Poverty and living standards in Putumayo, Colombia: official figures
13.6% of the people of Putumayo were in multidimensional poverty in 2025, according to DANE (14th highest of 33 departments and Bogota; Colombia 9.9%). That is up 1.8 percentage points from 2024 and down 10.5 percentage points from 2018, when it was 24.1%.
Is poverty higher in rural Putumayo?
In 2025 multidimensional poverty in Putumayo was 9.5% in municipal head towns and 18.1% in villages and rural areas (Colombia 6.3% and 22.4%). People in poverty were deprived in 38.0% of the weighted indicators on average.
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many people in Putumayo lack clean water?
30.0% of people in Putumayo lived in households without access to an improved water source in 2025 (8th highest of 33; Colombia 8.3%), and 8.9% in households without adequate sewage or toilet disposal (Colombia 9.2%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many homes in Putumayo are overcrowded?
4.2% of people in Putumayo lived in critically overcrowded homes in 2025 (12th lowest of 33; Colombia 5.4%), and 2.1% in homes with inadequate floors such as earth (Colombia 4.6%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow common is informal work in Putumayo?
87.7% of people in Putumayo lived in households where at least one worker was informal in 2025 (tied for 7th highest of 33; Colombia 70.0%), and 8.1% in households affected by long-term unemployment (Colombia 13.1%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow common is child labour in Putumayo?
In 2025, 2.9% of people in Putumayo lived in households with child labour (Colombia 1.2%), and 3.6% in households where young children faced barriers to early-childhood care services (Colombia 5.3%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow Putumayo compares with other departments
People in multidimensional poverty (2025)
Putumayo ranks 14 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in multidimensional poverty |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Bolivar | 17.0% |
| 12 | Caqueta | 15.0% |
| 13 | Cesar | 14.8% |
| 14 | Putumayo | 13.6% |
| 15 | Norte de Santander | 13.3% |
| 16 | Narino | 13.2% |
| 17 | Cauca | 13.0% |
People in households without an improved water source (2025)
Putumayo ranks 8 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households without an improved water source |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Vichada | 58.3% |
| 6 | Amazonas | 56.9% |
| 7 | La Guajira | 45.3% |
| 8 | Putumayo | 30.0% |
| 9 | Guaviare | 29.9% |
| 10 | Narino | 20.1% |
| 11 | Caqueta | 19.3% |
People in households with informal work (2025)
Putumayo ranks 9 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households with informal work |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Cauca | 88.3% |
| 7 | Cordoba | 87.7% |
| 8 | Sucre | 87.7% |
| 9 | Putumayo | 87.7% |
| 10 | Caqueta | 86.0% |
| 11 | Guainia | 86.0% |
| 12 | Magdalena | 84.9% |
More on Putumayo: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · government budget · Colombia
Sources
- Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE): Pobreza multidimensional, anexo departamental 2025 (Encuesta Nacional de Calidad de Vida): incidence by department and area, household deprivations by indicator, intensity and incidence by sex, 2018-2025 (updated 14 April 2026), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 73caab08046d…)
Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.