Colombia People - 2022
SOURCE: 2022 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK
Population
49,059,221 (2022 est.)
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) and 65 Amerindian languages
major-language sample(s):
La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Christian 92.3% (predominantly Roman Catholic), other 1%, unspecified 6.7% (2020 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)
15-24 years: 16.38% (male 4,098,421/female 3,939,870)
25-54 years: 42.04% (male 10,270,516/female 10,365,423)
55-64 years: 9.93% (male 2,307,705/female 2,566,173)
65 years and over: 8.39% (male 1,725,461/female 2,390,725) (2020 est.)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio: 43.5
youth dependency ratio: 31
elderly dependency ratio: 12.5
potential support ratio: 8 (2021 est.)
Median age
total: 31.2 years
male: 30.2 years
female: 32.2 years (2020 est.)
Population growth rate
0.59% (2022 est.)
Birth rate
15.21 births/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Death rate
7.73 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-1.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)
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: 82.4% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 1.01% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population
11.344 million BOGOTA (capital), 4.068 million Medellin, 2.837 million Cali, 2.325 million Barranquilla, 1.366 million Bucaramanga, 1.079 million Cartagena (2022)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.85 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth
21.7 years (2015 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-49
Maternal mortality ratio
83 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total: 11.65 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.07 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 10.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2022 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 74.89 years
male: 71.27 years
female: 78.69 years (2022 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.95 children born/woman (2022 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
81% (2015/16)
Drinking water source
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 87.5% of population
total: 97.7% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 12.5% of population
total: 2.3% of population (2020 est.)
Current health expenditure
7.7% of GDP (2019)
Physicians density
2.33 physicians/1,000 population (2020)
Hospital bed density
1.7 beds/1,000 population (2018)
Sanitation facility access
improved: urban: 99.1% of population
rural: 87.7% of population
total: 97% of population
unimproved: urban: 0.9% of population
rural: 12.3% of population
total: 3% of population (2020 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
0.5% (2021 est.)
Major infectious diseases
degree of risk: high (2020)
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, and yellow fever
note: widespread ongoing transmission of a respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is occurring throughout Colombia; as of 9 December 2022, Columbia has reported a total of 6,323,357 cases of COVID-19 or 12,427.27 cumulative cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 population with a total of 141,943 cumulative deaths or a rate 278.96 cumulative deaths per 100,000 population; as of 25 November 2022, 82.68% of the population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
22.3% (2016)
Alcohol consumption per capita
total: 4.09 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 3.09 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0.06 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 0.92 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
total: 8.5% (2020 est.)
male: 12.4% (2020 est.)
female: 4.6% (2020 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
3.7% (2015/16)
Education expenditures
4.9% of GDP (2020 est.)
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 95.6%
male: 95.4%
female: 95.9% (2020)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
total: 14 years
male: 14 years
female: 15 years (2020)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)
total: 24.6%
male: 19.4%
female: 31.7% (2021 est.)
NOTE: The information regarding Colombia on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Colombia 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Colombia 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
This page was last modified 01 Dec 23, Copyright © 23 ITA all rights reserved.