Bolivia

Internet country code

.bo

Internet hosts

20,085 (2006)

Internet users

480,000 (2005)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999)

Telephone system

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)

Telephones - main lines in use

646,300 (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular

2.421 million (2005)

Television broadcast stations

48 (1997)

Agriculture - products

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

Budget

revenues: $2.848 billion expenditures: $3.189 billion; including capital expenditures of $741 million (2005 est.)

Currency (code)

boliviano (BOB)

Current account balance

$462 million (2005 est.)

Debt - external

$6.309 billion (2005 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

60.6 (2002)

Economic aid - recipient

$221 million (2005 est.)

Economy - overview

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% 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. In 2005, the government passed a controversial natural gas law that imposes on the oil and gas firms significantly higher taxes as well as new contracts that give the state control of their operations. Bolivian officials are in the process of implementing the law; meanwhile, foreign investors have stopped investing and have taken the first legal steps to secure their investments. Real GDP growth in 2003-05 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia's fiscal position has improved in recent years, but the country remains dependent on foreign aid from multilateral lenders and foreign governments to meet budget shortfalls. In 2005, the G8 announced a $2 billion debt-forgiveness plan over the next few decades that should help reduce some fiscal pressures on the government in the near term.

Electricity - consumption

3.963 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports

10 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - production

4.25 billion kWh (2003)

Exchange rates

bolivianos per US dollar - 8.0661 (2005), 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002), 6.6069 (2001)

Exports

$2.371 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities

natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin

Exports - partners

Brazil 41.2%, US 14.1%, Colombia 8.8%, Argentina 7.6%, Peru 5.5% (2005)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP (official exchange rate)

$9.657 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$25.82 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 12.8% industry: 35.2% services: 52% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$2,900 (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

4.1% (2005 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1.3% highest 10%: 32% (1999)

Imports

$1.845 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - commodities

petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans

Imports - partners

Brazil 21.9%, Argentina 16.7%, US 13.8%, Chile 6.9%, Peru 6.5%, Japan 6.1%, China 5.8% (2005)

Industrial production growth rate

5.7% (2004 est.)

Industries

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

5.4% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

12.5% of GDP (2005 est.)

Labor force

4.22 million (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

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

Natural gas - consumption

1.74 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - exports

2.9 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports

0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - production

6.72 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

679.6 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Oil - consumption

48,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports

NA bbl/day

Oil - imports

NA bbl/day

Oil - production

42,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

458.8 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Population below poverty line

64% (2004 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$1.798 billion (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate

8% in urban areas; widespread underemployment (2005 est.)

Area

total: 1,098,580 sq km land: 1,084,390 sq km water: 14,190 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly less than three times the size of Montana

Climate

varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Rio Paraguay 90 m highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m

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

Environment - international agreements

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

Geographic coordinates

17 00 S, 65 00 W

Geography - note

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

Irrigated land

1,320 sq km (2003)

Land boundaries

total: 6,743 km border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km

Land use

arable land: 2.78% permanent crops: 0.19% other: 97.03% (2005)

Location

Central South America, southwest of Brazil

Map references

South America

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Natural hazards

flooding in the northeast (March-April)

Natural resources

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

Terrain

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

Administrative divisions

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

Capital

name: La Paz (adminstrative 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)

Constitution

2 February 1967; revised in August 1994

Country name

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

Diplomatic representation from the US

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

Diplomatic representation in the US

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

Executive branch

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); 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 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%

Flag description

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

Government type

republic

Independence

6 August 1825 (from Spain)

International organization participation

CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMISET, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Judicial branch

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)

Legal system

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

Legislative branch

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; 69 are directly elected from their districts and 61 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

National holiday

Independence Day, 6 August (1825)

Political parties and leaders

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 [Juan Evo MORALES Ayma]; Movement Without Fear or MSM [Juan DEL GRANADO]; National Revolutionary Movement or MNR [Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA]; New Republican Force or NFR [Manfred REYES-VILLA]; Pachakuti Indigenous Movement or MIP [Felipe QUISPE Huanca]; Poder Democratico Nacional or PODEMOS [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez]; Socialist Party or PS [Jeres JUSTINIANO]

Political pressure groups and leaders

Cocalero groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions; Sole Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia or CSUTCB [Roman LOAYZA]

Suffrage

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

Background

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.

Manpower available for military service

males age 18-49: 1,923,234 females age 18-49: 2,007,315 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 18-49: 1,311,414 females age 18-49: 1,502,177 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually

males age 18-49: 101,101 females age 18-49: 98,671 (2005 est.)

Military branches

Bolivian Armed Forces: Bolivian Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Bolivian Navy (Armada Boliviana; includes marines), Bolivian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana, FAB) (2006)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

1.4% (2005 est.)

Military service age and obligation

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)

Age structure

0-14 years: 35% (male 1,603,982/female 1,542,319) 15-64 years: 60.4% (male 2,660,806/female 2,771,807) 65 years and over: 4.6% (male 182,412/female 227,720) (2006 est.)

Birth rate

23.3 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate

7.53 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Ethnic groups

Quechua 30%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, Aymara 25%, white 15%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

less than 500 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

4,900 (2003 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 51.77 deaths/1,000 live births male: 55.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Languages

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

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 65.84 years male: 63.21 years female: 68.61 years (2006 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 87.2% male: 93.1% female: 81.6% (2003 est.)

Median age

total: 21.8 years male: 21.2 years female: 22.5 years (2006 est.)

Nationality

noun: Bolivian(s) adjective: Bolivian

Net migration rate

-1.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Population

8,989,046 (July 2006 est.)

Population growth rate

1.45% (2006 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) 5%

Sex ratio

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 (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.85 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Disputes - international

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

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; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported mostly to or through Brazil, Argentina, and Chile to European drug markets; cultivation steadily increasing despite eradication and alternative crop programs; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trade, especially along the borders with Brazil and Paraguay

Trafficking in persons

current situation: Bolivia is a source and transit country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of labor and sexual exploitation to Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, as well as to Spain; children are trafficked internally for sexual exploitation, forced mining, and agricultural labor; illegal migrants from Asia transiting Bolivia are vulnerable as trafficking victims tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Bolivia has failed to show evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking in the areas of prosecutions and victim protection

Airports

1,084 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways

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 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 1,068 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: 797 (2006)

Merchant marine

total: 24 ships (1000 GRT or over) 127,297 GRT/198,525 DWT by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 8, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 10 foreign-owned: 10 (Argentina 1, China 1, Egypt 2, Iran 1, Singapore 3, Taiwan 1, Yemen 1) (2006)

Pipelines

gas 4,860 km; liquid petroleum gas 47 km; oil 2,475 km; refined products 1,589 km; unknown (oil/water) 247 km (2006)

Ports and terminals

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

Railways

total: 3,519 km narrow gauge: 3,519 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)

Roadways

total: 60,762 km paved: 4,314 km (including 11 km of expressways) unpaved: 56,448 km (2003)

Waterways

10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2005)