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Compare Colombia (2004) - Mexico (2003)

Compare Colombia (2004) z Mexico (2003)

 Colombia (2004)Mexico (2003)
 ColombiaMexico
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 31 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro de Arteaga, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz-Llave, Yucatan, Zacatecas
Age structure 0-14 years: 31% (male 6,644,080; female 6,489,677)


15-64 years: 63.9% (male 13,171,416; female 13,879,115)


65 years and over: 5% (male 940,762; female 1,185,725) (2004 est.)
0-14 years: 32.3% (male 17,298,964; female 16,617,728)


15-64 years: 63.1% (male 32,217,513; female 33,932,603)


65 years and over: 4.6% (male 2,145,252; female 2,695,931) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products
Airports 980 (2003 est.) 1,823 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways total: 101


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 9


1,524 to 2,437 m: 39


914 to 1,523 m: 39


under 914 m: 12 (2004 est.)
total: 231


over 3,047 m: 11


2,438 to 3,047 m: 28


1,524 to 2,437 m: 83


914 to 1,523 m: 82


under 914 m: 27 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 879


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 34


914 to 1,523 m: 272


under 914 m: 572 (2004 est.)
total: 1,592


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 69


914 to 1,523 m: 454


under 914 m: 1,067 (2002)
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: 1,972,550 sq km


land: 1,923,040 sq km


water: 49,510 sq km
Area - comparative slightly less than three times the size of Montana slightly less than three times the size of Texas
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 the drug trade, and also the government's ability to exert its dominion over rural areas. While Bogota steps up efforts to reassert government control throughout the country, neighboring countries worry about the violence spilling over their borders. The site of advanced Amerindian civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before achieving independence early in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso in late 1994 threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst recession in over half a century. The nation continues to make an impressive recovery. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian population in the impoverished southern states. Elections held in July 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that the opposition defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) was sworn in on 1 December 2000 as the first chief executive elected in free and fair elections.
Birth rate 21.19 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 21.92 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues: $24 billion


expenditures: $25.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2004 est.)
revenues: $136 billion


expenditures: $140 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital Bogota Mexico (Distrito Federal)
Climate tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands varies from tropical to desert
Coastline 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) 9,330 km
Constitution 5 July 1991 5 February 1917
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: United Mexican States


conventional short form: Mexico


local long form: Estados Unidos Mexicanos


local short form: Mexico
Currency Colombian peso (COP) Mexican peso (MXN)
Death rate 5.61 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 4.97 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $38.26 billion (2003 est.) $150 billion (2000 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US 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
chief of mission: Ambassador Antonio O. GARZA


embassy: Paseo de la Reforma 305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc, 06500 Mexico, Distrito Federal


mailing address: P. O. Box 9000, Brownsville, TX 78520-0900


telephone: [52] (55) 5080-2000


FAX: [52] (55) 5080-2005, 5080-2834


consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Tijuana


consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nuevo Laredo, Nogales
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 York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Washington, DC


consulate(s): Atlanta
chief of mission: Ambassador Juan Jose BREMER Martino


chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006


telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600


FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Laredo (Texas), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Nogales (Arizona), Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico)


