According to abbreviationfinder, Bogotá is the capital city of the Republic of Colombia and the department of Cundinamarca. As capital, it houses the highest-ranking bodies of the executive branch (Casa de Nariño), legislative (Congress of Colombia) and judicial (Supreme Court of Justice, Constitutional Court, Council of State and the Superior Council of the Judiciary).
In the economic plane it stands out as an important economic and industrial center. Bogotá is the largest and most populated city in the country, in addition to being the most important cultural, industrial, economic and tourist center in Colombia and one of the main in Latin America. The important cultural offer is represented in the large number of museums, theaters and libraries, some of them being the most important in the country. In addition, it is home to important festivals with a long history and national and international recognition. Academic activity stands out, since some of the most important Colombian universities have their headquarters in the city.
Location and geography
The capital city is located in the Sabana de Bogotá, on the Cundiboyacense high plateau in the Eastern Cordillera of the Andes, at an altitude of about 2,630 meters above sea level. It has a total area of 1776 km² and an urban area of 307 km². The territory where the city sits was formerly a lake. Evidence of this are the wetlands that cover some non-urbanized sectors of the Sabana, especially in the town of Suba. According to various writings of the time, at the arrival of the first conquerors this territory was covered with swamps. See population of Colombia.
Bogotá limits to the south with the Departments of Meta and Huila, to the North with the municipality of Chía, to the west with the Bogotá River and with several municipalities of the Department. Through the East it reaches the eastern hills and the municipalities of La Calera, Chipaque, Choachí, Gutiérrez, Ubaque, Une.
It is delimited by a mountainous system in which the hills of Monserrate (3152 meters above sea level high) and Guadalupe (3250 meters above sea level high) to the east of the city stand out. It is connected to the Monserrate hill through the cable car and funicular transport services.
Its longest river is the Bogotá River, which for several decades has presented high levels of contamination, and therefore the city government has led several decontamination projects.
Economy
Bogotá is the main economic and industrial center of Colombia ; There, most of the capitals from other cities converge as it is the focus of the country’s trade due to its large population. It receives investors from all over Colombia and from other parts of the world. Likewise, in 2008 the city ranked as the fourth most influential financial center in Latin America. In the period 2003 – 2006, the GDP Bogotá’s commercial (gross domestic product) grew by 10.3% annually, representing 25.3% of the national commercial GDP, it includes the assets from the investment of the other cities of the country in the city and that of many multinational companies; being higher than Uruguay’s GDP, however, the unemployment rate reaches 11.3% and underemployment of 31.6 percent. On the other hand, the cost of living is lower than the average of the 40 main cities in Latin America. In addition to this, Bogotá is projected in the medium term as one of the most important business destinations in the world.
Bogotá DC ranked sixth among 50 cities in Latin America for its quality of life standards, high potential for doing business, and excellent conditions for professional development, according to the ranking established by América Economía Intelligence. In addition, it is one of the largest industrial centers in Latin America. At the national level, the importation of capital goods has been encouraged by the Government, benefiting Bogotá in a special way, which participates with 24.4% of the total national industry (2003).
This is partly due to its geographical location, which makes the city a strategic point in logistical terms, since the transport of merchandise to other parts of the country is relatively fast. In the same way, the supply of raw materials for the industrial sector in the city is facilitated, due to its proximity to agricultural regions such as the Eastern Plains. For all this, several multinational companies have established their regional operations there during the last decades. However, the distance from the ports diminishes the competitive advantages for exporting industrial products. Thus, services (including telecommunications and commerce) are gaining share compared to industry.
In 2005, consumer goods led industrial production, followed by intermediate and capital goods. Of the 248 thousand companies that Bogotá has, 78% are linked to service activities, contributing 76% of employment and 79% of GDP. The towns in which the largest number of industrial establishments are concentrated are Puente Aranda, Fontibón, Kennedy, los Mártires, Engativá and Barrios Unidos (in that order), where the industrial sectors of food, chemical, pharmaceutical, textile, publishing stand out. and metalworking.
Bogotá’s main international trading partner in 2003 was the United States, followed by the European Union. The city mainly exports agricultural products (30%), chemicals (10%), and textiles (7%), and imports Transportation Material (17%), Machinery except Electrical (17%), and Electrical Machinery (14%). In addition, Bogotá has several commercial areas and a growing number of shopping centers spread throughout its territory. The small ones are numerous in commercial areas such as Suba and Fontibón.
