1992 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1992 (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 area
1,084,390 km2
Land boundaries
6,743 km; Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km
Land use
arable land 3%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 25%; forest and woodland 52%; other 20%; includes irrigated NEGL%
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
rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon basin
Total area
1,098,580 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
33 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate
9 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Ethnic divisions
Quechua 30%, Aymara 25%, mixed 25-30%, European 5-15%
Infant mortality rate
82 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Labor force
1,700,000; agriculture 50%, services and utilities 26%, manufacturing 10%, mining 4%, other 10% (1983)
Languages
Spanish, Quechua, and Aymara (all official)
Life expectancy at birth
59 years male, 64 years female (1992)
Literacy
78% (male 85%, female 71%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Nationality
noun - Bolivian(s); adjective - Bolivian
Net migration rate
--1 migrant/1,000 population (1992)
Organized labor
150,000-200,000, concentrated in mining, industry, construction, and transportation; mostly organized under Bolivian Workers' Central (COB) labor federation
Population
7,323,048 (July 1992), growth rate 2.3% (1992)
Religions
Roman Catholic 95%; active Protestant minority, especially Evangelical Methodist
Total fertility rate
4.5 children born/woman (1992)
Government
Administrative divisions
9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija
Capital
La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary)
Chamber of Deputies
last held 7 May 1989 (next to be held May 1993); results - percent of vote by party NA; note - legislative and presidential candidates run on a unified slate, so vote percentages are the same as in section on presidential election results; seats - (130 total) MNR 40, ADN 35, MIR 33, IU 10, CONDEPA 9, PDC 3
Chamber of Senators
last held 7 May 1989 (next to be held May 1993); results - percent of vote by party NA; note - legislative and presidential candidates run on a unified slate, so vote percentages are the same as in section on presidential election results; seats - (27 total) MNR 9, ADN 7, MIR 8, CONDEPA 2, PDC 1
Chief of State and Head of Government
President Jaime PAZ Zamora (since 6 August 1989); Vice President Luis OSSIO Sanjines (since 6 August 1989)
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 Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco US: Ambassador Charles R. BOWERS; 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 AA 34032); telephone [591] (2) 350251 or 350120; FAX [591] (2) 359875
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)
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 Chamber of Senators (Camara de Senadores) and a lower chamber or Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)
Long-form name
Republic of Bolivia
Member of
AG, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, 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; Civic Solidarity Union (UCS), Max FERNANDEZ Rojas; Conscience of the Fatherland (CONDEPA), Carlos PALENQUE Aviles; Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Jorge AGREDO; Free Bolivia Movement (MBL), led by Antonio ARANIBAR; United Left (IU), a coalition of leftist parties that includes Patriotic National Convergency Axis (EJE-P) led by Walter DELGADILLO, and Bolivian Communist Party (PCB) led by Humberto RAMIREZ; Revolutionary Vanguard - 9th of April (VR-9), Carlos SERRATE Reich
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 1989
Suffrage
universal and compulsory at age 18 (married) or 21 (single)
Type
republic
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for about 20% of GDP (including forestry and fisheries); principal commodities - coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes, timber; self-sufficient in food
Budget
revenues $900 million; expenditures $825 million, including capital expenditures of $300 million (1991 est.)
Currency
boliviano (plural - bolivianos); 1 boliviano ($B) = 100 centavos
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $990 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2,025 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $340 million
Electricity
849,000 kW capacity; 1,798 million kWh produced, 251 kWh per capita (1991)
Exchange rates
bolivianos ($B) per US$1 - 3.7534 (January 1992), 3.5806 (1991), 3.1727 (1990), 2.6917 (1989), 2.3502 (1988), 2.0549 (1987)
Exports
$970 million (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: metals 45%, natural gas 25%, other 30% (coffee, soybeans, sugar, cotton, timber) partners: US 15%, Argentina
External debt
$3.3 billion (December 1991)
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
exchange rate conversion - $4.6 billion, per capita $630; real growth rate 4% (1991)
Illicit drugs
world's second-largest producer of coca (after Peru) with an estimated 47,900 hectares under cultivation; voluntary and forced eradication program unable to prevent production from rising to 78,400 metric tons in 1991 from 74,700 tons in 1989; 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
Imports
$760 million (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: food, petroleum, consumer goods, capital goods partners: US 22%
Industrial production
growth rate 6% (1991); accounts for almost 30% of GDP
Industries
mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverage, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing; illicit drug industry reportedly produces significant revenues
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
15% (1991)
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 then President Paz Estenssoro in 1985, however, succeeded in reducing inflation to between 10% and 20% annually since 1987, eventually restarting economic growth. Since August 1989, President Paz Zamora has retained the economic policies of the previous government, keeping inflation down and continuing moderate growth. Nevertheless, Bolivia continues to be one of the poorest countries in Latin America, with widespread poverty and unemployment, and it remains vulnerable to price fluctuations for its limited exports - agricultural products, 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
7% (1991 est.)
Communications
Airports
1,105 total, 943 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 7 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 146 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 and 1 container ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,951 GRT/26,320 DWT
Pipelines
crude oil 1,800 km; petroleum products 580 km; natural gas 1,495 km
Ports
none; maritime outlets are Arica and Antofagasta in Chile, Matarani and Ilo in Peru
Railroads
3,684 km total, all narrow gauge; 3,652 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; broadcast stations - 129 AM, no FM, 43 TV, 68 shortwave; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, National Police Force
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $80 million, 1.6% of GDP (1990 est).
Manpower availability
males 15-49, 1,727,101; 1,122,224 fit for military service; 72,977 reach military age (18) annually