Colombia (2002) | British Virgin Islands (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 32 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 1 capital district* (distrito capital); Amazonas, Antioquia, Arauca, Atlantico, Distrito Capital de 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 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 31.6% (male 6,552,961; female 6,399,666)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 12,694,293; female 13,375,425) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 886,921; female 1,098,961) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 21.5% (male 2,402; female 2,361)
15-64 years: 73.5% (male 8,395; female 7,911) 65 years and over: 5% (male 594; female 524) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish |
Airports | 1,066 (2001) | 3 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 96
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 36 under 914 m: 11 (2002) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 954
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 51 914 to 1,523 m: 315 under 914 m: 587 (2002) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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: 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 |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Montana | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. An anti-insurgent army of paramilitaries has grown to be several thousand strong in recent years, challenging the insurgents for control of territory and illicit industries such as the drug trade and the government's ability to exert its dominion over rural areas. While Bogota continues to try to negotiate a settlement, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders. | 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. |
Birth rate | 21.99 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 14.96 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $24 billion
expenditures: $25.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues: $121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997) |
Capital | Bogota | Road Town |
Climate | tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) | 80 km |
Constitution | 5 July 1991 | 1 June 1977 |
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: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
Currency | Colombian peso (COP) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 5.66 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $39 billion (2001 est.) | $36.1 million (1997) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing |
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | 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; maritime boundary dispute with Venezuela in the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian drug activities penetrate Peruvian border area | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | NA |
Economy - overview | Colombia's economy suffered from weak domestic demand, austere government budgets, and a difficult security situation. A new president takes office in 2002 and will face economic challenges ranging from pension reform to reduction of unemployment. 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. Problems in public security are a concern for Colombian business leaders, who are calling for progress in the government's peace negotiations with insurgent groups. Colombia is looking for continued support from the international community to boost economic and peace prospects. | 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. Tourism suffered in 2002 because of the lackluster US economy. 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 40.348 billion kWh (2000) | 35.43 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 37 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 77 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 43.342 billion kWh (2000) | 38.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 26%
hydro: 73% nuclear: 0% other: 1% (2000) |
- |
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: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions | 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) |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1% | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed |
Exchange rates | Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,275.89 (January 2002), 2,299.63 (2001), 2,087.90 (2000), 1,756.23 (1999), 1,426.04 (1998), 1,140.96 (1997) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | 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); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government 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; election last held 26 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2006) election results: President Alvaro URIBE Velez received 53% of the vote; Vice President Francisco SANTOS was elected on the same ticket |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Orlando D. SMITH (since 17 June 2003) 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 |
Exports | $12.3 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand |
Exports - partners | US 43%, Andean Community of Nations 22%, EU 14%, (2001 est.) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
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 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) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $255 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $320 million (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 19%
industry: 26% services: 55% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.5% (2001 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 72 00 W | 18 30 N, 64 30 W |
Geography - note | only South American country with coastlines on both North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
Heliports | 1 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 110,000 km
paved: 26,000 km unpaved: 84,000 km (2000) |
total: 177 km
paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 44% (1999) (1999) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 2001 was 169,800 hectares, a 25% increase over 2000); potential production of opium between 2000 and 2001 increased by 33% to 40 metric tons; potential production of heroin increased to 4.3 metric tons; the world's largest processor of coca derivatives into cocaine; supplier of about 90% of the cocaine to the US market and the great majority of cocaine to other international drug markets; important supplier of heroin to the US market; active aerial eradication program; a significant portion of non-US narcotics proceeds are either laundered or invested in Columbia through the black market peso exchange | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | $12.7 billion c.i.f. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
Imports - partners | US 35%, EU 16%, Andean Community of Nations 15%, Japan 5% (2001 est.) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US |
Independence | 20 July 1810 (from Spain) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (2001 est.) | NA |
Industries | textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center |
Infant mortality rate | 23.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 18.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 21.02 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.6% (2001) (2001) | 2.5% (2002) |
International organization participation | BCIE, CAN, Caricom (observer), CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, 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 | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 18 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 8,500 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
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) | 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 |
Labor force | 18.3 million (1999 est.) | 4,911 (1980) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 46%, agriculture 30%, industry 24% (1990) (1990) | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA |
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: 1.9%
permanent crops: 1.96% other: 96.14% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2001) |
Languages | Spanish | English (official) |
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 | English law |
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 (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006); House of Representatives - last held 10 March 2002 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PL 28, PSC 13, independents and smaller parties (many aligned with conservatives) 61; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 54, PSC 21, independents and other parties 91 |
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 16 May 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NDP 8, VIP 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.85 years
male: 67 years female: 74.83 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 76.27 years
male: 75.24 years female: 77.36 years (2004 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: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA female: NA |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
Map references | South America | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 32,438 GRT/43,126 DWT
ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 3, container 1, petroleum tanker 2 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Germany 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 83,825 GRT/155,909 DWT
by type: cargo 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1 foreign-owned: Norway 1 registered in other countries: 32 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army (Ejercito Nacional), Navy (Armada Nacional, including Marines and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana), National Police (Policia Nacional) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3.3 billion (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (FY01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 10,946,932 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 7,308,703 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 379,295 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 20 July (1810) | Territory Day, 1 July |
Nationality | noun: Colombian(s)
adjective: Colombian |
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
Natural hazards | highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -0.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 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 [Carlos HOLGUIN Sardi]; Liberal Party or PL [Horatio SERPA Uribe]; 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]
note: Colombia has about 60 formally recognized political parties, most of which do not have a presence in either house of Congress |
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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | two largest insurgent groups active in Colombia - Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC and National Liberation Army or ELN; largest anti-insurgent paramilitary group is United Self-Defense Groups of Colombia or AUC | NA |
Population | 41,008,227 (July 2002 est.) | 22,187 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 55% (2001) (2001) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.6% (2002 est.) | 2.06% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bahia de Portete, Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Leticia, Puerto Bolivar, San Andres, Santa Marta, Tumaco, Turbo | Road Town |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999) | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (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 est.) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 90% | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) |
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 (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2004 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: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to Bermuda |
Telephones - main lines in use | 5,433,565 (December 1997) | 11,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,800,229 (December 1998) | 8,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997) | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) |
Terrain | flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
Total fertility rate | 2.64 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.72 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 17% (2001 est.) | 3% (1995) |
Waterways | 18,140 km (navigable by river boats) (April 1996) | - |