Colombia (2008) | Anguilla (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 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 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 29.8% (male 6,696,471/female 6,539,612)
15-64 years: 64.8% (male 14,012,140/female 14,732,874) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 1,042,645/female 1,355,856) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.8% (male 1,569; female 1,523)
15-64 years: 69.4% (male 4,641; female 4,385) 65 years and over: 6.8% (male 396; female 494) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cut flowers, bananas, rice, tobacco, corn, sugarcane, cocoa beans, oilseed, vegetables; forest products; shrimp | small quantities of tobacco, vegetables; cattle raising |
Airports | 934 (2007) | 3 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 103
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 39 914 to 1,523 m: 42 under 914 m: 12 (2007) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 831
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 34 914 to 1,523 m: 216 under 914 m: 580 (2007) |
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (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, and Serrana Bank |
total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | about half 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 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. More than 32,000 former paramilitaries had demobilized by the end of 2006 and the United Self Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) as a formal organization had ceased to function. Still, some renegades continued to engage in criminal activities. 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. | Colonized by English settlers from Saint Kitts in 1650, Anguilla was administered by Great Britain until the early 19th century, when the island - against the wishes of the inhabitants - was incorporated into a single British dependency, along with Saint Kitts and Nevis. Several attempts at separation failed. In 1971, two years after a revolt, Anguilla was finally allowed to secede; this arrangement was formally recognized in 1980, with Anguilla becoming a separate British dependency. |
Birth rate | 20.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 14.45 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $64.02 billion
expenditures: $64.35 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2007 est.) |
revenues: $22.8 million
expenditures: $22.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Bogota
geographic coordinates: 4 36 N, 74 05 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
The Valley |
Climate | tropical along coast and eastern plains; cooler in highlands | tropical; moderated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km) | 61 km |
Constitution | 5 July 1991; amended many times | Anguilla Constitutional Order 1 April 1982; amended 1990 |
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: Anguilla |
Currency | - | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 5.54 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.46 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $43.3 billion (30 June 2007) | $8.8 million (1998) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador William BROWNFIELD
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 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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | memorials and countermemorials were filed by the parties in Nicaragua's 1999 and 2001 proceedings against Honduras and Colombia at the ICJ over the maritime boundary and territorial claims in the western Caribbean Sea - final public hearings are scheduled for 2007; dispute with Venezuela over maritime boundary and Venezuelan-administered Los Monjes Islands near the Gulf of Venezuela; Colombian-organized illegal narcotics, guerrilla, and paramilitary activities penetrate all of its neighbors' borders and have caused over 300,000 persons to flee the country, mostly into neighboring states | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $511.1 million (2005) | $3.5 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Colombia's economy has experienced positive growth over the past five years despite a serious armed conflict. In fact, 2007 is regarded by policy makers and the private sector as one of the best economic years in recent history, after 2005. The economy continues to improve in part because of austere government budgets, focused efforts to reduce public debt levels, an export-oriented growth strategy, improved domestic security, and high commodity prices. Ongoing economic problems facing President URIBE include reforming the pension system, reducing high unemployment, and funding new exploration to offset declining oil production. The government's economic reforms and democratic security strategy, coupled with increased investment, have engendered a growing sense of confidence in the economy. However, the business sector continues to be concerned about failure of the US Congress to approve the signed FTA. | Anguilla has few natural resources, and the economy depends heavily on luxury tourism, offshore banking, lobster fishing, and remittances from emigrants. Increased activity in the tourism industry, which has spurred the growth of the construction sector, has contributed to economic growth. Anguillan officials have put substantial effort into developing the offshore financial sector, which is small, but growing. In the medium term, prospects for the economy will depend largely on the tourism sector and, therefore, on revived income growth in the industrialized nations as well as on favorable weather conditions. |
Electricity - consumption | 38.91 billion kWh (2005) | 42.6 million kWh |
