The colonial economy was based almost entirely on gold mining, including stealing metal from

indigenous graves (guacas). The modern economy is much more expansive, with the development of
hydrocarbon fuels and some metals, agricultural production, and the manufacture of goods for export
and domestic consumption. Private companies dominate the economy, with direct government
involvement limited to industries such as railroads, oil, and telecommunications. The government has
sought to promote economic stability and encourage private enterprise through indirect measures such
as tax breaks and loans to new industries. Regional development organizations such as the Cauca Valley
Corporation have been established to encourage more balanced industrial growth with a focus on
hydropower development and flood control. Economic growth was substantial until the mid-20th
century, but inflation and unemployment rose at alarming rates over the decades that followed as
growth slowed. Still, Colombia was one of the few Latin American countries not hit by a debt crisis in the
1980s, and in that decade maintained, in many ways, the region's healthiest economy. Rice plantations 

Although industrial development has been impressive since the 1940s, agriculture remains an important
part of Colombia's economy. Much of Colombia's land is uncultivated due to poor soils and
unfavourable climatic conditions prevalent. The eastern plains are sparsely populated, the Pacific coast
is heavily forested due to high rainfall, and much of the Magdalena Valley remains open or unused.