Bolivia

Republic of BoliviaRepublica de Bolivia

republicIndependence 6 August 1825 (from Spain)

Bolivia as the 1996 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 93 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalLa Paz (seat of government)

Position17 00 S, 65 00 W

Area1,098,580 sq km

LocationCentral South America, southwest of Brazil

Populationas each edition published it

7.17 million July 1996 est. · 6.71m in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.82% 1996 est. · 2.31% in 1993

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 20.8 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

59.81 years 1996 est. · 62.77 yrs in 1993

Fertility ratechildren per woman

4.25 children per woman 1996 est. · 4.7 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

67.5 deaths per 1,000 live births 1996 est. · 125 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

$2,530 1995 est. · $670 in 1993

GDP real growth% a year

3.7% 1995 est. · 3.8% in 1993

Geography

Central South America, southwest of Brazil

15 fields

Land useshare of 1,098,580 sq km

arable land 3%permanent crops 0%meadows and pastures 25%forest and woodland 52%other 20%irrigated 1,650 sq km (1989 est.)

Area

1,098,580sq km

land area: 1,084,390 sq kmcomparative area: slightly less than three times the size of Montana

Coastline

0km

(landlocked)Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Land boundaries

6,743km

border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km

Location

Central South America, southwest of Brazil

International disputes

has wanted a sovereign corridor to the South Pacific Ocean since the Atacama area was lost to Chile in 1884; dispute with Chile over Rio Lauca water rights

Climate

varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid

Terrain

rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin

lowest point:: Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point:: Cerro Illimani 6,882 m

Natural resources

tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber

Environment

current issues:: 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
natural hazards:: cold, thin air of high plateau is obstacle to efficient fuel combustion, as well as to physical activity by those unaccustomed to it from birth; flooding in the northeast (March-April)
international agreements:: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands;
signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection

Geographic note

landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru

People

15 fields

Population

7,165,257

(July 1996 est.)growth rate: 1.82% (1996 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1996 est.)

Birth

32.37Death

10.75Net migration

-3.41

Male · female(1996 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years59.81

56.94 · 62.82

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy83.1%

90.5% · 76%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years:: 39% (male 1,422,313; female 1,390,885)
15-64 years:: 56% (male 1,959,989; female 2,042,135)
65 years and over:: 5% (male 153,111; female 196,824) (July 1996 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth:: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years:: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years:: 0.96 male(s)/female
65 years and over:: 0.78 male(s)/female
all ages:: 0.97 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate

67.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Bolivian(s)
adjective:: Bolivian

Ethnic divisions

Quechua 30%, Aymara 25%, mestizo (mixed European and Indian ancestry) 25%-30%, European 5%-15%

Religions

Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist)

Languages

Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official)

Government

Republic

26 fields

Legislature, 130 seatsone dot, one seat

MNR 52UCS 20ADN 17MIR 17CONDEPA 13MBL 7ARBOL 1ASD 1EJE 1PCD 1

Legislature, 27 seatsone dot, one seat

MNR 17ADN 4MIR 4CONDEPA 1UCS 1

Name of country

conventional long form:: Republic of Bolivia
conventional short form:: Bolivia
local long form:: Republica de Bolivia
local short form:: Bolivia

Capital

La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary)

Administrative divisions

9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija

Legal system

based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage

18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age, universal and compulsory (single)

Executive branch

chief of state and head of government:: President Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamente (since 6 August 1993) and Vice President Victor Hugo CARDENAS Conde (since 6 August 1993) were elected for four-year terms by popular vote;
election last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held NA May 1997);
results - Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA (MNR) 34%, Hugo BANZER Suarez (ADN/MIR alliance) 20%, Carlos PALENQUE Aviles (CONDEPA) 14%, Max FERNANDEZ Rojas (UCS) 13%, Antonio ARANIBAR Quiroga (MBL) 5%;
no candidate received a majority of the popular vote;
Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA won a congressional runoff election on 4 August 1993 after forming a coalition with Max FERNANDEZ and Antonio ARANIBAR;
FERNANDEZ died in a plane crash 26 November 1995
cabinet:: Cabinet was appointed by the president from panel of candidates proposed by the Senate

