Colombia

A brief country overview of Colombia

Colombia is the home country for a large portion of the current residents of Jackson Heights. Colombia is frequently mentioned in media reports for negative things that have gone in the country. Colombia is a country though rich in culture, with a diverse population, and a rich culinary and artistic heritage.

According to the CIA World Factbook Colombia is the home to 43,677,372 people. The median age of the population is 27.1 years old, and the birth rate is 18.09/1,000. The infant mortality rate is 17.37 deaths/1,000 live births. 74% of the population lives in urban areas, and 90% of the population is Catholic. 58% of the population is mestizo, 20% is white, 14% mulatto, 4% black, 3% mixed Black/Amerindian, and 1% Amerindian. 46.8% of the population is living below the poverty line. The life expectancy at birth is 74.07 years, and 90.4% of the population is literate. Colombia is the world’s leading producer of coca derivatives, and also produces heroin and marijuana. The violence in Colombia has at times threatened to spill into other countries and is one of the leading causes for their citizens to leave to go to other countries or the United States. As mentioned, more people have been displaced from their homes in Colombia than in any other country outside Africa with the majority of them being black.

Reference
CIA The World Factbook. Accessed from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/co.html#top