Colombia

AFTER SEVERAL YEARS of battling with the Spanish, troops led by Simón Bolívar won independence for a large area of South America in 1824. Bolívar united Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, and Ecuador into Gran Colombia. The union collapsed in 1830, and Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela emerged as separate nations.

For several decades, Colombia has faced an insurgent struggle to overthrow the government, financed in large part by funds from the drug trade. In response, a large paramilitary army has surfaced that is challenging the insurgents over territory and for control of the drug trade. While neither group has been entirely successful in its efforts to take control of the country, they do interfere with the government's ability to function in rural areas and with the right of Colombians to enjoy a basic standard of living free from violence. The political instability has also had a negative impact on the Colombian economy and on relations with neighboring countries.

While the Colombian economy has become more diversified in recent years, the agricultural sector still makes up almost a third of the labor force. Colombia is subject to occasional earthquakes, droughts, hurricanes, floods, landslides, and volcanic eruptions that can devastate crops. Some 46 percent of the labor force are involved in services, and 24 percent are engaged in industry. Officially, unemployment stands at 13.6 percent; [Page 185]but it may be as high as 20 percent by unofficial accounts.

With a per capita income of $6,600, Colombia is an upper-middle-income nation with the potential for economic success. Natural resources include petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, nickel, gold, copper, emeralds, and hydropower. While petroleum production has declined, coffee production has increased, along with the possibility of expanding into new markets. Since 2003, Colombia has made definite steps toward economic recovery. The government has instituted a program of austerity and is determined to reduce public debts and to develop export-oriented growth.

The internal strife in Colombia has resulted in the forced displacement of around three million people since 1985. In 2002, some 320,000 people moved to other parts of Colombia to avoid open warfare. Since 2003, an additional 90,000 people have been displaced. Between 2000 and 2003, approximately 100,000 Colombians fled to surrounding countries for safety.

The vast displacement in Colombia has contributed to the poverty that plagues the country. Estimates of the poverty level vary from 55 to 64 percent. It is estimated that 80 percent of all rural residents are poor and that one-fourth of the population lives in abject poverty. Almost 23 percent of Colombians live on less than $2 a day, and 8.2 percent subsist on less than $1 a day. While the poor are struggling to survive, the wealthiest portion of Colombia's population is supported in part through the drug-trafficking rings run by the paramilitary groups. The richest 20 percent of Colombians claim 46.5 percent of resources while the poorest 20 percent share 2.7 percent. Colombia is ranked 57.6 on the Gini Index of Human Inequality.

There are only 94 doctors for every 100,000 patients in Colombia, and six to 20 percent of the people have no access to affordable essential drugs. Nine percent of the population lack access to safe drinking water, and 14 percent lacks access to improved sanitation. Around 48 percent of Colombians have no healthcare, and Colombians face vectorborne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever as well as from communicable diseases and respiratory ailments.

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