Population:
49,084,841
(July 2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
30
[see also: Population country ranks ]
Nationality:
noun:
Colombian(s)
adjective:
Colombian
Ethnic groups:
mestizo and white 87.6%, Afro-Colombian (includes mulatto, Raizal, and Palenquero) 6.8%, Amerindian 4.3%, unspecified 1.4%
(2018 est.)
Languages:
Spanish (official)
Religions:
Roman Catholic 79%, Protestant 14% (includes Pentecostal 6%, mainline Protestant 2%, other 6%), other 2%, unspecified 5%
(2014 est.)
Demographic profile:
Colombia is in the midst of a demographic transition resulting from steady declines in its fertility, mortality, and population growth rates. The birth rate has fallen from more than 6 children per woman in the 1960s to just above replacement level today as a result of increased literacy, family planning services, and urbanization. However, income inequality is among the worst in the world, and more than a third of the population lives below the poverty line.
Colombia experiences significant legal and illegal economic emigration and refugee outflows. Large-scale labor emigration dates to the 1960s; the United States and, until recently, Venezuela have been the main host countries. Emigration to Spain picked up in the 1990s because of its economic growth, but this flow has since diminished because of Spain’s ailing economy and high unemployment. Colombia has been the largest source of Latin American refugees in Latin America, nearly 400,000 of whom live primarily in Venezuela and Ecuador. Venezuela’s political and economic crisis since 2015, however, has created a reverse flow, consisting largely of Colombians returning home.
Forced displacement continues to be prevalent because of violence among guerrillas, paramilitary groups, and Colombian security forces. Afro-Colombian and indigenous populations are disproportionately affected. Even with the Colombian Government’s December 2016 peace agreement with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the risk of displacement remains as other rebel groups fill the void left by the FARC. Between 1985 and September 2017, nearly 7.6 million persons have been internally displaced, the highest total in the world. These estimates may undercount actual numbers because many internally displaced persons are not registered. Historically, Colombia also has one of the world’s highest levels of forced disappearances. About 30,000 cases have been recorded over the last four decades—although the number is likely to be much higher—including human rights activists, trade unionists, Afro-Colombians, indigenous people, and farmers in rural conflict zones.
Because of political violence and economic problems, Colombia received limited numbers of immigrants during the 19th and 20th centuries, mostly from the Middle East, Europe, and Japan. More recently, growth in the oil, mining, and manufacturing sectors has attracted increased labor migration; the primary source countries are Venezuela, the US, Mexico, and Argentina. Colombia has also become a transit area for illegal migrants from Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean -- especially Haiti and Cuba -- who are en route to the US or Canada.
Age structure:
0-14 years: 23.27%
(male 5,853,351/female 5,567,196)
[see also: Age structure - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 16.38%
(male 4,098,421/female 3,939,870)
[see also: Age structure - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 42.04%
(male 10,270,516/female 10,365,423)
[see also: Age structure - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 9.93%
(male 2,307,705/female 2,566,173)
[see also: Age structure - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 8.39%
(male 1,725,461/female 2,390,725)
(2020 est.)
[see also: Age structure - 65 years and over country ranks ]
population pyramid:
This is the population pyramid for Colombia. A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.
For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.
Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 45.6
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - total dependency ratio country ranks ]
youth dependency ratio: 35.4
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - youth dependency ratio country ranks ]
elderly dependency ratio: 10.2
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - elderly dependency ratio country ranks ]
potential support ratio: 9.8
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - potential support ratio country ranks ]
Median age:
total: 31.2 years
[see also: Median age - total country ranks ]
male: 30.2 years
[see also: Median age - male country ranks ]
female: 32.2 years
(2020 est.)
[see also: Median age - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
115
Population growth rate:
0.93%
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
114
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]
Birth rate:
15.4 births/1,000 population
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
115
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]
Death rate:
5.6 deaths/1,000 population
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
180
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]
Net migration rate:
-0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
130
[see also: Net migration rate country ranks ]
Population distribution:
the majority of people live in the north and west where agricultural opportunities and natural resources are found; the vast grasslands of the llanos to the south and east, which make up approximately 60% of the country, are sparsely populated
Urbanization:
urban population: 81.1% of total population
(2019)
[see also: Urbanization - urban population country ranks ]
rate of urbanization: 1.22% annual rate of change
(2015-20 est.)
