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, indigenous majority. In December 2009 and October 2014, President MORALES easily won reelection. His party maintained control of the legislative branch of the government, which has allowed him to continue his process of change. In October 2011, the country held its first judicial elections to select judges for the four highest courts. MORALES has publicly described the elected judiciary as a failed experiment that has not resolved judicial backlogs or extended pre-trial detention. He has called for a public referendum on the judicial system.

Central South America, southwest of Brazil

17 00 S, 65 00 W

South America

slightly less than three times the size of Montana

0 km (landlocked)

none (landlocked)

varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid

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

highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m

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

arable land 3.6%; permanent crops 0.2%; permanent pasture 30.5%

3,000 sq km (2012)

a high altitude plain in the west between two cordillera of the Andes, known as the Altiplano, is the focal area for most of the population; a dense settlement pattern is also found in and around the city of Santa Cruz, located on the eastern side of the Andes

flooding in the northeast (March to April)

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

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

10,969,649 (July 2016 est.)

mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 68%, indigenous 20%, white 5%, cholo/chola 2%, black 1%, other 1%, unspecified 3% ; 44% of respondents indicated feeling part of some indigenous group, predominantly Quechua or Aymara

Spanish (official) 60.7%, Quechua (official) 21.2%, Aymara (official) 14.6%, foreign languages 2.4%, Guarani (official) 0.6%, other native languages 0.4%, none 0.1%

Roman Catholic 76.8%, Evangelical and Pentecostal 8.1%, Protestant 7.9%, other 1.7%, none 5.5% (2012 est.)

Bolivia ranks at or near the bottom among Latin American countries in several areas of health and development, including poverty, education, fertility, malnutrition, mortality, and life expectancy. On the positive side, more children are being vaccinated and more pregnant women are getting prenatal care and having skilled health practitioners attend their births. Bolivia's income inequality is the highest in Latin America and one of the highest in the world. Public education is of poor quality, and educational opportunities are among the most unevenly distributed in Latin America, with girls and indigenous and rural children less likely to be literate or to complete primary school. The lack of access to education and family planning services helps to sustain Bolivia's high fertility rate - approximately three children per woman. Bolivia's lack of clean water and basic sanitation, especially in rural areas, contributes to health problems.

Almost 7% of Bolivia's population lives abroad, primarily to work in Argentina, Brazil, Spain, and the United States. In recent years, more restrictive immigration policies in Europe and the United States have increased the flow of Bolivian emigrants to neighboring Argentina and Brazil.

1.54% (2016 est.)

22.4 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)

6.5 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)

-0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)

a high altitude plain in the west between two cordillera of the Andes, known as the Altiplano, is the focal area for most of the population; a dense settlement pattern is also found in and around the city of Santa Cruz, located on the eastern side of the Andes

Santa Cruz 2.107 million; LA PAZ (capital) 1.816 million; Cochabamba 1.24 million; Sucre (constitutional capital) 372,000 (2015)

21.2

206 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

2.68 children born/woman (2016 est.)

60.5% (2008)

6.3% of GDP (2014)

0.47 physicians/1,000 population (2011)

1.1 beds/1,000 population (2012)

urban: 96.7% of population

rural: 75.6% of population

total: 90% of population

urban: 3.3% of population

rural: 24.4% of population

total: 10% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 60.8% of population

rural: 27.5% of population

total: 50.3% of population

urban: 39.2% of population

rural: 72.5% of population

total: 49.7% of population (2015 est.)

0.29% (2015 est.)

18,200 (2015 est.)

800 (2015 est.)

15.8% (2014)

4.5% (2008)

7.3% of GDP (2014)

presidential republic

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

6 August 1825 (from Spain)

Independence Day, 6 August (1825)

many previous; latest drafted 6 August 2006 - 9 December 2008, approved by referendum 25 January 2009, effective 7 February 2009; amended 2013; note - in early 2016, a proposed amendment allowing the president and vice-president to run for a third term was defeated in a referendum (2016)

civil law system with influences from Roman, Spanish, canon (religious), French, and indigenous law

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age, universal and compulsory

Christian Democratic Party or PDC [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez]

Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Juan Evo MORALES Ayma]

United Democrats or UD [Samuel DORIA MEDINA Arana]

Bolivian Workers Central or COB

Federation of Neighborhood Councils of El Alto or FEJUVE

Landless Movement or MST

National Coordinator for Change or CONALCAM

Sole Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia or CSUTCB

CAN, CD, CELAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band; red stands for bravery and the blood of national heroes, yellow for the nation's mineral resources, and green for the fertility of the land

llama, Andean condor; national colors: red, yellow, green

Bolivia is a resource rich country with strong growth attributed to captive markets for natural gas exports – to Brazil and Argentina. Gas accounts for roughly 50% of Bolivia's total exports and will fund more than half of its 2015 budget. However, the country remains one of the least developed countries in Latin America because of state-oriented policies that deter investment and growth.

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 in exchange for a predetermined service fee. The global recession slowed growth, but Bolivia recorded the highest growth rate in South America during 2009 and has averaged 5.3% growth each year since 2009. High commodity prices between 2010 and 2013 sustained rapid growth and large trade surpluses. The global decline in oil prices in late 2014 exerted downward pressure on the price Bolivia receives for exported gas and resulted in lower GDP growth rates and losses in government revenue in 2015.

