Valle del Cauca Department

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Department of Valle del Cauca Departamento del Valle del Cauca
Department
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: Himno al Valle del Cauca
Valle del Cauca shown in red
Topography of the department
Coordinates: 3°25′N 76°31′W / 3.417°N 76.517°W / 3.417; -76.517
Country	Colombia
Region	Andean Region/Pacific Region
Established	16 April 1910
Capital	Santiago de Cali
Government
• Governor	Clara Luz Roldán (2020-2023) (Social Party of National Unity)
Area
• Total	22,140 km2 (8,550 sq mi)
• Rank	23
Population  (2018)[1]
• Total	4,475,886
• Rank	3
• Density	200/km2 (520/sq mi)
GDP [2]
• Total	COP 139,863 billion (US$ 32.9 billion)
Time zone	UTC−5
ISO 3166 code	CO-VAC
Municipalities	42
HDI (2019)	0.791[3] high · 2nd of 33
Website	www.valledelcauca.gov.co

Valle del Cauca, or Cauca Valley (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈbaʎe ðel ˈkawka]), is a department in western Colombia abutting the Pacific Ocean. Its capital is Santiago de Cali. Other cities such as Buenaventura, Buga, Cartago, Palmira and Tuluá have great economical, political, social and cultural influence on the department's life. Valle del Cauca has the largest number of independent (i.e., nonmetropolitan) towns with over 100,000 inhabitants in the country, counting six within its borders.^[4] Buenaventura has the largest and busiest seaport in Colombia, moving about 8,500,000 tons of merchandise annually.^[5]