Vaupés Department

Department of Colombia

Department in Amazonía Region, Colombia

Department of Vaupes

Departamento del Vaupés

Department

Vaupés River

Flag

Coat of arms

Vaupés shown in red

Topography of the department

Coordinates: 1°12′N 70°10′W﻿ / ﻿1.200°N 70.167°W﻿ / 1.200; -70.167
Country|  Colombia
Region| Amazonía Region
Established| July 4, 1991
Capital| Mitú
Government

• Governor| Jesús Maria Vásquez Caicedo (2016-2019)
Area

[1][2]

• Total| 54,135 km2 (20,902 sq mi)
• Rank| 7th
Population

(2018)[3]

• Total| 40,797
• Rank| 32nd
• Density| 0.75/km2 (2.0/sq mi)
Time zone| UTC−05
ISO 3166 code| CO-VAU
Municipalities| 6
HDI (2019)| 0.639[4]
medium · 33rd of 33
Website| www.vaupes.gov.co

Vaupés (Spanish pronunciation: [bawˈpes]) is a department of Southeastern Colombia in the jungle covered Amazonía Region. It is located in the southeast part of the country, bordering Brazil to the east, the department of Amazonas to the south, Caquetá to the west, and Guaviare, and Guainía to the north; covering a total area of 54,135 km2. Its capital is the town of Mitú. As of 2018, the population was 40,797, making it the least populous department in Colombia.

## History[edit]

During the colonization by the Spanish and first days of the first republic, the territory of Vaupes was part of the Province of Popayán, during the Greater Colombia. After the independence from Spain between 1821 and 1830 became part of the first version of the Boyacá Department. Between 1831 and 1857 the territory became part of the National Territory of Caquetá to later be part of the Sovereign State of Cauca. In 1886 became part of the then recently created Cauca Department.[5]

With the expansion of the rubber industry and the industrial revolution, exploration for rubber reached the area bringing colonizers that altered and in some cases extinguished the majority of the indigenous population.

The territory was first made into a territorial division in 1910 and functioned as Commissaries (Comisarias) with the town of Calamar as capital (located in present-day Guaviare) but later moved to the town of Mitú to make an "act of presence" near the border with Brazil. In 1963 Guainía segregated from the Vaupes and became a commissary. In 1977, Guaviare followed the same path.

The department was created after the Colombian Constitution of 1991 which established it as a Department of Colombia on July 4, 1991.[6]

## Economy[edit]

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The department's main economic activities feature logging and fishing, with much exportation to neighboring Brazil.

## Demographics[edit]

The vast majority of the population consists of indigenous inhabitants. It is the least populated department in the country.

Historical populationYear| Pop.| ±%

|
|

1973 | 23,250| —
1985 | 26,178| +12.6%
1993 | 24,671| −5.8%
2005 | 39,279| +59.2%
2018 | 40,797| +3.9%
Source:[7]

## Transportation[edit]

Because of its location in the Amazon jungle, it has no roads connecting it with the rest of the country or internally from settlement to settlement, and commerce and contact with the outside world is achieved through travel along the main rivers and by means of air travel. Several of the small settlements have airstrips with service to the department's capital, Mitú, and from there with the rest of the country.[8]

## Administrative divisions[edit]

Because of its small population and vast extension of land, Vaupés only has three municipalities. Other sections of the department were classified as an especial type of corregimientos, which has certain hybrid functions from a municipality and corregimiento.

