The 2008 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

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

      Location:

      Central South America, southwest of Brazil

      Geographic coordinates:

      17 00 S, 65 00 W

      Map references:

      South America

      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

      Land boundaries:

      total: 6,940 km border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,423 km, Chile 860 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 1,075 km

      Coastline:

      0 km (landlocked)

      Maritime claims:

      none (landlocked)

      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

      Elevation extremes:

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

      Natural resources:

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

      Land use:

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

      Irrigated land:

      1,320 sq km (2003)

      Total renewable water resources:

      622.5 cu km (2000)

      Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):

      total: 1.44 cu km/yr (13%/7%/81%) per capita: 157 cu m/yr (2000)

      Natural hazards:

      flooding in the northeast (March-April)

      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

      Geography - note:

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

      People

       Bolivia

      Population:

      9,247,816 (July 2008 est.)

      Age structure:

      0–14 years: 33.5% (male 1,580,887/female 1,519,960) 15–64 years: 61.8% (male 2,800,457/female 2,912,375) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 192,701/female 241,436) (2008 est.)

      Median age:

      total: 22.6 years male: 21.9 years female: 23.3 years (2008 est.)

      Population growth rate:

      1.383% (2008 est.)

      Birth rate:

      22.31 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

      Death rate:

      7.35 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

      Net migration rate:

      −1.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)

      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 (2008 est.)

      Infant mortality rate:

      total: 49.09 deaths/1,000 live births male: 52.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 45.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)

      Life expectancy at birth:

      total population: 66.53 years male: 63.86 years female: 69.33 years (2008 est.)

      Total fertility rate:

      2.67 children born/woman (2008 est.)

      HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

      0.1% (2003 est.)

      HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

      4,900 (2003 est.)

      HIV/AIDS - deaths:

      fewer than 500 (2003 est.)

      Major infectious diseases:

      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:

      noun: Bolivian(s) adjective: Bolivian

      Ethnic groups:

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

       Aymara 25%, white 15%

      Religions:

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

      Languages:

      Spanish 60.7% (official), Quechua 21.2% (official), Aymara 14.6% (official), foreign languages 2.4%, other 1.2% (2001 census)

      Literacy:

      definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.7% male: 93.1% female: 80.7% (2001 census)

      Education expenditures:

      6.4% of GDP (2003)

      Government

       Bolivia

      Country name:

      conventional long form: Republic of Bolivia

       conventional short form: Bolivia

       local long form: Republica de Bolivia

       local short form: Bolivia

      Government type:

      republic

      Capital:

      name: La Paz (administrative capital) geographic coordinates: 16 30 S, 68 09 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour