Population and Development in Peripheral Regionsof Colombia in the XXth Century

Abstract

Demographic changes of the Colombian Pacific and the Caribbean regions are analyzed using eight censuses, six demographic surveys, and vital registrations. To some extent, population processes have been similar in these regions; however, salient differences were found in comparison to Bogotá and the rest of the country. Despite a systematic reduction in age dependency ratios, the effective dependency ratio remains higher than in other Colombian regions, being one of the limits to the economic development of the periphery. A retrospective estimation of the under-5 mortality for these regions shows a substantial decline within the past few decades, but the gap with respect to the rest of the country represents the negative penalty of being born and living in the less developed regions of Colombia. Indirect estimates of adult mortality and life expectancy at working ages lead to the same conclusion.