### Municipalities[edit]

1. Carurú
2. Mitú
3. Taraira

### Department Corregimientos[edit]

1. Pacoa
2. Papunahua
3. Yavaraté

### Municipal Corregimientos[edit]

1. Acaricuara
2. Villa Fátima

## See also[edit]

* Barasana-Eduria language
* Cubeo language
* Tucanoan languages

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ "Nuestro Departamento: Información general". Gobernación del Vaupés. Archived from the original on 2013-02-16. Retrieved 2012-02-12.
2. ^ "Vaupés, Department of". Historical Dictionary of Colombia. Scarecrow Press. 2012. p. 291. ISBN 978-0-8108-7813-6.
3. ^ "DANE". Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
4. ^ "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
5. ^ Vaupes - Capitán Paz
6. ^ (in Spanish) Vaupes Secretary of Education; History of Vaupes
7. ^ "Reloj de Población". DANE. Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadísitica. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
8. ^ (in Spanish) Finagro; Vaupes Department

## References[edit]

* "national lottery on Vaupes" (in Spanish).
* "Encolombia.com - Vaupes" (in Spanish).
* "National Federation of Departments: Vaupes" (in Spanish).

## External links[edit]

* Territorial-Environmental Information System of Colombian Amazon SIAT-AC website

* v
* t
* e

Mining in Colombia

Gold|

* Acandí
* El Bagre
* La Ye
* Barbacoas
* Buriticá
* Buriticá
* Cáceres
* Cajamarca
* La Colosa
* Caramanta
* Caramanta
* El Carmen de Atrato
* El Roble
* Cisneros
* Cisneros
* Condoto
* Guapi
* Jericó
* Quebradona
* Lloró
* Magüí
* Marmato
* Marmato
* Nechí
* Quibdó
* Quinchía
* Quinchía
* Remedios
* Segovia-Remedios
* Río Quito
* San Roque
* Gramalote
* Santa Bárbara
* Santa Rosa de Osos
* San Ramón
* Segovia
* Segovia-Remedios
* Simití
* Tadó
* Timbiquí
* Tumaco
* Unión Panamericana
* Venecia
* La Mina
* Zaragoza
* El Limón

Silver|

* Amalfi
* El Bagre
* Buriticá
* Cáceres
* El Carmen de Atrato
* El Roble
* Cisneros
* Cisneros
* Jericó
* Nuevo Chaquiro
* Líbano
* Marmato
* Marmato
* Nechí
* Puerto Berrío
* Remedios
* Segovia
* Zaragoza

Platinum|

* Atrato
* El Cantón de San Pablo
* Cértegui
* Condoto
* Istmina
* Marmato
* Marmato
* Medio Atrato
* Nóvita
* Quibdó
* Río Quito
* Tadó
* Unión Panamericana

Nickel|

* Medellín
* Morro Pelón
* Montelíbano
* Cerro Matoso
* Planeta Rica
* Uré

Coltan|

* Inírida
* Vaupés
* Vichada

Emeralds|

* Muzo
* Briceño
* Coper
* Maripí
* La Pita
* Muzo
* Muzo
* Otanche
* Pauna
* Quípama
* Las Pavas
* San Pablo de Borbur
* Coscuez
* Yacopí

* Chivor
* Chivor
* Chivor
* Gachalá
* Guateque
* Macanal
* Somondoco
* Ubalá

Coal|

* Agustín Codazzi
* Barrancas
* Cerrejón
* Becerril
* Chiriguaná
* Cucunubá
* Cúcuta
* Guachetá
* Hatonuevo
* La Jagua de Ibirico
* El Paso
* La Francia
* Puerto Libertador
* Samacá
* Sardinata

Salt|

* Zipaquirá
* Zipaquirá mine
* Nemocón
* Nemocón mine
* Manaure
* Restrepo
* Upín
* Santa Catalina
* Sesquilé

Sources|

* Gold • Silver • Platinum • Nickel • Coltan • Emeralds • Coal • Salt

Category • Images

* v
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* e

Departments of Colombia

Amazonas
Antioquia
Arauca
Atlántico
Bolívar
Boyacá

Caldas
Caquetá
Casanare
Cauca
Cesar
Chocó

Córdoba
Cundinamarca
Guainía
Guaviare
Huila
La Guajira

Magdalena
Meta
Nariño
N. Santander
Putumayo
Quindío

Risaralda
San Andrés
Santander
Sucre
Tolima
Valle del Cauca

Vaupés
Vichada

Capital district:
Bogotá

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Authority control databases: National |

* France
* BnF data

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*[±%]: Percent change
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