THE 8 MAIN DEPARTMENTS OF THE AMAZON REGION - GEOGRAPHY - 2025

The departments of the Amazon region of Colombia are Amazonas, Caquetá, Guainía, Guaviare, Putumayo, Vaupés, Meta and Vichada. The Amazon region is the largest and the least populated in Colombia.

It is dominated by the Amazon River, its tributaries and the equatorial jungle. It is located in the southeast corner of the Colombian territory, where the entire borders with Brazil and Peru are located.

Through the Putumayo river, it also covers part of the border with Ecuador. The Amazon region occupies 42% of the territory of Colombia.

It is made up of an extensive plain densely populated with humid forests, with a large number of tributaries from the Amazon.

The 8 departments of the Amazon region

1- Amazon

It is the largest department in the region in terms of territorial extension. Its territory is made up mostly of the Amazon rainforest.

It has a great cultural diversity, with indigenous tribes such as the Ticunas, Huitotos, Camsás, Yaguas, Nukaks, Ticanos and Ingas. Its capital is Leticia.

2- Caquetá

It is located in southeastern Colombia. The main activity is livestock and its capital is Florence.

It includes the natural parks Cordillera de los Picachos, Sierra de Chiribiquete, Alto Fragua Indi-Wasi and Serranía de los Churumbelos Auka-wasi.

3- Guainía

It is located in the east of Colombia and its main activity is tourism. It has the Cerros de Mavicure, the Laguna de las Brujas and the Raudal de Sapuara.

Its capital is Inírida. It is the department with the smallest population in Colombia.

4- Guaviare

The main activity is agriculture. Its capital is San José del Guaviare and it is one of the least populated departments.

The most important crops are cocoa, banana, rice, and corn. The main crop for many years was coca, but it was declared illegal by the Colombian government.

5- Putumayo

Located in the southwest of the country, it gets its name from a tributary of the Amazon: the Putumayo. Its plains are characterized by high temperatures of more than 27 ° C.

They are also very rainy, so they have rainfall with more than 3900 mm as an annual average. Its capital is Mocoa.

6- Vaupes

Its main economic activity is agriculture. It is the second least populated department in Colombia and its capital is Mitú.

Lately the tourist activity has begun to be interested in its natural attractions and its ancestral cultural wealth, since various tribes populate its territory.

7- Goal

It is rich in water, thanks to the many tributaries of the Orinoco River. It partially forms the Amazon region and is the tenth department with the lowest population in Colombia.

Its main economic activities are agriculture, livestock and mining. It has oil and gas fields. Its capital is Villavicencio.

8- Vichada

It also partially forms the Amazon region. It is located east of the Colombian territory.

It is another of the departments with the least population in Colombia, since it occupies the third place.

Within this department is the El Tuparro Natural Park. The economy of the department is based on agricultural activity, mainly floral, and livestock.

Due to geographic isolation, coca has been cultivated for many years, which has led to confrontations with the public force. Its capital is Puerto Carreño.

References

1. "Amazon Region Colombia" in Wikipedia. Retrieved in October 2017 from Wikipedia at: es.wikipedia.org
2. "Amazon Region" in Colombia. Recovered in October 2017 from Colombia at: colombia.com
3. «Amazon departments» in Slideshare (September 2011). Retrieved in October 2017 from SlideShare at: es.slideshare.net
4. "Department of the Amazon" in Encolombia. Recovered in October 2017 from Encolombia at: encolombia.com
5. "Amazon Region" in Prior Knowledge. Recovered in October 2017 from Prior Knowledge at: froac.manizales.unal.edu.co