Legislative branch

bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)

Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)

elections last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held NA May 1997);
results - percent of vote by party NA;
seats - (130 total) MNR 52, UCS 20, ADN 17, MIR 17, CONDEPA 13, MBL 7, ARBOL 1, ASD 1, EJE 1, PCD 1

Chamber of Senators (Camara de Senadores)

elections last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held NA May 1997);
results - percent of vote by party NA;
seats - (27 total) MNR 17, ADN 4, MIR 4, CONDEPA 1, UCS 1

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (Corte Suprema), judges appointed for a 10-year term by National Congress

Left parties

Free Bolivia Movement (MBL), Antonio ARANIBAR;
April 9 Revolutionary Vanguard (VR-9), Carlos SERRATE;
Alternative of Democratic Socialism (ASD), Jerjes JUSTINIANO;
Revolutionary Front of the Left (FRI), Oscar ZAMORA;
Bolivian Socialist Falange (FSB);
Socialist Unzaguista Movement (MAS);
Socialist Party One (PS-1);
Bolivian Communist Party (PCB)

Center-Left parties

Nationalist Revolutionary Movement (MNR), Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA;
Movement of the Revolutionary Left (MIR), Jaime PAZ Zamora, Oscar EID;
Christian Democrat (PCD), Jorge AGREDA

Center-Right party

Nationalist Democratic Action (ADN), Jorge LANDIVAR, Hugo BANZER

Populist parties

Civic Solidarity Union (UCS), Johnny FERNANDEZ;
Conscience of the Fatherland (CONDEPA), Carlos PALENQUE Aviles;
Popular Patriotic Movement (MPP), Julio MANTILLA;
Unity and Progress Movement (MUP), Ivo KULJIS

Evangelical

Bolivian Renovating Alliance (ARBOL), Hugo VILLEGAS

indigenous:: Tupac Katari Revolutionary Liberation Movement (MRTK-L), Victor Hugo CARDENAS Conde;
Patriotic Axis of Convergence (EJE-P), Ramiro BARRANCHEA;
National Katarista Movement (MKN), Fernando UNTOJA

International organization participation

AG, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:: Ambassador Fernando Alvaro COSSIO
chancery:: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:: [1] (202) 483-4410 through 4412

FAX

[1] (202) 328-3712; consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Ambassador Curtis Warren KAMMAN
embassy:: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz
mailing address:: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032
telephone:: [591] (2) 430251

FAX

[591] (2) 433900

Flag

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

21 fields

GDP per capita, PPP

$2,530

(1995 est.)

Real growth rate

3.7%

(1995 est.)industrial production growth: 5% (1994 est.)

Inflation, consumer prices

12%

(1995 est.)

Unemployment rate

urban rate · (1995 est.)

Budget

Revenues

$3.75 billionExpenditures

$3.75 billion (1995 est.)

expenditures including capital expenditures of $556.2 million

Installed generating capacity, 756,200 kW

Electricity production

2.116 billionElectricity consumption per capita

367 (1994)

Economic overview

With its long history of semifeudal social controls, dependence on volatile prices for its mineral exports, and bouts of hyperinflation, Bolivia has remained one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries. However, Bolivia has experienced generally improving economic conditions since the PAZ Estenssoro administration (1985-89) introduced market-oriented policies which reduced inflation from 11,700% in 1985 to about 20% in 1988.

PAZ Estenssoro was followed as president by Jaime PAZ Zamora (1989-93) who continued the free-market policies of his predecessor, despite opposition from his own party and from Bolivia's once powerful labor movement. By maintaining fiscal discipline, PAZ Zamora helped reduce inflation to 9.3% in 1993, while GDP grew by an annual average of 3.25% during his tenure.

