Chocó Department is a department of Colombia known for its large Afro-Colombian population. It is in the west of the country, and is the only Colombian department to have coastlines on both the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. It contains all of Colombia's border with Panama. Its capital is Quibdó. Chocó has a diverse geography, unique ecosystems and unexploited natural resources. However, its population has one of the lowest standards of living of all departments in Colombia. In March 2007, Colombian media reported that some 50 children starved in less than three months, creating awareness of the grave condition Chocó inhabitants are facing. Infrastructure problems were also revealed. For example, despite its status as the world's rainiest lowland, with close to of annual precipitation, Quibdó lacks sanitary drinking water. and the break in the Pan-American Highway between Yaviza, Panama and Turbo, Colombia
History
The department was created in 1944. Its low population, mountainous and inhospitable topography, and distance from Bogotá resulted in Chocó receiving little attention from the Colombian government. During the reign of military dictatorGustavo Rojas Pinilla, his administration proposed to eliminate Chocó and divide its territory between the departments of Antioquia and Valle del Cauca. But the 1957 coup d'état of General Gabriel París Gordillo overthrew Pinilla's government and ended such plans.
Geography
The Chocó Department makes up most of the ecoregion known as El Chocó that extends from Panama to Ecuador. The municipality of Lloró holds the Highest Average Annual Precipitation record measured at 523.6 inches which makes it the wettest place in the world. Three large rivers drain the Chocó Department, the Atrato, the San Juan, and the Baudó. Each has many tributaries. The Baudó Mountains on the coast and the inland Cordillera Occidental are cut by low valleys, with an altitude less than 1,000 meters, that form most of the territory. Most of the Chocó is thick rainforest. Much of the wood for Colombia's internal consumption is harvested from the Chocó, with a small percentage harvested for export. Chocó Department produces the majority of Colombia's significant platinum output. Chocó is also Colombia's top gold-producing region. In the late 19th century, it attracted a variety of miners from many countries seeking to make their fortunes in gold.
Demographics
Chocó is inhabited predominantly by Afro-Colombians, descendants of enslaved Africans imported and brought to this area by the Spanish colonizers after conquering the Americas. The second largest race/ethnic group are the Emberá, a Native American people. More than half of their total population in Colombia lives in Chocó, some 35,500. They practice hunting and artisan fishing and live near rivers. The total population as of 2005 was less than half a million, with more than half living in the Quibdó valley. According to a 2005 census the ethnic composition of the department is:
