During the 20 th century, Risaralda's economy went from being an agricultural-based (primarily due to coffee production) to being based on commerce and services.This reduction of the coffee production has made the paths the economies of the so called Eje Cafetero (Caldas, Quindío y Risaralda) diverge.Thus the study of these three departments must be done separately.This paper's objective is to present descriptive evidence about Risaralda's recent economic evolution.The department has good infrastructure and human capital, thanks to the resources generated by the coffee economy in the past.However, recently there has been a recent reduction of the quality of life that can be seen through poverty and unemployment rates.Regarding its economy, even though commercial activities have responded to a traditional vocation of its people, these activities do not generate quality employment.