Electricity - exports | 1.758 billion kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - imports | 16 million kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - production | 50.47 billion kWh (2005) | NA |
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: Crocus Hill 65 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil and water quality damage from overuse of pesticides; air pollution, especially in Bogota, from vehicle emissions | supplies of potable water sometimes cannot meet increasing demand largely because of poor distribution system |
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 | mestizo 58%, white 20%, mulatto 14%, black 4%, mixed black-Amerindian 3%, Amerindian 1% | black (predominant), mulatto, white |
Exchange rates | Colombian pesos per US dollar - 2,013.8 (2007), 2,358.6 (2006), 2,320.75 (2005), 2,628.61 (2004), 2,877.65 (2003) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.70 (fixed rate since 1976) |
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) cabinet: Cabinet consists of a coalition of the three largest parties that supported President URIBE's reelection - the PSUN, PC, and CR - 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% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Alan Eden HUCKLE (since 28 May 2004)
head of government: Chief Minister Osbourne FLEMING (since 3 March 2000) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from among the elected members of the House of Assembly 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 | 289,700 bbl/day (2004) | $2.6 million (1999) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum, coffee, coal, nickel, emeralds, apparel, bananas, cut flowers | lobster, fish, livestock, salt, concrete blocks, rum |
Exports - partners | US 35.8%, Venezuela 11.4%, Ecuador 5.4% (2006) | UK, US, Puerto Rico, Saint-Martin (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of yellow (top, double-width), blue, and red
note: 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 Anguillan coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts three orange dolphins in an interlocking circular design on a white background with blue wavy water below |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $104 million (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.5%
industry: 36% services: 52.4% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 4%
industry: 18% services: 78% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $8,600 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.5% (2007 est.) | 2.8% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 00 N, 72 00 W | 18 15 N, 63 10 W |
Geography - note | only South American country with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea | the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles |
Heliports | 2 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total: 105 km
paved: 65 km unpaved: 40 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 7.9%
highest 10%: 34.3% (2004) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis; world's leading coca cultivator with 144,000 hectares in coca cultivation in 2005, a 26% increase over 2004, producing a potential of 545 mt of pure cocaine; the world's largest producer of coca derivatives; supplies cocaine to most of the US market and the great majority of other international drug markets; in 2005, aerial eradication dispensed herbicide to treat over 130,000 hectares but aggressive replanting on the part of coca growers means Colombia remains a key producer; a significant portion of non-US narcotics proceeds are either laundered or invested in Colombia through the black market peso exchange; important supplier of heroin to the US market; opium poppy cultivation 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; no poppy estimate was conducted in 2005 | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | 6,453 bbl/day (2004) | $80.9 million (1999) |
Imports - commodities | industrial equipment, transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, fuels, electricity | fuels, foodstuffs, manufactures, chemicals, trucks, textiles |
Imports - partners | US 26.8%, Brazil 8.6%, Mexico 8.5%, China 6%, Venezuela 5.6%, Japan 4.1% (2006) | US, Puerto Rico, UK (2000) |
Independence | 20 July 1810 (from Spain) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6% (2007 est.) | 3.1% (1997 est.) |
Industries | textiles, food processing, oil, clothing and footwear, beverages, chemicals, cement; gold, coal, emeralds | tourism, boat building, offshore financial services |
Infant mortality rate | total: 20.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 21.91 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 28.72 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.5% (2007 est.) | 2.3% |
International organization participation | BCIE, CAN, Caricom (observer), CDB, CSN, FAO, G-3, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), OECS (associate), UPU |
Irrigated land | 9,000 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
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) | High Court (judge provided by Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court) |
Labor force | 20.65 million (2007 est.) | 6,049 (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 22.7%
industry: 18.7% services: 58.5% (2000 est.) |
agriculture/fishing/forestry/mining 4%, manufacturing 3%, construction 18%, transportation and utilities 10%, commerce 36%, services 29% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 6,309 km
border countries: Brazil 1,644 km, Ecuador 590 km, Panama 225 km, Peru 1,800 km, Venezuela 2,050 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.01%
permanent crops: 1.37% other: 96.62% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (mostly rock with sparse scrub oak, few trees, some commercial salt ponds) (2001) |
Languages | Spanish | English (official) |
