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This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005


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 counter-coups. Comparatively democratic civilian rule was established in 1982, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and illegal drug production. Current goals include attracting foreign investment, strengthening the educational system, resolving disputes with coca growers over Bolivia's counterdrug efforts, and waging an anticorruption campaign.
   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: 6,743 km
border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 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: 2.67%
permanent crops: 0.19%
other: 97.14% (2001)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
1,280 sq km (1998 est.)
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
8,857,870 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 35.7% (male 1,613,049/female 1,551,023)
15-64 years: 59.8% (male 2,591,328/female 2,701,892)
65 years and over: 4.5% (male 178,486/female 222,092) (2005 est.)
Median age:
Definition Field Listing
total: 21.47 years
male: 20.79 years
female: 22.17 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.49% (2005 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
23.76 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
7.64 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
-1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 53.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 56.7 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 49.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total population: 65.5 years
male: 62.89 years
female: 68.25 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.94 children born/woman (2005 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.)
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: 87.2%
male: 93.1%
female: 81.6% (2003 est.)
   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
La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary)
Administrative divisions:
Definition Field Listing
9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, 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
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 Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze (since 9 June 2005); Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze (since 9 June 2005); Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007)
election results: as a result of no candidate winning a majority in the 30 June 2002 election, Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamante was chosen president by Congress; congressional votes - Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamante 84, Evo MORALES 43; note - following the resignation of the elected president on 17 October 2003 and Vice President Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert on 9 June 2005, Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze, President of the Supreme Court and constitutional successor, became president.
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; 68 are directly elected from their districts and 62 are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007)
election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNR 11, MAS 8, MIR 5, NFR 2, other 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNR 36, MAS 27, MIR 26, NFR 25, others 16
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)
Political parties and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Bolivian Socialist Falange or FSB [Romel PANTOJA]; Civic Solidarity Union or UCS [Johnny FERNANDEZ]; Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Franz BARRIOS]; Marshal of Ayacucho Institutional Vanguard or VIMA [Freddy ZABALA]; Movement of the Revolutionary Left or MIR [Jaime PAZ Zamora]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Evo MORALES]; Movement Without Fear or MSM [Juan DEL GRANADO]; Nationalist Democratic Action or ADN [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez]; Nationalist Revolutionary Movement or MNR [leader NA]; New Republican Force or NFR [Manfred REYES-VILLA]; Pachakuti Indigenous Movement or MIP [Felipe QUISPE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jeres JUSTINIANO]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Definition Field Listing
Cocalero Groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions; Sole Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia or CSUTCB [Roman LOAYZA]
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, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador Jaime APARICIO Otero
chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410
FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712
consulate(s) general: Miami, New York, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Definition Field Listing
chief of mission: Ambassador David N. GREENLEE
embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz
mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032
telephone: [591] (2) 2430120, 2430251
FAX: [591] (2) 2433900
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; 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, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, reformed its economy after suffering a disastrous economic crisis in the early 1980s. The reforms spurred real GDP growth, which averaged 4 percent in the 1990s, and poverty rates fell. Economic growth, however, lagged again beginning in 1999 because of a global slowdown and homegrown factors such as political turmoil, civil unrest, and soaring fiscal deficits, all of which hurt investor confidence. In 2003, violent protests against the pro-foreign investment economic policies of President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA led to his resignation and the cancellation of plans to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large northern hemisphere markets. Foreign investment dried up as companies adopted a wait-and-see attitude regarding new President Carlos MESA's willingness to protect investor rights in the face of increased demands by radical groups that the government expropriate foreign-owned assets. Real GDP growth in 2003 and 2004 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia remains dependent on foreign aid from multilateral lenders and foreign governments.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$22.33 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.7% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture: 13%
industry: 28%
services: 59% (2004 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.8 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
9.2% in urban areas
note: widespread underemployment (2003 est.)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
64% (2004 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: 1.3%
highest 10%: 32% (1999)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
44.7 (1999)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4.9% (2004 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
10.4% of GDP (2003 est.)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $2.264 billion
expenditures: $2.769 billion, including capital expenditures of $741 million (2004 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
5.7% (2004 est.)
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4.132 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
3.848 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
3 million kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
9 million kWh (2002)
Oil - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
39,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
49,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Oil - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Oil - proved reserves:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
458.8 million bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
8.44 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.15 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.9 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
727.2 billion cu m (1 January 2002)
Current account balance:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$273 million (2004 est.)
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.986 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Brazil 40%, US 13.9%, Colombia 8.7%, Peru 6.3%, Japan 4.5% (2004)
Imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.595 billion f.o.b. (2004 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 29.7%, Argentina 17.6%, US 10.8%, Chile 7.7%, Peru 7.3% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.214 billion (2004 est.)
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$5.439 billion (June 2004 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
Definition Field Listing
$681 million (2002)
Currency (code):
Definition Field Listing
boliviano (BOB)
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
bolivianos per US dollar - 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002), 6.6069 (2001), 6.1835 (2000)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Bolivia Top of Page
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
600,100 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1,401,500 (2003)
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
general assessment: new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities; mobile cellular telephone use expanding rapidly
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)
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
7,080 (2003)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
270,000 (2002)
   Transportation    Bolivia Top of Page
Railways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 3,519 km
narrow gauge: 3,519 km 1.000-m gauge (2004)
Highways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 60,282 km
paved: 3,979 km
unpaved: 56,303 km (2002)
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2004)
Pipelines:
Definition Field Listing
gas 4,860 km; liquid petroleum gas 47 km; oil 2,457 km; refined products 1,589 km; unknown (oil/water) 247 km (2004)
Ports and harbors:
Definition Field Listing
Puerto Aguirre (on the Paraguay/Parana waterway, at the Bolivia/Brazil border); also, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay
Merchant marine:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 413,407 GRT/699,901 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 16, chemical tanker 1, container 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 1
foreign-owned: 11 (Argentina 1, Egypt 2, Eritrea 1, Germany 1, Iran 1, Singapore 2, United Kingdom 1, United States 2) (2005)
Airports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1,065 (2004 est.)
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 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1,049
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 60
914 to 1,523 m: 207
under 914 m: 778 (2004 est.)
   Military    Bolivia Top of Page
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval; includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana) (2004)
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 (2002)
Manpower available for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 18-49: 1,923,234 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
Definition Field Listing
males age 18-49: 1,311,414 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
Definition Field Listing
males: 101,101 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$132.2 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1.6% (2004)
   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 28,450 hectares under cultivation in June 2003, a 23% increase from June 2002; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported mostly to or through Brazil, Argentina, and Chile to European and US drug markets; eradication and alternative crop programs under the MESA administration have been unable to keep pace with farmers' attempts to increase cultivation; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trade, especially along the borders with Brazil and Paraguay

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005


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