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This page was last updated on 20 March, 2008


Map of Bolivia



Legend: DefinitionDefinition Field ListingField Listing Rank OrderRank Order
   Introduction    Bolivia Top of Page
Background:
Definition Field Listing
Bolivia, named after independence fighter Simon BOLIVAR, broke away from Spanish rule in 1825; much of its subsequent history has consisted of a series of nearly 200 coups and countercoups. Democratic civilian rule was established in 1982, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and illegal drug production. In December 2005, Bolivians elected Movement Toward Socialism leader Evo MORALES president - by the widest margin of any leader since the restoration of civilian rule in 1982 - after he ran on a promise to change the country's traditional political class and empower the nation's poor majority. However, since taking office, his controversial strategies have exacerbated racial and economic tensions between the Amerindian populations of the Andean west and the non-indigenous communities of the eastern lowlands.
   Geography    Bolivia Top of Page
Location:
Definition Field Listing
Central South America, southwest of Brazil
Geographic coordinates:
Definition Field Listing
17 00 S, 65 00 W
Map references:
Definition Field Listing
South America
Area:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 1,098,580 sq km
land: 1,084,390 sq km
water: 14,190 sq km
Area - comparative:
Definition Field Listing
slightly less than three times the size of Montana
Land boundaries:
Definition Field Listing
total: 6,940 km
border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,423 km, Chile 860 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 1,075 km
Coastline:
Definition Field Listing
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
Definition Field Listing
none (landlocked)
Climate:
Definition Field Listing
varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid
Terrain:
Definition Field Listing
rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin
Elevation extremes:
Definition Field Listing
lowest point: Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m
Natural resources:
Definition Field Listing
tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower
Land use:
Definition Field Listing
arable land: 2.78%
permanent crops: 0.19%
other: 97.03% (2005)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
1,320 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
Definition Field Listing
622.5 cu km (2000)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
Definition Field Listing
total: 1.44 cu km/yr (13%/7%/81%)
per capita: 157 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
Definition Field Listing
flooding in the northeast (March-April)
Environment - current issues:
Definition Field Listing
the clearing of land for agricultural purposes and the international demand for tropical timber are contributing to deforestation; soil erosion from overgrazing and poor cultivation methods (including slash-and-burn agriculture); desertification; loss of biodiversity; industrial pollution of water supplies used for drinking and irrigation
Environment - international agreements:
Definition Field Listing
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
Geography - note:
Definition Field Listing
landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru
   People    Bolivia Top of Page
Population:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
9,119,152 (July 2007 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 34.3% (male 1,593,509/female 1,532,155)
15-64 years: 61.1% (male 2,730,359/female 2,841,872)
65 years and over: 4.6% (male 187,123/female 234,134) (2007 est.)
Median age:
Definition Field Listing
total: 22.2 years
male: 21.5 years
female: 22.9 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.42% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
22.82 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
7.44 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
-1.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.961 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.799 male(s)/female
total population: 0.979 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 50.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 53.93 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 46.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total population: 66.19 years
male: 63.53 years
female: 68.97 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.76 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0.1% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4,900 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
less than 500 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
Definition Field Listing
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, and yellow fever
water contact disease: leptospirosis (2008)
Nationality:
Definition Field Listing
noun: Bolivian(s)
adjective: Bolivian
Ethnic groups:
Definition Field Listing
Quechua 30%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, Aymara 25%, white 15%
Religions:
Definition Field Listing
Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) 5%
Languages:
Definition Field Listing
Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official)
Literacy:
Definition Field Listing
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.7%
male: 93.1%
female: 80.7% (2001 census)
   Government    Bolivia Top of Page
Country name:
Definition Field Listing
conventional long form: Republic of Bolivia
conventional short form: Bolivia
local long form: Republica de Bolivia
local short form: Bolivia
Government type:
Definition Field Listing
republic
Capital:
Definition Field Listing
name: La Paz (administrative capital)
geographic coordinates: 16 30 S, 68 09 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
note: Sucre (constitutional capital)
Administrative divisions:
Definition Field Listing
9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Beni, Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija
Independence:
Definition Field Listing
6 August 1825 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Definition Field Listing