[see also: Urbanization - rate of urbanization country ranks ]
Major urban areas - population:
10.779 million BOGOTA (capital), 3.967 million Medellin, 2.754 million Cali, 2.246 million Barranquilla, 1.313 million Bucaramanga, 1.055 million Cartagena
(2019)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - at birth country ranks ]
0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 65 years and over country ranks ]
total population: 97.7 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio country ranks ]
Mother's mean age at first birth:
21.7 years
(2015 est.)
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29
[see also: Mother's mean age at first birth country ranks ]
Maternal mortality rate:
83 deaths/100,000 live births
(2017 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
78
[see also: Maternal mortality rate country ranks ]
Infant mortality rate:
total: 12.3 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - total country ranks ]
male: 14.9 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - male country ranks ]
female: 9.5 deaths/1,000 live births
(2020 est.)
[see also: Infant mortality rate - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
106
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.6 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - total population country ranks ]
male: 73.5 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - male country ranks ]
female: 80 years
(2020 est.)
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
92
[See also: Healthy Life Expectancy ]
[See also: Health Performance ]
Total fertility rate:
1.94 children born/woman
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
122
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]
Contraceptive prevalence rate:
81%
(2015/16)
[see also: Contraceptive prevalence rate country ranks ]
Drinking water source:
improved:
urban: 96.8% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - improved - urban country ranks ]
rural: 73.8% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - improved - rural country ranks ]
total: 91.4% of population
unimproved:
urban: 3.2% of population
rural: 26.2% of population
total: 8.6% of population
(2015 est.)
Current Health Expenditure:
5.9%
(2016)
[see also: Current Health Expenditure country ranks ]
Physicians density:
2.08 physicians/1,000 population
(2017)
[see also: Physicians density country ranks ]
Hospital bed density:
1.5 beds/1,000 population
(2014)
[see also: Hospital bed density country ranks ]
Sanitation facility access:
improved:
urban: 85.2% of population
(2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - improved - urban country ranks ]
rural: 67.9% of population
(2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - improved - rural country ranks ]
total: 81.1% of population
(2015 est.)
unimproved:
urban: 14.8% of population
(2015 est.)
rural: 32.1% of population
(2015 est.)
total: 18.9% of population
(2015 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.4%
(2018 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
75
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
160,000
(2018 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
32
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
4,400
(2017 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
29
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk:
high
(2016)
food or waterborne diseases:
bacterial diarrhea
(2016)
vectorborne diseases:
dengue fever, malaria, and yellow fever
(2016)
note: active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus
Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
22.3%
(2016)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
78
[see also: Obesity - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]
Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
3.4%
(2010)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
94
[see also: Children under the age of 5 years underweight country ranks ]
Education expenditures:
4.5% of GDP
(2017)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
86
[see also: Education expenditures country ranks ]
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94.7%
[see also: Literacy - total population country ranks ]
male: 94.4%
[see also: Literacy - male country ranks ]
female: 94.9%
(2016)
[see also: Literacy - female country ranks ]
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 15 years
[see also: School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) - total country ranks ]
male: 14 years
[see also: School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) - male country ranks ]
female: 15 years
(2017)
[see also: School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) - female country ranks ]
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24
total: 18.7%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - total country ranks ]
male: 14.7%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - male country ranks ]
female: 24.1%
(2018 est.)
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
73
NOTE: 1) The information regarding Colombia on this page is re-published from the 2020 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Colombia People 2020 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Colombia People 2020 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may have the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assigns counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order.
- Main Index
- 2020 Index
- Country Ranks
- Definitions
- Colombia Index 2020
- Colombia Main Index
- Introduction
- History
- Geography
- Climate
- Maps
- People
- Religion
- Government
- Gov. Leaders
- Flags
- Economy
- Energy
- Communications
- Transportation
- Airport Codes
- Military
- Terrorism
- Transnational Issues
- Photos
- Advertise Here
- Feedback
This page was last modified 27-Jan-20