Colombia

1
Colombia

• Republic of Colombia
• Republica de Colombia
• Capital- Bogota
• Area-
• total1,138,910 sq km
• land1,038,700 sq km

2
People

• Population 44,379,598
• Population growth rate 1.433
• Net migration rate -0.29 migrant(s)/1,000
  population
• Life Expectancy total population 72.27 years
  male 68.44 years female 76.24 years
• Ethnic Groups mestizo 58, white 20, mulatto
  14, black 4, mixed black-Amerindian 3,
  Amerindian 1
• Religions Roman Catholic 90, other 10

3
Economy

• GDP- 105.5 billion (official exchange rate)
  
• 366.7 billion (purchasing power parity)
• GDP per Capital- 8,400
• GDP Growth Rate (real)- 5.4
• GDP by sector
• agriculture 12 industry 35.2 services
  52.7

• Inflation rate (CPI)- 4.3
• Unemployment rate- 11.1
• Public debt- 45.3 of GDP
• Current Account Balance - 2.219 billion

4
Government

• Government type- republic
• President- Alvaro URIBE Velez (since 7 August
  2002)
• Revenues 50.7 billion
• Expenditures 52.29 billion
• Balance -1.59 Billion
• Government expenditures (2005) 22.7 of GDP

5
Foreign relations

• Member of the Andean Community.
• Associate member of Mercosor
• Contadora Group, the Group of Eight (now the Rio
  Group) and the Non-Aligned Movement.
• Has signed free trade agreements with Chile,
  Mexico and Venezuela.
• Colombia has traditionally played an active role
  in the United Nations and the Organization of
  American States and in their subsidiary agencies.
  
• Future Efforts
• The merging of Andean Community and Mercosur into
  the Union of South American Nations

6
Fiscal Policy

• Colombia has sought to decentralize the
  government and in doing so allowing the states to
  gain more power to govern. This has brought the
  national government in massive debt as it was
  forced to assume the loans taken out by the
  states.

7
Monetary Policy Exchange Rates

• Inflation target of between 3.0 and 4.5 for
  2007
• With a long term goal of between 2 and 4
• Banco de la Republica was established July 23,
  1923
• The bank is separate from the government but
  still reports to the congress

• Managed flexible exchange rate
• Goal of the management maintain an adequate
  level of international reserves that will lessen
  the economys vulnerability to external
  shocksTo limit excessive volatility of the
  exchange rate in the short termTo moderate
  excessive appreciation or depreciation of the
  nominal exchange rate that could jeopardize the
  achievement of future inflation targets, as well
  as the economys external and financial stability.

8
Social Policies

• Option of either a social or private insurance
  coverage.
• Old-age pension for workers who have 1,000 weeks
  of contributions
• Also an injured and disabled pension system.
• Cases of human rights violations in areas of
  conflict between the government and terrorists
  groups.

9
Drugs

• world's leading coca cultivator with 144,000
  hectares in coca cultivation in 2005, producing a
  potential of 545mt of pure cocaine
• 2,100 hectares yielding a potential 3.8 metric
  tons of pure heroin, mostly for the US market
• The activities of the government and drug growers
  has forced 300,000 people out of Colombia and
  into neighboring countries as refugees.
• drug-related crime, which has become the most
  common cause of death after cancer

10
References

• Banco de la Republica Colombia. (2007). Colombia.
  Retrieved May/23, 2007, from http//www.banrep.gov
  .co/index_eng.html
• CIA- The World Factbook. (2007). Colombia.
  Retrieved May/23, 2007, from https//www.cia.gov/l
  ibrary/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/co.htm
  l
• Colombia Journal Online. (2006). Colombia could
  learn from venezuela's social policies. Retrieved
  May/23, 2007, from http//www.colombiajournal.org/
  colombia239.htm
• Encyclopedia Britannica Online. (2007). Colombia.
  Retrieved May/23, 2007, from http//search.eb.com/
  eb/article-9106257
• Social Security Online. (2003). Colombia.
  Retrieved May/23, 2007, from http//www.ssa.gov/po
  licy/docs/progdesc/ssptw/2002-2003/americas/colomb
  ia.html
• U.S. Department of State. (2007). Colombia.
  Retrieved May/23, 2007, from http//www.state.gov/
  r/pa/ei/bgn/35754.htm
• World Bank. (2002). Colombia- social safety net
  assessment. Retrieved May/23, 2007, from
  http//wbln0018.worldbank.org/lac/lacinfoclient.ns
  f/d29684951174975c85256735007fef12/279c53f488926cc
  e85256ddc006075f6/FILE/Colombia20Safety20Net20
  Assessment20Part201.