1990 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1990 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid
Coastline
none--landlocked
Comparative area
slightly less than three times the size of Montana
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
Environment
cold, thin air of high plateau is obstacle to efficient fuel combustion; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
Land boundaries
6,743 km total; Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km
Land use
3% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 25% meadows and pastures; 52% forest and woodland; 20% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Maritime claims
none--landlocked
Natural resources
tin, natural gas, crude oil, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron ore, lead, gold, timber
Note
landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake, with Peru
Terrain
high plateau, hills, lowland plains
Total area
1,098,580 km2; land area: 1,084,390 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
35 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate
13 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
30% Quechua, 25% Aymara, 25-30% mixed, 5-15% European
Infant mortality rate
125 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
1,700,000; 50% agriculture, 26% services and utilities, 10% manufacturing, 4% mining, 10% other (1983)
Language
Spanish, Quechua, and Aymara (all official)
Life expectancy at birth
52 years male, 56 years female (1990)
Literacy
63%
Nationality
noun--Bolivian(s); adjective Bolivian
Net migration rate
- 1 migrant/1,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
150,000-200,000, concentrated in mining, industry, construction, and transportation; mostly organized under Bolivian Workers' Central (COB) labor federation
Population
6,706,854 (July 1990), growth rate 2.1% (1990)
Religion
95% Roman Catholic; active Protestant minority, especially Evangelical Methodist
Total fertility rate
4.7 children born/woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
9 departments (departamentos, singular--departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, El Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija
Capital
La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary)
Constitution
2 February 1967
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador Jorge CRESPO; Chancery at 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 483-4410 through 4412; there are Bolivian Consulates General in Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco; US--Ambassador Robert GELBARD; Embassy at Banco Popular del Peru Building, corner of Calles Mercado y Colon, La Paz (mailing address is P. O. Box 425, La Paz, or APO Miami 34032); telephone [591] (2) 350251 or 350120
Elections
President--last held 7 May 1989 (next to be held May 1993); results--Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada (MNR) 23%, Hugo Banzer Suarez (ADN) 22%, Jaime Paz Zamora (MIR) 19%; no candidate received a majority of the popular vote; Jaime Paz Zamora (MIR) formed a coalition with Hugo Banzer (ADN); with ADN support Paz Zamora won the congressional runoff election on 4 August and was inaugurated on 6 August; Senate--last held 7 May 1989 (next to be held May 1993); results--percent of vote NA; seats (27 total) MNR 9, ADN 8, MIR 8, CONDEPA 2; Chamber of Deputies--last held 7 May 1989 (next to be held May 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats (130 total) MNR 40, ADN 38, MIR 30, IU 10, CONDEPA 9, VR-9 3
Executive branch
president, vice president, Cabinet
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
Independence
6 August 1825 (from Spain)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (Corte Suprema)
Leaders
Chief of State and Head of Government--President Jaime PAZ Zamora (since 6 August 1989); Vice President Luis OSSIO Sanjines
Legal system
based on Spanish law and Code Napoleon; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional) consists of an upper chamber or Senate (Senado) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)
Long-form name
Republic of Bolivia
Member of
FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IATP, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDB--Inter-American Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, ISO, ITC, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, LAIA, NAM, OAS, PAHO, SELA, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO
National holiday
Independence Day, 6 August (1825)
Political parties and leaders
Movement of the Revolutionary Left (MIR), Jaime Paz Zamora; Nationalist Democratic Action (ADN), Hugo Banzer Suarez; Nationalist Revolutionary Movement (MNR), Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada; United Left (IU), coalition of leftist parties which includes Free Bolivia Movement (MBL), led by Antonio Aranibar, Patriotic National Convergency Axis (EJE-P) led by Walter Delgadillo, and Bolivian Communist Party (PCB) led by Humberto Ramirez; Conscience of the Fatherland (CONDEPA), Carlos Palenque Aviles; Revolutionary Vanguard-9th of April (VR-9), Carlos Serrate Reich
Suffrage
universal and compulsory at age 18 (married) or 21 (single)
Type
republic
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 20% of GDP (including forestry and fisheries); principal commodities--coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes, timber; self-sufficient in food
Aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $909 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $1.4 billion; Communist countries (1970-88), $340 million
Budget
revenues $2,867 million; expenditures $2,867 million, including capital expenditures of $663 million (1987)
Currency
boliviano (plural--bolivianos); 1 boliviano ($B) = 100 centavos
Electricity
817,000 kW capacity; 1,728 million kWh produced, 260 kWh per capita (1989)
Exchange rates
bolivianos ($B) per US$1--2.6917 (1989), 2.3502
Exports
$634 million (f.o.b., 1989); commodities--metals 45%, natural gas 32%, coffee, soybeans, sugar, cotton, timber, and illicit drugs; partners--US 23%, Argentina
External debt
$5.7 billion (December 1989)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GNP
$4.6 billion, per capita $660; real growth rate 2.8% (1988)
Illicit drugs
world's second-largest producer of coca (after Peru) with an estimated 54,000 hectares under cultivation; government considers all but 12,000 hectares illicit and subject to eradication; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported to or through Colombia and Brazil to the US and other international drug markets
Imports
$786 million (c.i.f., 1989); commodities--food, petroleum, consumer goods, capital goods; partners--US 15%
Industrial production
growth rate 8.1% (1987)
Industries
mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverage, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing; illicit drug industry reportedly produces the largest revenues
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
15.5% (1989)
Overview
The Bolivian economy steadily deteriorated between 1980 and 1985 as La Paz financed growing budget deficits by expanding the money supply and inflation spiraled--peaking at 11,700%. An austere orthodox economic program adopted by newly elected President Paz Estenssoro in 1985, however, succeeded in reducing inflation to between 10% and 20% annually during 1987 and 1989, eventually restarting economic growth. President Paz Zamora has pledged to retain the economic policies of the previous government in order to keep inflation down and continue the growth begun under his predecessor. Nevertheless, Bolivia continues to be one of the poorest countries in Latin America, and it remains vulnerable to price fluctuations for its limited exports--mainly minerals and natural gas. Moreover, for many farmers, who constitute half of the country's work force, the main cash crop is coca, which is sold for cocaine processing.
Unemployment rate
20.7% (1988)
Communications
Airports
636 total, 551 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways over 3,659 m; 8 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 110 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
56 major transport aircraft
Highways
38,836 km total; 1,300 km paved, 6,700 km gravel, 30,836 km improved and unimproved earth
Inland waterways
10,000 km of commercially navigable waterways
Merchant marine
2 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,051 GRT/22,155 DWT; note--1 is owned by the Bolivian Navy
Pipelines
crude oil 1,800 km; refined products 580 km; natural gas 1,495 km
Ports
none; maritime outlets are Arica and Antofagasta in Chile and Matarani in Peru
Railroads
3,675 km total; 3,643 km 1.000-meter gauge and 32 km 0.760-meter gauge, all government owned, single track
Telecommunications
radio relay system being expanded; improved international services; 144,300 telephones; stations--129 AM, no FM, 43 TV, 68 shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Military and Security
Branches
Bolivian Army, Bolivian Navy, Bolivian Air Force (literally, the Army of the Nation, the Navy of the Nation, the Air Force of the Nation)
Defense expenditures
3% of GNP (1987)
Military manpower
males 15-49, 1,629,154; 1,060,187 fit for military service; 70,528 reach military age (19) annually