Independence Day, 6 August (1825)
Constitution:
Definition Field Listing
2 February 1967; revised in August 1994; possible referendum on new constitution to be held in 2008
Legal system:
Definition Field Listing
based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age, universal and compulsory (single)
Executive branch:
Definition Field Listing
chief of state: President Juan Evo MORALES Ayma (since 22 January 2006); Vice President Alvaro GARCIA Linera (since 22 January 2006); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Juan Evo MORALES Ayma (since 22 January 2006); Vice President Alvaro GARCIA Linera (since 22 January 2006)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a single five-year term; election last held 18 December 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: Juan Evo MORALES Ayma elected president; percent of vote - Juan Evo MORALES Ayma 53.7%; Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez 28.6%; Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana 7.8%; Michiaki NAGATANI Morishit 6.5%; Felipe QUISPE Huanca 2.2%; Guildo ANGULA Cabrera 0.7%
Legislative branch:
Definition Field Listing
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (27 seats; members are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; 70 members are directly elected from their districts and 60 are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 18 December 2005 (next to be held in 2010)
election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PODEMOS 13, MAS 12, UN 1, MNR 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MAS 73, PODEMOS 43, UN 8, MNR 6
Judicial branch:
Definition Field Listing
Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges appointed for 10-year terms by National Congress); District Courts (one in each department); provincial and local courts (to try minor cases); Constitutional Tribunal (5 primary or titulares and 5 alternate or suplente magistrates appointed by Congress; to rule on constitutional issues); National Electoral Court (6 members elected by Congress, Supreme Court, the President, and the political party with the highest vote in the last election for 4-year terms)
Political parties and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Franz BARRIOS]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Juan Evo MORALES Ayma]; Movement Without Fear or MSM [Juan DEL GRANADO]; National Revolutionary Movement or MNR [Mirta QUEVEDO]; National Unity [Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana]; Poder Democratico Nacional or PODEMOS [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez]; Social Alliance [Rene JOAQUINO]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Cocalero groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions; Sole Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia or CSUTCB
International organization participation:
Definition Field Listing
CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Gustavo GUZMAN Saldana
chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410
FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712
consulate(s) general: Houston, Miami, New York, Oklahoma City, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington, DC
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Philip S. GOLDBERG
embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, La Paz
mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032
telephone: [591] (2) 216-8000
FAX: [591] (2) 216-8111
Flag description:
Definition Field Listing
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band
note: similar to the flag of Ghana, which has a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band
   Economy    Bolivia Top of Page
Economy - overview:
Definition Field Listing
Bolivia is one of the poorest and least developed countries in Latin America. Following a disastrous economic crisis during the early 1980s, reforms spurred private investment, stimulated economic growth, and cut poverty rates in the 1990s. The period 2003-05 was characterized by political instability, racial tensions, and violent protests against plans - subsequently abandoned - to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large northern hemisphere markets. In 2005, the government passed a controversial hydrocarbons law that imposed significantly higher royalties and required foreign firms then operating under risk-sharing contracts to surrender all production to the state energy company, which was made the sole exporter of natural gas. The law also required that the state energy company regain control over the five companies that were privatized during the 1990s - a process that is still underway. In 2006, higher earnings for mining and hydrocarbons exports pushed the current account surplus to about 12% of GDP and the government's higher tax take produced a fiscal surplus after years of large deficits. Debt relief from the G8 - announced in 2005 - also has significantly reduced Bolivia's public sector debt burden. Private investment as a share of GDP, however, remains among the lowest in Latin America, and inflation reached double-digit levels in 2007.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$39.78 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
Definition Field Listing
$12.8 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$4,400 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 14.5%
industry: 30.5%
services: 55% (2006 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4.793 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 40%
industry: 17%
services: 43% (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
8% in urban areas; widespread underemployment (2006)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
60% (2006 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: 0.3%
highest 10%: 47.2% (2002)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
59.2 (2006)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
12% (2007 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
13.4% of GDP (2007 est.)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $4.1 billion
expenditures: $4 billion (2007 est.)
