Colômbia

Gonçalo Filipe
8º C

Introduction
The country I chose to do my job was Colombia.

In my work I will talk about the location,

Colombia is the second most populous country in South America, and its
capital is Bogotá. Bogota is the Colombian city with the largest population.

Your official language is Spanish.

His Government is a unitary presidential Republic and its President is Juan

Manuel Santos

Colombia conquered the Independence of Spain on July 20, 1810.

Location

Colombia is in the extreme north of South America. It has about 1,138,914

(one million, one million, thirty-eight thousand, nine hundred and fourteen)
square kilometers.

The territory of Colombia borders Brazil to the southeast, Venezuela to the

east, Panama to the west, and Ecuador to the southwest, and Peru to the
south. It is bathed by the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean
to the west.

Colombia has a
population of
about
45,659,709
inhabitants and
is considered
the second
most populous
country in
South America.

Brief history
of Colombia

Colombia has a long tradition of constitutional government. The Liberal

and Conservative parties, founded in 1848 and 1849 are two of the oldest
surviving political parties in the Americas.
However, tensions between the two have often ended in violence,
especially in the Thousand Days War (1899-1902) and during La Violencia,
beginning in 1948.

Since 1960, government forces, leftist rebels and right-wing paramilitaries

have been involved in the continent's most enduring armed conflicts.
Fueled by cocaine trafficking, conflict escalated dramatically in the 1980s.

However, in the 2000s, violence declined significantly. Many paramilitary

groups demobilized as part of a controversial peace process with the
government, and the guerrillas lost control in many areas where they once
dominated.

Colombia, for many years, had one of the highest homicide rates in the
world, being reduced by almost half between 1993 and 2005.

Assassinations of trade unionists have also been significantly reduced

since the 1990s, but trade unionists continue to be threatened and
murdered, albeit at a slower pace than the general population.
Currently, the country is a permanent medium power with the fourth largest
economy in Latin America, although income inequality is prevalent, and
wealth is poorly distributed. In 2014,

Colombia reached a Gini coefficient of 0.538. Official figures for 2014

indicate that about 28.5% of Colombians lived below the poverty line and
about 8.1% in "extreme poverty".

Climate in Colombia

The climate of Colombia is characterized by being tropical, but presents

variations within six natural regions, whose characteristics depend on
altitude, temperature, humidity, winds and rains.
The diversity of climatic zones in Colombia is characterized by tropical
forests, savannas, steppes, deserts and alpine climate.

The mountain climate is one of the unique characteristics of the Andes and
other altitude reliefs, where the climate is determined by elevation. Below
1,000 meters altitude is the hot altitudinal zone, where temperatures are
above 24 ° C.
About 82.5% of the total area of the country is in the hot altitudinal zone.

Biodiversity - fauna and flora of Colombia

Colombia is considered one of the most diversified countries in the world,

ranked third in number of live species and first in number of species of
birds.
The country has between 40,000 and 45,000 different species of plants,
equivalent to 10 or 20% of all species in the world, which is even more
remarkable given that Colombia is considered an intermediate size country,
with about one ninth of the size of the territory of the United States, for
example.

Colombia is the second most bio-diverse country in the world, behind only
Brazil, which is approximately 8 times larger.

Colombia is the country of the planet most characterized by its high degree
of biodiversity, with the highest rate of species per unit area in the world
and with the largest number of endemic species (species not found
elsewhere) of Any country.

About 10% of the Earth's species live in Colombian territory, including

more than 1,800 species of birds, more than Europe and North America
combined. The country is home to 10% of mammal species, 14% of
amphibian species and 18% of bird species in the world.
The country has about 2,000 species of marine fish and 1,450 species of
freshwater fish, as well as having the largest number of endemic species of
butterflies, orchids and more than 250,000 varieties of beetles.

Colombia is the first in number of species of amphibians, in addition to

concentrating more than 30% of the species of sea turtles and 25% of the
species of crocodiles of the planet. There are 34 species of primates, 270
species of snakes and, according to estimates, 300,000 invertebrate species
in the country,
which still have
32 terrestrial
biomes and 314
different
ecosystem types.

Tourism in Colombia
For many years, serious internal armed conflict has deterred tourists from
visiting Colombia, with official warnings from governments against travel
to the country.

However, in recent years, the number of tourists has increased dramatically,

thanks to security improvements resulting from President Uribe's
"democratic security" strategy, which included significant increases in
military force and police presence across the country and pushed the rebel
groups away from big cities, roads and tourist sites that can attract
international visitors.

Visits from foreign tourists are estimated to have increased from 0.5
million in 2003 to 1.3 million in 2007, while Lonely Planet chose
Colombia as one of its top ten worldwide destinations in 2006.
Colombia's Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Luis Guillermo
Plata said his country received 2,348,948 visitors in 2008. It was expecting
2,650,000 tourists by 2009.
The most popular tourist attractions include the historic district of
Candelaria in downtown Bogota, the walled city and beaches of Cartagena,
the colonial cities of Santa Fe de Antioquia, Popayán, Villa de Leyva and
Santa Cruz de Mompox, the Sanctuary of Las Lajas Cathedral and Salt
Cathedral of Zipaquirá.
Tourists are also attracted to numerous festivals in Colombia, such as the
Medellín Flower Festival, the Barranquilla Carnival, the Black and White
Carnival in Pasto and the Ibero-American Theater Festival in Bogotá. Also
because of the better state of security in the country, the Caribbean cruise
ships now stop in Cartagena and Santa Marta.