consulate(s): Albuquerque, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Indianapolis (Indiana), Las Vegas, McAllen (Texas), Midland (Texas), Omaha, Orlando, Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), Presidio (Texas), Raleigh, Saint Louis, Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, Santa Ana (California), Seattle, Tucson, Yuma (Arizona)
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; the continuing civil disorder in Colombia has created a serious refugee crisis in neighboring states, especially Ecuador prolonged regional drought in the border region with the US has strained water-sharing arrangements
Economic aid - recipient NA $1.166 billion (1995)
Economy - overview Colombia's economy suffers from weak domestic and foreign demand, austere government budgets, and serious internal armed conflict, but seems poised for recovery. Other economic problems facing President URIBE range from reforming the pension system to reducing high 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. On the positive side, several international financial institutions have praised the economic reforms introduced by URIBE, which includes measures designed to reduce the public-sector deficit below 2.5% of GDP in 2004. The government's economic policy and democratic security strategy have engendered a growing sense of confidence in the economy, particularly within the business sector, and GDP growth in 2003 was among the highest in Latin America. Mexico has a free market economy with a mixture of modern and outmoded industry and agriculture, increasingly dominated by the private sector. Recent administrations have expanded competition in seaports, railroads, telecommunications, electricity, natural gas distribution, and airports. Income distribution remains highly unequal. Trade with the US and Canada has tripled since the implementation of NAFTA in 1994. Following 6.9% growth in 2000, real GDP fell 0.3% in 2001, recovering to only a plus 1% in 2002, with the US slowdown the principal cause. Mexico implemented free trade agreements with Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and the European Free Trade Area in 2001, putting more than 90% of trade under free trade agreements. Foreign direct investment reached $25 billion in 2001, of which $12.5 billion came from the purchase of Mexico's second-largest bank, Banamex, by Citigroup.
Electricity - consumption 39.81 billion kWh (2001) 186.7 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports 210 million kWh (2001) 77 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports 40 million kWh (2001) 2.068 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 42.99 billion kWh (2001) 198.6 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 78.7%


hydro: 14.2%


nuclear: 4.2%


other: 2.9% (2001)
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: Laguna Salada -10 m


highest point: Volcan Pico de Orizaba 5,700 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions scarcity of hazardous waste disposal facilities; rural to urban migration; natural fresh water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; raw sewage and industrial effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; deteriorating agricultural lands; serious air and water pollution in the national capital and urban centers along US-Mexico border; land subsidence in Valley of Mexico caused by groundwater depletion


note: the government considers the lack of clean water and deforestation national security issues
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
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1% mestizo (Amerindian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white 9%, other 1%
Exchange rates Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,877.65 (2003), 2,504.24 (2002), 2,299.63 (2001), 2,087.9 (2000), 1,756.23 (1999) Mexican pesos per US dollar - 9.66 (2002), 9.34 (2001), 9.46 (2000), 9.56 (1999), 9.14 (1998)
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: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Vicente FOX Quesada (since 1 December 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president; note - appointment of attorney general requires consent of the Senate


elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 2 July 2000 (next to be held NA July 2006)


election results: Vicente FOX Quesada elected president; percent of vote - Vicente FOX Quesada (PAN) 42.52%, Francisco LABASTIDA Ochoa (PRI) 36.1%, Cuauhtemoc CARDENAS Solorzano (PRD) 16.64%, other 4.74%
Exports NA (2001) 1.881 million bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities petroleum, coffee, coal, apparel, bananas, cut flowers manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton
Exports - partners US 47.1%, Ecuador 6%, Venezuela 5.3% (2003) US 82.7%, Canada 5.4%, Japan 1.1% (2002)
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 three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake in its beak) is centered in the white band
GDP purchasing power parity - $263.2 billion (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $924.4 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 13.7%


industry: 32.1%


services: 54.2% (2003 est.)
agriculture: 5%


industry: 26%


services: 69% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $8,900 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 3.7% (2003 est.) 0.7% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 4 00 N, 72 00 W 23 00 N, 102 00 W
Geography - note only South American country with coastlines on both North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea strategic location on southern border of US; corn (maize), one of the world's major grain crops, is thought to have originated in Mexico
Heliports 1 (2003 est.) 2 (2002)
Highways total: 110,000 km


paved: 26,000 km


unpaved: 84,000 km (2000)
total: 329,532 km


paved: 108,087 km (including 6,429 km of expressways)