Public debt:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
46.2% of GDP (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products:
Definition Field Listing
soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber
Industries:
Definition Field Listing
mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing
Industrial production growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.1% (2007 est.)
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
5.293 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.385 billion kWh (2006)
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
177,000 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
18,000 kWh (2007)
Oil - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
41,570 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
31,500 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
18,500 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
8,600 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
440.5 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
12.74 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.486 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
10.58 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
651.8 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.325 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$4.259 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Brazil 45.5%, US 10.8%, Argentina 9.2%, Colombia 6.8%, Japan 5.5%, South Korea 4.3% (2006)
Imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$3.107 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans
Imports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Brazil 29.3%, Argentina 16%, Chile 12.1%, US 9.1%, Peru 8.1% (2006)
Economic aid - recipient:
Definition Field Listing
$582.9 million (2005 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$4.917 billion (31 October 2007)
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$3.8 billion (31December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$6.88 billion (31 December 2004)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$NA
Market value of publicly traded shares:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$2.2 billion (2005)
Currency (code):
Definition Field Listing
boliviano (BOB)
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
bolivianos per US dollar - 7.8616 (2007), 8.0159 (2006), 8.0661 (2005), 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Bolivia Top of Page
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
646,300 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.421 million (2005)
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
general assessment: privatization beginning in 1995; reliability has steadily improved; new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities; mobile- cellular telephone use expanding rapidly; fixed-line teledensity of 7 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 27 per 100 persons
domestic: primary trunk system, which is being expanded, employs digital microwave radio relay; some areas are served by fiber-optic cable; mobile cellular systems are being expanded
international: country code - 591; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999)
Television broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
48 (1997)
Internet country code:
Definition Field Listing
.bo
Internet hosts:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
24,363 (2007)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
580,000 (2006)
   Transportation    Bolivia Top of Page
Airports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1,061 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 16
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1,045
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 57
914 to 1,523 m: 183
under 914 m: 800 (2007)
Pipelines:
Definition Field Listing
gas 4,860 km; liquid petroleum gas 47 km; oil 2,475 km; refined products 1,589 km; unknown (oil/water) 247 km (2007)
Railways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 3,504 km
narrow gauge: 3,504 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 62,479 km
paved: 3,749 km
unpaved: 58,730 km (2004)
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2007)
Merchant marine:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 25 ships (1000 GRT or over) 73,877 GRT/110,148 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 12, carrier 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 9
foreign-owned: 9 (Argentina 1, China 1, Egypt 1, Iran 1, Italy 1, Singapore 1, Syria 1, Taiwan 1, Yemen 1) (2007)
Ports and terminals:
Definition Field Listing
Puerto Aguirre (inland port on the Paraguay/Parana waterway at the Bolivia/Brazil border); Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay
   Military    Bolivia Top of Page
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
Bolivian Armed Forces: Bolivian Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Bolivian Navy (Armada Boliviana; includes marines), Bolivian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana, FAB) (2008)
Military service age and obligation:
Definition Field Listing
18 years of age for voluntary military service; when annual number of volunteers falls short of goal, compulsory recruitment is effected, including conscription of boys as young as 14; one estimate holds that 40% of the armed forces are under the age of 18, with 50% of those under the age of 16; conscript tour of duty - 12 months (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 18-49: 1,923,234
females age 18-49: 2,007,315 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 18-49: 1,311,414
females age 18-49: 1,502,177 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
Definition Field Listing
males age 18-49: 101,101
females age 18-49: 98,671 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.9% (2006)
   Transnational Issues    Bolivia Top of Page
Disputes - international:
Definition Field Listing
Chile rebuffs Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, offering instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile for Bolivian natural gas and other commodities
Illicit drugs:
Definition Field Listing
world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Colombia and Peru) with an estimated 26,500 hectares under cultivation in August 2005, an 8% increase from 2004; transit country for Peruvian and Colombian cocaine destined for Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Europe; cultivation steadily increasing despite eradication and alternative crop programs; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trade, especially along the borders with Brazil and Paraguay; major cocaine consumption

This page was last updated on 20 March, 2008


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