Colombia

Colombia is a country in the northwestern corner of South America, with coastlines on both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. It is the only South American nation with coastlines on both bodies of water. This profile gives you the stable classification facts first, then shows you how to verify the changing numbers yourself, because population, currency, and visa rules are not fixed facts; they are snapshots that depend on the source and the year.

Stable identifiers

These identifiers come from the United Nations Standard Country or Area Codes for Statistical Use (M49) and the ISO 3166 standard. They are statistical conventions, not political or territorial claims.

Field	Value
UN M49 code	170
ISO alpha-2	CO
ISO alpha-3	COL
UN region	Americas
UN subregion	Latin America and the Caribbean
UN membership	Member state (since 5 November 1945)
World Bank capital field	Bogota

The M49 overview is maintained by the UN Statistics Division and is the common reference for statistical geography. It groups territories for data collection and reporting. It does not adjudicate territorial claims, border disputes, or the status of subnational entities. See the UN M49 overview for the explanation of how regions and subregions are assigned.

Geography and government

Colombia shares land borders with Panama, Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador. It is divided into 32 departments plus the capital district of Bogota. Bogota is the seat of the national government and the largest urban centre.

The nation is a presidential republic with a bicameral legislature. The constitutional name is Republic of Colombia. For the current head of state and cabinet, check the site of the Presidency of Colombia, not a third-party summary.

Languages

Spanish is the language of national administration. The 1991 Constitution also recognises the languages and dialects of ethnic groups as having formal status in their territories. The 65+ indigenous languages belong to several linguistic families and are not all mutually intelligible. English holds formal status only in the San Andrés, Providencia, and Santa Catalina archipelago, where the local Raizal community speaks San Andrés, Providencia Creole. Do not conflate “language with formal status” with “most spoken mother tongue” or with “legal recognition of indigenous languages.” UNESCO’s Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger tracks language vitality for several of these communities.

How to verify changing numbers

Population

Population figures change continuously. The most reliable current estimates come from the United Nations Population Division and the Colombian statistical office, DANE (Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística). Do not treat any single number as fixed; instead, record the source and reference year. The most recent census (2018) counted 48,258,494 residents. UN estimates for 2023 put the figure near 52 million. These two numbers are not contradictory; they are different measurement moments and methods.

The World Bank API also returns population data with a reference year attached. Its estimates may differ slightly from UN figures because the two organisations use different projection models and update schedules. Always name the source and reference year for any figure you cite.

Economy

Colombia is classified by the World Bank as an upper-middle-income economy. Key sectors include oil, coal, coffee, flowers, and services. For GDP, GDP per capita, income group, and poverty headcount, the World Bank country page is the primary source. The API returns metadata including the region and income level. Because GDP and GNI figures are revised, note the year of the estimate in your text. IMF data offers a second series; cite whichever you use with its reference year.

Currency

The currency is the Colombian peso (COP). The currency code is a stable classification fact; the exchange rate is not. Use a current rate from the central bank (Banco de la República) or a reputable financial data provider. A currency code search will return the ISO 4217 identifier, but only the central bank publishes the official rate.

Travel requirements

Do not summarise visa rules from memory. Entry requirements change and depend on the traveller’s nationality. Link to the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Cancillería) and to the traveller’s own foreign ministry travel advisory. The IATA Travel Centre is the neutral reference for current entry rules.

Sources to bookmark

For current data, use these primary sources rather than a static summary. Each returns figures with a reference year that you can cite.

• UN World Population Prospects: annual estimates by territory. The 2024 revision is the most recent full dataset.
• DANE: census and projection data for Colombia.
• World Bank API: population, GDP, income group, and poverty headcount for Colombia.
• Banco de la República: the official exchange rate for the Colombian peso.
• Presidencia de la República: current head of state and cabinet.
• Cancillería: visa and entry rules administered by Colombia.
• IATA Travel Centre: neutral, current entry-rule summaries for any traveller.

The legal and administrative profile rests on the UN M49 overview. The World Bank capital field lists Bogota. That is a statistical classification, not a political statement about the seat of government or any territorial claim.

Colombia’s shape on the map, its two-ocean coastline, and its constitutional structure are stable. The numbers that describe its people and its economy are not. Next, look at how those numbers compare with neighbours in the region, or zoom in on a single department to see how the national averages break apart.