unpaved: 221,445 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 1%


highest 10%: 44% (1999)
lowest 10%: 1.6%


highest 10%: 41.1% (2001)
Illicit drugs illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator (cultivation of coca in 2002 was 144,450 hectares, a 15% decline since 2001); potential production of opium between 2001 and 2002 declined by 25% to 91 metric tons; potential production of heroin declined to 11.3 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 Colombia through the black market peso exchange illicit cultivation of opium poppy (cultivation in 2001 - 4,400 hectares; potential heroin production - 7 metric tons) and of cannabis (in 2001 - 4,100 hectares); government eradication efforts have been key in keeping illicit crop levels low; major supplier of heroin and largest foreign supplier of marijuana and methamphetamine to the US market; continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound cocaine from South America; major drug syndicates control majority of drug trafficking throughout the country; growing producer and distributor of ecstasy; significant money-laundering center
Imports NA (2001) 374,700 bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts
Imports - partners US 29.6%, Brazil 5.5%, Mexico 5.4%, Venezuela 5.2%, China 5%, Japan 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2003) US 70.6%, Germany 3.5%, Japan 2.7% (2002)
Independence 20 July 1810 (from Spain) 16 September 1810 (from Spain)
Industrial production growth rate 3.5% (2003 est.) 4.9% (2002 est.)
Industries textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism
Infant mortality rate total: 21.72 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 25.69 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 17.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
total: 23.68 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 26.78 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 20.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 7.1% (2003 est.) 6.4% (2002 est.)
International organization participation BCIE, CAN, CDB, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, 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 APEC, BCIE, BIS, Caricom (observer), CDB, CE (observer), EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-15, G-19, G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM (observer), NEA, OAS, OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 51 (2000)
Irrigated land 8,500 sq km (1998 est.) 65,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch 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) Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judges are appointed by the president with consent of the Senate)
Labor force 20.34 million (2003 est.) 39.8 million (2000)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 30%, industry 24%, services 46% (1990) agriculture 20%, industry 24%, services 56% (1998)
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
total: 4,353 km


border countries: Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,141 km
Land use arable land: 2.42%


permanent crops: 1.67%


other: 95.91% (2001)
arable land: 13.2%


permanent crops: 1.1%


other: 85.7% (1998 est.)
Languages Spanish Spanish, various Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional indigenous languages
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 mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
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
bicameral National Congress or Congreso de la Union consists of the Senate or Camara de Senadores (128 seats; 96 are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote) and the Federal Chamber of Deputies or Camara Federal de Diputados (500 seats; 300 members are directly elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; remaining 200 members are allocated on the basis of each party's popular vote, also for three-year terms)


elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2000 for all of the seats (next to be held NA 2006); Chamber of Deputies - last held 6 July 2003 (next to be held NA 2006)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 60, PAN 46, PRD 15, PVEM 5, PT 1, CD 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PRI 224, PAN 153, PRD 95, other 28
Life expectancy at birth total population: 71.43 years


male: 67.58 years


female: 75.41 years (2004 est.)
total population: 72.3 years


male: 69.26 years


female: 75.49 years (2003 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 92.5%


male: 92.4%


female: 92.6% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 92.2%


male: 94%


female: 90.5% (2003 est.)
Location Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama Middle America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between Belize and the US and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the US
Map references South America North America
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 35,427 GRT/46,301 DWT


by type: bulk 4, cargo 5, container 1, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 2


registered in other countries: 16 (2004 est.)
total: 47 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 636,271 GRT/933,686 DWT


ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, chemical tanker 4, combination ore/oil 1, liquefied gas 3, petroleum tanker 26, roll on/roll off 8, short-sea passenger 3


