World Cup Country Profiles: Colombia
FIFA 2014 World Cup Ranking: 8
Star Player: Mario Yepes
Central defender Mario Yepes is the captain of the Colombia national team for the 2014 World Cup. When he played for Paris Saint-Germain Football Club from 2004 to 2008, Yepes was nicknamed “Super Mario”. His nickname still applies after a 19-year international career; in the South American qualifying matches, Yepes led the best defense in the region, allowing only 13 goals in 16 matches. Yepes is an institution on the national team, on which he has played over 100 matches. He was also part of the team that brought home the 2001 Copa America. Though the 38-year old footballer was concerned that his age would hold him back from the Cup he continues to play at the highest standard.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $526.5 billion
GDP per capita (PPP): $11,100
Government Structure: Republic, executive branch dominant
Corruption Index: 36 (ranked 94/177)
Religious Demographics: 90% Roman Catholic, 10% other
Ethnic Demographics: Mestizo 58%, White 20%, Afro-Colombian (includes Mulatto and Zambo) 21%, Amerindian (includes over 70 distinct ethnic groups) 1%
Literacy Rate: 93.6% of population
Health Barriers:
Access to Drinking Water Source: 92.9%
Use of Improved Sanitation Facilities: 78.1%
HIV prevalence rate: 0.5%
Incidence of malaria (per 100,000 population): 204 -considered high risk
Youth % of populous (15-24): 38.7%
Contraceptive Prevalence: 79.1%
Development History of Colombia:
The recent history of Colombia has been marked by ongoing conflict between government forces and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Engaging in guerrilla warfare for five decades, and peaking in the 90s, the FARC lacked the popular support needed to overthrow the government. Official peace talks with the FARC began in 2012, aiming to create a lasting peace between former revolutionaries and the Colombian government. However, there are still large regions that are not under full government control and are subject to guerrilla attacks. Many criminal organizations, largely funded by the drug trade, have developed as the FARC declines. Colombia has a history of peaceful democratic elections and few civil rights violations despite a recent history of internal violent conflict.
In part because of the decline of internal conflict since the 90s, Colombia has halved it's homicide rate, which in 2002 was one of the highest worldwide. Health care coverage has improved significantly in the same time period, reaching 95% in the three largest cities. However, coverage in rural areas and in marginalized communities continues to be relatively poor. Colombia has been a primary education innovator since the development of the Escuela Nueva, or New School, in the 1970s. After support from the government, UNESCO, and the World Bank, Colombia was the only country in which rural schools outperformed urban schools due to the method. The program has been greatly expanded both within the country and in 19 other countries. In general, the main difficulty for development in Colombia has been the poor government control of rural areas which has led to a disparity between supported urban center and neglected rural populations.
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