Inaugurated in August 1993, President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA has vowed to advance the market-oriented economic reforms he helped launch as PAZ Estenssoro's planning minister. His successes so far have included the signing of a free trade agreement with Mexico and progress on his unique privatization plan.

The main privatization bill was passed by the Bolivian legislature in late March 1994. Since that time, the administration has privatized the electric power generation sector, the state airline, the state telephone company, and the national railroad. The state mining and petroleum companies are expected to be privatized in 1996.

GDP

purchasing power parity - $20 billion (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector

agriculture:: NA%
industry:: NA%
services:: NA%

Labor force

3.54 million; by occupation: agriculture NA%, services and utilities 20%, manufacturing, mining and construction 7% (1993)

Industries

mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing

Agriculture

coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber

Illicit drugs

world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Peru and Colombia) with an estimated 48,600 hectares under cultivation in 1995, a one percent increase in overall cultivation of coca over 1994 levels;
Bolivia, however, is the second-largest producer of harvested coca leaf;
even so, voluntary and forced eradication programs resulted in leaf production dropping from 89,800 metric tons in 1994 to 85,000 tons in 1995;
government considers all but 12,000 hectares illicit;
intermediate coca products and cocaine exported to or through Colombia and Brazil to the US and other international drug markets;
alternative crop program aims to reduce illicit coca cultivation

Exports

$1.1 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

commodities:: metals 39%, natural gas 9%, soybeans 11%, jewelry 11%, wood 8%
partners:: US 26%, Argentina 15% (1993 est.)

Imports

$1.21 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.)

commodities:: capital goods 48%, chemicals 11%, petroleum 5%, food 5% (1993 est.)
partners:: US 24%, Argentina 13%, Brazil 11%, Japan 11% (1993 est.)

External debt

$4.4 billion (November 1995)

Economic aid

recipient: ODA, $362 million (1993)

Currency

1 boliviano ($B) = 100 centavos

Exchange rates

bolivianos ($B) per US$1 - 4.9137 (December 1995), 4.8003 (1995), 4.6205 (1994), 4.2651 (1993), 3.9005 (1992), 3.5806 (1991)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Transportation

7 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right · 1,017 in all

over 3 047 m

2 438 to 3 047 m

1 524 to 2 437 m

750

under 914 m

914 to 1 523 m

186

PavedUnpaved

Networkskm

Highways

46,311Railways

3,691

Highways: paved: 1,940 km (including 27 km of expressways) · unpaved: 44,371 km (1991 est.) · Railways: (single track) · narrow gauge: 3,652 km 1.000-m gauge; 39 km 0.760-m gauge (13 km electrified) (1995)

Railways

total:: 3,691 km (single track)
narrow gauge:: 3,652 km 1.000-m gauge; 39 km 0.760-m gauge (13 km electrified) (1995)

Highways

total:: 46,311 km
paved:: 1,940 km (including 27 km of expressways)
unpaved:: 44,371 km (1991 est.)

Waterways

10,000 km of commercially navigable waterways

Pipelines

crude oil 1,800 km;
petroleum products 580 km;
natural gas 1,495 km

Ports

none; however, Bolivia has free port privileges in the maritime ports of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay

Merchant marine

total: 1 cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,214 GRT/6,390 DWT (1995 est.)

Communications

Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval Boliviana, | includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana), National | Police Force (Policia Nacional de Bolivia)

9 fields

Fixed lines

144,300

(1987 est.)

Telephone system

new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities

domestic:: microwave radio relay system being expanded
international:: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

males age 15-49:: 1,685,572
males fit for military service:: 1,098,948
males reach military age (19) annually:: 76,035 (1996 est.)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $145 million; 1.9% of GDP (1996)

Central Intelligence Agency. “Bolivia.” The World Factbook 1996. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/bolivia/1996.

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