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Canada 2, Denmark 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Army (Ejercito Nacional), Navy (Armada Nacional, including Naval Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana) National Defense Secretariat (SEDENA) (including Army and Air Force), Navy Secretariat (including Naval Air and Marines)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $3.3 billion (FY01) $4 billion (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 3.4% (FY01) 1% (FY99)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 11,252,027 (2004 est.) males age 15-49: 27,751,539 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 7,495,462 (2004 est.) males age 15-49: 20,123,970 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age


note: starting in 2000, females were allowed to volunteer for military service (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 392,656 (2004 est.) males: 1,093,752 (2003 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 20 July (1810) Independence Day, 16 September (1810)
Nationality noun: Colombian(s)


adjective: Colombian
noun: Mexican(s)


adjective: Mexican
Natural hazards highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts tsunamis along the Pacific coast, volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean coasts
Natural resources petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber
Net migration rate -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) -2.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Pipelines gas 4,360 km; oil 6,134 km; refined products 3,140 km (2004) crude oil 28,200 km; petroleum products 10,150 km; natural gas 13,254 km; petrochemical 1,400 km
Political parties and leaders Conservative Party or PSC [Carlos HOLGUIN Sardi]; Liberal Party or PL [Camilo SANCHEZ]; Colombian Communist Party or PCC [Jaime CAICEDO]; Democratic Pole or PDI [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
Convergence for Democracy or CD [Dante DELGADO Ranauro]; Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI [Dulce Maria SAURI Riancho]; Mexican Green Ecological Party or PVEM [Jorge Emilio GONZALEZ Martinez]; National Action Party or PAN [Luis Felipe BRAVO Mena]; Party of the Democratic Revolution or PRD [Amalia GARCIA Medina]; Party of the Nationalist Society or PSN [Gustavo RIOJAS Santana]; Social Alliance Party or PAS [Guillermo CALDERON Dominguez]; Workers Party or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez]
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 Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic or COPARMEX; Confederation of Industrial Chambers or CONCAMIN; Confederation of Mexican Workers or CTM; Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce or CONCANACO; Coordinator for Foreign Trade Business Organizations or COECE; Federation of Unions Providing Goods and Services or FESEBES; National Chamber of Transformation Industries or CANACINTRA; National Peasant Confederation or CNC; National Union of Workers or UNT; Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers or CROM; Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants or CROC; Roman Catholic Church
Population 42,310,775 (July 2004 est.) 104,907,991 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 55% (2001) 40% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate 1.53% (2004 est.) 1.43% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Bahia de Portete, Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Leticia, Puerto Bolivar, San Andres, Santa Marta, Tumaco, Turbo Acapulco, Altamira, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, La Paz, Lazaro Cardenas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Topolobampo, Tuxpan, Veracruz
Radio broadcast stations AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999) AM 851, FM 598, shortwave 16 (2000)
Railways total: 3,304 km


standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge


narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (2003)
total: 19,510 km


standard gauge: 19,510 km 1.435-m gauge (2002)
Religions Roman Catholic 90% nominally Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 6%, other 5%
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: 0.79 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female


total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal and compulsory (but not enforced)
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: country code - 57; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching centers; 8 submarine cables
general assessment: low telephone density with about 12 main lines per 100 persons; privatized in December 1990; the opening to competition in January 1997 improved prospects for development


domestic: adequate telephone service for business and government, but the population is poorly served; domestic satellite system with 120 earth stations; extensive microwave radio relay network; considerable use of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, and mobile cellular service


international: satellite earth stations - 32 Intelsat, 2 Solidaridad (giving Mexico improved access to South America, Central America, and much of the US as well as enhancing domestic communications), numerous Inmarsat mobile earth stations; linked to Central American Microwave System of trunk connections; high capacity Columbus-2 fiber-optic submarine cable with access to the US, Virgin Islands, Canary Islands, Morocco, Spain, and Italy (1997)
Telephones - main lines in use 8,768,100 (2003) 12.332 million (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 6,186,200 (2003) 2.02 million (1998)
Television broadcast stations 60 (includes seven low-power stations) (1997) 236 (plus repeaters) (1997)
Terrain flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains high, rugged mountains; low coastal plains; high plateaus; desert
Total fertility rate 2.59 children born/woman (2004 est.) 2.53 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 14.2% (2003 est.) urban - 3% plus considerable underemployment (2002)
Waterways 9,187 km (2004) 2,900 km


note: navigable rivers and coastal canals
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