Colombia

*Hatian migrants at the Darien Gap. Source: Council on Foreign Relations*

Full Name: Republic of Colombia

Date of Independence: 7 August 1819

Capital: Bogotá

Population: 51.27 million people

Foreign-Born Population: 1.9 million (49% women)

Government Structure: Presidential Democratic Republic with Executive, Judicial, and Legislative Branches. The Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, the Attorney General’s Office and the Council of State make up the judicial power. The Executive Branch includes the president and 13 ministers. The Legislative branch includes the Senate and the House of Representatives with 8 standing committees.

Leader(s): President Gustavo Pedro

Primary Flow of Immigration:

Due to the economic and political crisis in Venezuela, Venezuelans make up the majority of migration into Colombia since 2015.
As of 2022, over 2.5 million Venezuelans reside in Colombia. In 2021, the World Bank noted that 1.7 million Venezuelans had traveled to Colombia making up 32% of all Venezuelan migrants in Latin America.
Many migrants from Haiti, Cuba, Ecuador, as well as Venezuela, cross into Colombia via the Darien Gap. The Darien Gap is a deadly and complex jungle landscape between Panama and Colombia and migrants use it both to migrate into either Panama or Colombia or pass through en route to other nations like the U.S. Cross-regional migrants such as people from Angola, Bangladesh, or Uzbekistan also utilize this route.
Since 2021, the number of Venezuelans passing through the “Gap” into Colombia has increased significantly. They usually cross into Necoclí and Capurganá, Colombia where migrants face a lack of support with regard to food, shelter, and water.
National governments and international agencies seek to reroute Venezuelan migration away from the Gap for increased safety.

Current Stance on Immigration:

Cartagena Declaration: Venezuelan migrants fall under the Cartagena Declaration which most nations in Latin America, particularly Colombia, uphold. This regional agreement provides refugee status to Venezuelans in Colombia.
Estatuto Temporal de Protección para Venezolanos (ETPV): Previous temporary protection statuses for Venezuelan migrants required renewals after two years. The current ETPV provides Venezuelan migrants with 10 years of legal residency under temporary protected status. This also includes access to healthcare and access to work. Venezuelan refugees/immigrants in Colombia continue to face issues in maintaining livelihoods and the ETPV provides greater leeway in obtaining residency status while working in informal job sectors.
Colombia has an “open-door” policy when it comes to

Primary Flow of Emigration:

Argentina has had flows of emigration since the mid1950s. Currently, about 4.7% of Colombians live abroad in Venezuela, the United States, Spain, Ecuador and Panama.
Argentina benefits economically from remittances from abroad and from immigration into the nation.

Further Reading:

Hard Times in a Safe Haven: Protecting Venezuelan Migrants in Colombia