defense Force (IDF) headquartered in Keflavik; in October 2006, all US military forces in Iceland were withdrawn; nonetheless, the US and Iceland signed a Joint Understanding to strengthen their bilateral defense relationship, including regular security consultations, military communications in the event of national emergencies, annual bilateral exercises on Icelandic territory, and future bilateral and NATO support to four Iceland Air Defense System (IADS) radar sites |
Military branches | Army (Ejercito Nacional), Navy (Armada Nacional, includes Marines and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana), National Police (Policia Nacional) | no regular armed forces; Icelandic National Police, Icelandic Coast Guard (Islenska Landhelgisgaeslan) subordinate to Ministry of Justice, Icelandic Crisis Response Unit (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3 billion (FY00) | 0 |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY00) | 0% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
10,779,148 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
7,205,211 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
379,295 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 20 July (1810) | Independence Day, 17 June (1944) |
Nationality | noun:
Colombian(s) adjective: Colombian |
noun: Icelander(s)
adjective: Icelandic |
Natural hazards | highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts | earthquakes and volcanic activity |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower | fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite |
Net migration rate | -0.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 1.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 3,585 km; petroleum products 1,350 km; natural gas 830 km; natural gas liquids 125 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Conservative Party or PSC [Ciro RAMIREZ Anzon]; Liberal Party or PL [Luis Guillermo VELEZ]; Patriotic Union or UP is a legal political party formed by Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and Colombian Communist Party or PCC [Jaime CAICEDO]; 19 of April Movement or M-19 [Antonio NAVARRO Wolff] | Independence Party or IP [Geir HAARDE]; Left-Green Movement or LGM [Steingrimur SIGFUSSON]; Liberal Party or LP [Gudjon KRISTJANSSON]; Progressive Party or PP [Halldor ASGRIMSSON - will step down in August 2006]; Social Democratic Alliance (includes People's Alliance or PA, Social Democratic Party or SDP, Women's List) or SDA [Ingibjorg Solrun GISLADOTTIR] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | two largest insurgent groups active in Colombia - National Liberation Army or ELN and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC; largest paramilitary group is United Self-Defense Groups of Colombia or AUC | NA |
Population | 40,349,388 (July 2001 est.) | 299,388 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 55% (1999) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.64% (2001 est.) | 0.87% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bahia de Portete, Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Leticia, Puerto Bolivar, San Andres, Santa Marta, Tumaco, Turbo | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999) | AM 3, FM about 70 (including repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 21 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
3,304 km standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge (connects Cerrejon coal mines to maritime port at Bahia de Portete) narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (major sections not in use) (2000) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90% | Lutheran Church of Iceland 85.5%, Reykjavik Free Church 2.1%, Roman Catholic Church 2%, Hafnarfjorour Free Church 1.5%, other Christian 2.7%, other or unspecified 3.8%, unaffiliated 2.4% (2004) |
Sex ratio | 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: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | 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: satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching centers; 8 submarine cables |
general assessment: extensive domestic service
domestic: the trunk network consists of coaxial and fiber-optic cables and microwave radio relay links international: country code - 354; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Iceland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 5,433,565 (December 1997) | 193,900 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,800,229 (December 1998) | 304,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997) | 14 (plus 156 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains | mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast deeply indented by bays and fiords |
Total fertility rate | 2.66 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.92 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (2000 est.) | 2.1% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | 18,140 km (navigable by river boats) (April 1996) | - |