A lack of foreign investment in the key sectors of mining and hydrocarbons, along with conflict among social groups, pose challenges for the Bolivian economy. In 2015, President Evo MORALES expanded efforts to court international investment and boost Bolivia’s energy production capacity. MORALES passed an investment law and promised not to nationalize additional industries in an effort to improve the investment climate.

$74.39 billion (2015 est.)

$70.98 billion (2014 est.)

$67.31 billion (2013 est.)

$33.21 billion (2015 est.)

4.8% (2015 est.)

5.5% (2014 est.)

6.8% (2013 est.)

$6,500 (2015 est.)

$6,300 (2014 est.)

$6,100 (2013 est.)

12.7% of GDP (2015 est.)

21% of GDP (2014 est.)

22.5% of GDP (2013 est.)

soybeans, quinoa, Brazil nuts, sugarcane, coffee, corn, rice, potatoes, chia, coca

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

2.6% (2015 est.)

4.915 million (2015 est.)

7.4% (2015 est.)

7.3% (2014 est.)

45%

46.6 (2012)

57.9 (1999)

47.5% of GDP (2015 est.)

-6.8% of GDP (2015 est.)

38.5% of GDP (2015 est.)

35.2% of GDP (2014 est.)

calendar year

4.1% (2015 est.)

5.8% (2014 est.)

4.5% (31 December 2013)

4% (31 december 2012)

8.07% (31 December 2015 est.)

9.69% (31 December 2014 est.)

$8.946 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$8.386 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$20.19 billion (31 December 2013 est.)

$17.4 billion (31 December 2012 est.)

$18.9 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$14.55 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$9.684 billion (31 December 2013)

$7.689 billion (31 December 2012)

$6.089 billion (31 December 2011)

-$2.286 billion (2015 est.)

$61 million (2014 est.)

$8.197 billion (2015 est.)

$12.15 billion (2014 est.)

natural gas, mineral ores, gold, soybeans and soy products, tin

Brazil 28.1%, Argentina 16.9%, US 12.1%, Colombia 6.3%, China 5.3%, Japan 4.7%, South Korea 4.3% (2015)

$9.069 billion (2015 est.)

$9.935 billion (2014 est.)

machinery, petroleum products, vehicles, iron and steel, plastics

China 17.9%, Brazil 16.5%, Argentina 11.8%, US 10.6%, Peru 6.2%, Japan 5.2%, Chile 4.6% (2015)

$13.06 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$15.12 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$9.035 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

$8.781 billion (31 December 2014 est.)

$10.56 billion (31 December 2013)

$8.809 billion (31 December 2012)

$0 (31 December 2013 est.)

$0 (31 December 2012 est.)

bolivianos (BOB) per US dollar -

6.91 (2015 est.)

6.91 (2014 est.)

6.91 (2013 est.)

6.94 (2012 est.)

6.9875 (2011 est.)

8.4 billion kWh (2014 est.)

7.5 billion kWh (2014 est.)

0 kWh (2013 est.)

0 kWh (2013 est.)

2.2 million kW (2014 est.)

68.8% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

30% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

1.3% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)

55,610 bbl/day (2015 est.)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

0 bbl/day (2013 est.)

209.8 million bbl (1 January 2016 es)

54,210 bbl/day (2013 est.)

78,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)

7,292 bbl/day (2013 est.)

19,940 bbl/day (2013 est.)

21.4 billion cu m (2014 est.)

3.536 billion cu m (2014 est.)

17.86 billion cu m (2014 est.)

0 cu m (2013 est.)

295.9 billion cu m (1 January 2016 es)

16 million Mt (2013 est.)

large number of radio and TV stations broadcasting with private media outlets dominating; state-owned and private radio and TV stations generally operating freely, although both pro-government and anti-government groups have attacked media outlets in response to their reporting (2010)

.bo

CP (2016)

855 (2013)

gas 5,457 km; liquid petroleum gas 51 km; oil 2,511 km; refined products 1,627 km (2013)

10,000 km (commercially navigable almost exclusively in the northern and eastern parts of the country) (2012)

Bolivian Armed Forces: Bolivian Army (Ejercito Boliviano, EB), Bolivian Naval Force (Fuerza Naval Boliviana, FNB; includes Marines), Bolivian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana, FAB) (2013)

18-49 years of age for 12-month compulsory male and female military service; Bolivian citizenship required; 17 years of age for voluntary service; when annual number of volunteers falls short of goal, compulsory recruitment is effected, including conscription of boys as young as 14; 15-19 years of age for voluntary premilitary service, provides exemption from further military service (2013)

1.47% of GDP (2012)

1.47% of GDP (2011)

1.47% of GDP (2010)

Chile and Peru rebuff Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, but Chile offers instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile for Bolivian natural gas; contraband smuggling, human trafficking, and illegal narcotic trafficking are problems in the porous areas of the border with Argentina

world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Colombia and Peru) with an estimated 30,000 hectares under cultivation in 2011, a decrease of 13 percent over 2010; third largest producer of cocaine, estimated at 265 metric tons potential pure cocaine in 2011, a 29 percent increase over 2010; transit country for Peruvian and Colombian cocaine destined for Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Europe; weak border controls; some money-laundering activity related to narcotics trade; major cocaine consumption (2013)