The wide variety of geography, flora and fauna throughout Colombia has
also resulted in the development of an ecotourism industry, concentrated in
the national parks of the country.

The most

popular ecotourism destinations include: the Caribbean coast, the Tayrona

National Natural Park in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the Cabo de
la Vela mountain range at the tip of the La Guajira Peninsula, the Nevado
del Ruiz volcano, the Cocora valley and the desert Tatacoa in the central
Andean region; the Amacayacu National Park in the Amazon River Basin,
and the Malpelo and Gorgona Pacific Islands. Colombia is home to seven
UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Education
The Ministry of Education of Colombia is the body responsible for
coordinating the national education system and the education secretariats of
the regions are responsible for the administration of the service and
supervision.

Formal education is composed of levels of pre-school education (three

grades), basic (nine grades), high school (two grades) and higher education,
which is assumed partly by the state through various organizations such as
call "University Cities" located in large cities, although about 70% of
Colombia's higher education institutions are private.

The system also incorporates military schools where men and women can
obtain a high school diploma by giving them military training of reservists,
commanded by training officers and / or non-commissioned officers of the
Armed Forces in the last three years of teaching medium.

Science and technology are developed primarily by public universities in

Colombia and at the state level under the auspices of the Colombian
government through the Department of Science and Technology
Administration.
Colombia does not invest enough in science and technology to make a
significant impact on the economy, however, there is interest in developing
this sector at the local level through the creation of technology parks in
areas such as energy, health, software, agribusiness (in Portugal,
agribusiness) and biotechnology

Cultural genres in Colombia

• Music
Colombia is home to several musical genres, such as Cúmbia, Bambuco,
and Vallenato. Colombia's different genres of popular music are influenced
by Spanish, Amerindian and African elements, as well as other Latin
American currents that have made Colombian music one of the richest in
the region, leading to the recognition of several of its artists.

Colombian music is promoted mainly by the support of major record

companies, independent companies and, to a lesser extent, the Colombian
government through the Ministry of Culture. In a decentralized way, the
National Culture System, through the National Council of Music, advises
the Government on musical matters and on behalf of each of the six regions
of the country.

The Association of Authors and Composers of Colombia (SAYCO) and the

Colombian Association of Interpreters and Producers of Phonograms
(Acinpro) are the organizations responsible for collecting and distributing
economic rights, caused using works, to its members and foreign authors,
who are affiliated to the International Confederation of Societies of Authors
and Composers (CISAC).

Many foreign musical genres have achieved commercial success in the

country, which makes them quite widespread, through national radio
stations. Among these genres, merengue, salsa, rock, pop, lambada can be
mentioned.

Despite the foreign origin of such genera, culturally these have had
significant influence in Colombia. In this sense, these musical genres have
representatives in activity in the country. The genus of Colombian origin
that has achieved greater commercial success, until today, is vallenato.

• Movie theater
The Colombian cinema has its origins turned to the year of 1897, being
little profitable and with a modest highlight throughout its history.
During the first decades of the twentieth century, some companies
maintained a steady level of production, but lack of financial support and
strong foreign competition contributed to a significant decline in domestic
production initiatives.

The Cinematographic Promotion

Company (Focine) was created in the
1980s, allowing some Colombian
productions to be performed. However,
the organization had to be closed in the
early 1990s.

A law to encourage national film production, approved in 2003, has

guaranteed the maintenance of the film industry in the country, as well as
the making and production of films and short films.
Gastronomy
Colombian cuisine has a strong presence of corn as well as other tubers.
One common fruit in the country's dishes is avocado. Typical dishes also
carry more seasonings,
but not as much as in
Indian or Mexican
cuisines. Cassava is also
present in several dishes.
The most common drink
and brand of cuisine in
the country is coffee.

Colombian gastronomy
varies in each of its
regions. In the Amazon region, the cuisine is characterized by being fish-
based, with pirarucu being one of the most consumed. One of the most
representative dishes of this region is the patarashca, a fish filet seasoned
with garlic, peppers and onions and roasted wrapped in banana leaves;
almost always accompanied by fried banana and manioc flour.

In the region of Paisa, the main dish is the paisa pan, with antioquia
sancocho, hogao, antioquia tripe and pegao, while in Valle del Cauca,
chicken stew, jammed rice and pandebono are more consumed.

Sports
Some of the most practiced sports in Colombia are the skating and the
soccer, being this the most popular sport. The best participation of the
country in the Olympics was in 2000, when María Isabel Urrutia won the
gold in weightlifting, in the 75 kilos category. The Football Selection
represents the country in the competitions of FIFA and CONMEBOL.

Colombia won the Copa America in 2001. Also former Colombian Formula
1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya was born in Colombia. In Colombian football,
there are many players such as Carlos Valderrama, René Higuita, Falcão
García and James Rodríguez who competed for the best world prize of
2012 and James Rodriguez who is considered one of the best young soccer
players, besides the FIFA referee Oscar Ruiz.