Colombia's wild and empty west coast

The second most populated country in South America has a decidedly unpopulated Pacific coast

Photo by Milo Miloezger on Unsplash

Colombia is South America’s second-most populous country with nearly 53 million people. But despite having such a large population, Colombia’s west coast is pretty empty (of humans that is)! If the United States shared a similar population trend, only the single city of San Francisco would exist on the west coast. So why do so few Colombians call their Pacific Coast home? And what goes on there? To start, let’s go over Colombia’s unique physical geography!

Oh and, of course, you can watch this as well over on my YouTube channel if you prefer!

Colombia’s has an intense physical geography

Photo by Random Institute on Unsplash

More so than most countries, Colombia has a physical geography that is very intimidating. It’s basically a huge mountain range in the middle, with two very tropical and very wet regions to its east and west respectively. There’s other parts, of course, but this gives you an idea of how Colombia might be different than, say, France.

Overall, Colombia is broken into five distinct natural regions: the Andean highlands, the Caribbean lowlands, the Orinoquía grasslands, the Amazon rainforest, and the Pacific tropics.

• The Andean Highlands: This is the heart of Colombia, home to the majority of its population and its most significant cities, including Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali. The Andes Mountains divide into three ranges here, creating fertile valleys and temperate plateaus ideal for agriculture, urban development, and infrastructure.

• The Caribbean Lowlands: Known for its arid deserts, tropical savannas, and coastal rainforests, this area is economically and culturally vital. Cities like Cartagena and Barranquilla thrive as port and beach cities along the coast, benefiting from the Magdalena River’s strategic role as a trade artery.

• The Orinoquía Grasslands: A vast, arid plains region that is one of Colombia’s least populated regions for humans… but for cows? It’s basically the Wyoming of Colombia.

• Amazon Rainforest: Colombia’s portion of the immense Amazon is rich in biodiversity and natural resources but also home to challenging terrain and a climate that has limited urbanization.

• The Pacific Tropics: Flanked by the Pacific Ocean and the Western Andes, this is Colombia’s most humid and tropical region, with some of the world’s highest rainfall levels. Dense rainforests and rugged mountains dominate the landscape, making transportation and infrastructure development a significant challenge.

You can start to see the trend here! Colombia’s geography has supported large populations in its Andes and Caribbean regions, but its Orinoquia, Amazon and Pacific regions are far more isolated and, thus, less populated.

Of course this article (and video) is about the Pacific region of Colombia for one simple reason: coastal regions around the world tend to get developed first and earliest! This is largely due to the simple fact that the ocean was and still is a primary method of travel and transportation for both people and goods! And in the 21st century, ports on the Pacific Ocean, which connect to the east Asian countries of Japan, China, Vietnam, etc. are very important. So while the Orinoquia and Amazon regions also have very little populations, those have more straightforward and obvious answers.

But let’s go back in time because Colombia, like most countries in the western hemisphere, is ultimately a product of its colonial history.

Spain didn’t care about the Pacific

The Spanish conquest in the 1500s heavily shaped Colombia’s demographic and economic patterns that we still see today. Spanish colonizers focused their efforts on the Caribbean and interior highlands, where fertile valleys and abundant resources supported agriculture and trade.

Coastal cities like Cartagena and Santa Marta were prioritized for settlement due to their proximity to other Caribbean colonies and Europe more broadly. These cities’ facilitated the export of gold, emeralds, and other natural resources that Spain valued at the time. Cartagena, in particular, became a hub for transatlantic trade and colonial administration, supported by their natural harbors and calm waters.

In contrast, Colombia’s Pacific coast offered little to entice Spanish settlers. The region lacks major natural harbors and continues to face rough seas into today, making it less suitable for large-scale shipping. Additionally, trade routes with Asia and the Pacific Rim were virtually nonexistent during this period, further diminishing the region’s strategic importance. Basically, this region was simply not all that enticing for Spain.

But even if there was a good reason to develop it during the colonial era, this would have been a VERY challenging region to settle in.

A geography that discourages development

Even after independence from Spain in the early 19th century and as trade with Asia and the west coasts of countries all along the America’s picks up, Colombia’s Pacific region remained underdeveloped. This is due to several geographic constraints:

1. Rainfall and Terrain: Receiving up to 500 inches of rain annually in some areas, the Pacific coast of Colombia is among the wettest places on Earth. This extreme precipitation fosters impenetrable rainforests and swampy landscapes, making urbanization and agriculture difficult. Yes! This area is harder to develop and manage than Colombia’s Amazon region.

2. Mountain Barriers: But beyond the rain and tropics, the Western Andes effectively separate the Pacific Coast from Colombia’s interior. Rugged, steep, and sparsely traversed, these mountains hinder overland transportation and limit connectivity. The western Andes, in particular, are very challenging to cross over.

3. Limited Infrastructure: Finally, historic neglect has resulted in a lack of roads, railways, and even airports. Today, many parts of the Pacific region remain accessible only by river or sea. And right now as you read this, there are just two highways connecting the interior to the west coast. Highway 40 connects Cali to Buenaventura and Highway 10 connects Pasto to Tumaco. That’s it!

An Afro-Colombian home

Now all this said, while sparsely populated, the Pacific region is home to many people, particularly Afro-Colombian and Indigenous communities. These groups have historically thrived in the region’s difficult environment! Indigenous tribes, obviously, have lived in the region for centuries or millennia and have learned to live with the region’s unique climate and topography rather than attempt to tame it. And then there’s the unique Afro-Colombian population that has its roots in Africans who escaped slavery and sought refuge in this region’s secluded rainforests. This region became a home to this population because, once people made it there, it became almost impossible to track them down and bring them back. Because of this, Colombia’s west coast because a haven rather than a burden.

Today, cities like Buenaventura and Tumaco have grown into regional hubs, but their combined populations—around 650,000—pale in comparison to Bogotá’s 12 million residents. Buenaventura, Colombia’s largest Pacific port, struggles with infrastructure limitations and socioeconomic challenges despite its strategic importance in international trade.

There’s always a reason why people and population centralize where they do. Humans, despite our ability to live almost anywhere on the planet, still prefer areas with a few core ingredients: mild climate, arable land for agriculture, and methods of transportation or the means to build it. There are always exceptions of course, but if you see an area of the world that seems like it should have more people in it, but doesn’t… it’s likely due to these reasons. And, in this case, Colombia is no different!