Legal system | 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 | based on English common 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 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 18, CR 15, PDI 10, other parties 21; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PL 35, PSUN 33, PC 29, CR 20, PDA 8, other parties 41 |
unicameral House of Assembly (11 seats total, 7 elected by direct popular vote, 2 ex officio members, and 2 appointed; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 March 2000 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ANA 3, AUM 2, ADP 1, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.27 years
male: 68.44 years female: 76.24 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 76.9 years
male: 73.99 years female: 79.91 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92.8% male: 92.9% female: 92.7% (2004 est.) |
definition: age 12 and over can read and write
total population: 95% male: 95% female: 95% (1984 est.) |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Panama and Venezuela, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Ecuador and Panama | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
Map references | South America | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 15 ships (1000 GRT or over) 35,949 GRT/49,161 DWT
by type: cargo 11, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 3 registered in other countries: 5 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Panama 4) (2007) |
none |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | National Army (Ejercito Nacional), National Navy (Armada Nacional, includes Naval Aviation, Naval Infantry (Infanteria de Marina, Colmar), and Coast Guard), Colombian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea de Colombia, FAC) (2008) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.4% (2005 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 20 July (1810) | Anguilla Day, 30 May |
Nationality | noun: Colombian(s)
adjective: Colombian |
noun: Anguillan(s)
adjective: Anguillan |
Natural hazards | highlands subject to volcanic eruptions; occasional earthquakes; periodic droughts | frequent hurricanes and other tropical storms (July to October) |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, hydropower | salt, fish, lobster |
Net migration rate | -0.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 10.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 4,329 km; oil 6,140 km; refined products 3,145 km (2007) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Colombian Conservative Party or PC [Julio MANZUR Abdala]; Alternative Democratic Pole or PDA [Carlos GAVIRIA Diaz]; Liberal Party or PL [Cesar GAVIRIA Trujillo]; Radical Change or CR [German VARGAS Lleras]; Social National Unity Party or U Party [Carlos GARCIA Orjuela]
note: Colombia has 15 formally recognized political parties, and numerous unofficial parties that did not meet the vote threshold in the March 2006 legislative elections required for recognition |
Anguilla United Movement or AUM [Hubert HUGHES]; The United Front or UF [Osbourne FLEMING, Victor BANKS], a coalition of the Anguilla Democratic Party or ADP and the Anguilla National Alliance or ANA; Anguilla Patriotic Movement or APM [Quincy GUMBS]; Movement for Grassroots Democracy or MFGD [Joyce KENTISH, John BENJAMIN] |
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 | NA |
Population | 44,379,598 (July 2007 est.) | 13,008 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 49.2% (2005) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.433% (2007 est.) | 1.98% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Blowing Point, Road Bay |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 454, FM 34, shortwave 27 (1999) | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 3,304 km
standard gauge: 150 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 3,154 km 0.914-m gauge (2006) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 90%, other 10% | Anglican 40%, Methodist 33%, Seventh-Day Adventist 7%, Baptist 5%, Roman Catholic 3%, other 12% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.024 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.951 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.769 male(s)/female total population: 0.961 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 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; telecommunications sector liberalized during the 1990s; multiple providers of both fixed-line and mobile-cellular services; fixed-line connections stand at about 18 per 100 persons; mobile cellular usage is about 70 per 100 persons
domestic: nationwide microwave radio relay system; domestic satellite system with 41 earth stations; fiber-optic network linking 50 cities international: country code - 57; submarine cables provide links to the US, parts of the Caribbean, and Central and South America; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat; 3 fully digitalized international switching centers (2007) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: modern internal telephone system international: country code - 1-264; microwave radio relay to island of Saint Martin (Guadeloupe and Netherlands Antilles) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 7.865 million (2006) | 6,200 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 29.763 million (2006) | 1,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 60 (1997) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | flat coastal lowlands, central highlands, high Andes Mountains, eastern lowland plains | flat and low-lying island of coral and limestone |
Total fertility rate | 2.51 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.74 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.6% (2007 est.) | 6.7% (2001) |
Waterways | 18,000 km (2006) | - |