Bucaramanga

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Bucaramanga (Spanish pronunciation: [bukaɾaˈmaŋɡa]) is the capital and largest city of the department of Santander, Colombia. Bucaramanga has the fifth-largest economy by GDP in Colombia, has the highest GDP per capita in Colombia, has the lowest unemployment rate and has the ninth-largest population in the country, with 581,130 people. Bucaramanga has over 160 parks scattered throughout the city and has been given the nickname "La Ciudad de Los Parques" ("The City of Parks") and "La Ciudad Bonita de Colombia" ("Colombia's Beautiful City"). Bucaramanga has grown rapidly since the 1960s, mostly into neighbouring locations within the metropolitan area. Floridablanca, Girón and Piedecuesta are inextricably linked geographically and commercially with Bucaramanga, and now all form together the Bucaramanga Metropolitan Area with 1,141,671 inhabitants.The city is the base of the Colombian Petroleum Institute (ICP), the research branch of the state oil company Ecopetrol.