1995 Edition

Area

total area: 1,098,580 sq km land area: 1,084,390 sq km comparative area: slightly less than three times the size of Montana

Climate

varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

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 natural hazards: cold, thin air of high plateau is obstacle to efficient fuel combustion, as well as to physical activity by those unaccustomed to it from birth; flooding in the northeast (March to April) international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection

International 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

Irrigated land

1,650 sq km (1989 est.)

Land boundaries

total 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: 0% meadows and pastures: 25% forest and woodland: 52% other: 20%

Location

Central South America, southwest of Brazil

Map references

South America

Maritime claims

none; landlocked

Natural resources

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

Note

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

Terrain

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

Age structure

0-14 years: 39% (female 1,542,931; male 1,565,624) 15-64 years: 57% (female 2,276,308; male 2,188,100) 65 years and over: 4% (female 174,419; male 148,872) (July 1995 est.)

Birth rate

31.61 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate

8.12 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Ethnic divisions

Quechua 30%, Aymara 25%, mestizo (mixed European and Indian ancestry) 25%-30%, European 5%-15%

Infant mortality rate

70.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Labor force

3.54 million by occupation: agriculture NA, services and utilities 20%, manufacturing, mining and construction 7% (1993)

Languages

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

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 63.85 years male: 61.39 years female: 66.43 years (1995 est.)

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1992) total population: 80% male: 88% female: 72%

Nationality

noun: Bolivian(s) adjective: Bolivian

Net migration rate

-1.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Population

7,896,254 (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate

2.25% (1995 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist)

Total fertility rate

4.1 children born/woman (1995 est.)

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)

Center-Left parties

Nationalist Revolutionary Movement (MNR), Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA; Movement of the Revolutionary Left (MIR), Jaime PAZ Zamora, Oscar EID; Christian Democrat (PCD), Jorge AGREDA

Center-Right party

Nationalist Democratic Action (ADN), Jorge LANDIVAR, Hugo BANZER populist parties: Civic Solidarity Union (UCS), Max FERNANDEZ Rojas; Conscience of the Fatherland (CONDEPA), Carlos PALENQUE Aviles; Popular Patriotic Movement (MPP), Julio MANTILLA; Unity and Progress Movement (MUP), Ivo KULJIS

Chamber of Deputies (Camara de Diputados)

elections last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held May 1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (130 total) MNR 52, UCS 20, ADN 17, MIR 17, CONDEPA 13, MBL 7, ARBOL 1, ASD 1, EJE 1, PCD 1

Chamber of Senators (Camara de Senadores)

elections last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held May 1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (27 total) MNR 17, ADN 4, MIR 4, CONDEPA 1, UCS 1

Constitution

2 February 1967

Digraph

BL

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission: Ambassador Andres PETRICEVIC Raznatovic chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410 through 4412

Evangelical

Bolivian Renovating Alliance (ARBOL), Hugo VILLEGAS indigenous: Tupac Katari Revolutionary Liberation Movement (MRTK-L), Victor Hugo CARDENAS Conde; Patriotic Axis of Convergence (EJE-P), Ramiro BARRANCHEA; National Katarista Movement (MKN), Fernando UNTOJA

Executive branch

chief of state and head of government: President Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamente (since 6 August 1993); Vice President Victor Hugo CARDENAS Conde (since 6 August 1993); election last held 6 June 1993 (next to be held May 1997); results - Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA (MNR) 34%, Hugo BANZER Suarez (ADN/MIR alliance) 20%, Carlos PALENQUE Aviles (CONDEPA) 14%, Max FERNANDEZ Rojas (UCS) 13%, Antonio ARANIBAR Quiroga (MBL) 5%; no candidate received a majority of the popular vote; Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA won a congressional runoff election on 4 August 1993 after forming a coalition with Max FERNANDEZ and Antonio ARANIBAR; FERNANDEZ left the coalition in 1994 cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president from panel proposed by the Senate

FAX

[1] (202) 328-3712 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York, and San Francisco

[591] (2) 4339000

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)

Left parties

Free Bolivia Movement (MBL), Antonio ARANIBAR; April 9 Revolutionary Vanguard (VR-9), Carlos SERRATE; Alternative of Democratic Socialism (ASD), Jerjes JUSTIANO; Revolutionary Front of the Left (FRI), Oscar ZAMORA; Bolivian Socialist Falange (FSB); Socialist Unzaguista Movement (MAS); Socialist Party One (PS-1); Bolivian Communist Party (PCB)

Legal system

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

Legislative branch

bicameral National Congress (Congreso Nacional)

Member of

AG, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Names

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

National holiday

Independence Day, 6 August (1825)

Suffrage

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

Type

republic

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission: Ambassador Curt Warren KAMMAN embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032 telephone: [591] (2) 430251

Agriculture

accounts for about 21% of GDP (including forestry and fisheries); principal commodities - coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes, timber; self-sufficient in food

Budget

revenues: $3.75 billion expenditures: $3.75 billion, including capital expenditures of $556.2 million (1995 est.)

Currency

1 boliviano ($B) = 100 centavos

Economic aid

recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $990 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2.025 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $340 million

Electricity

capacity: 756,200 kW production: 2.116 billion kWh consumption per capita: 367 kWh (1994)

Exchange rates

bolivianos ($B) per US$1 - 4.72 (January 1995), 4.6205 (1994), 4.2651 (1993), 3.9005 (1992), 3.5806 (1991), 3.1727 (1990)

Exports

$1.1 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.) commodities: metals 39%, natural gas 9%, soybeans 11%, jewelry 11%, wood 8% partners: US 26%, Argentina 15% (1993 est.)

External debt

$4.2 billion (January 1995)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Illicit drugs

world's second-largest producer of coca (after Peru) with an estimated 48,100 hectares under cultivation in 1994; voluntary and forced eradication programs unable to prevent production from rising to 89,800 metric tons in 1994 from 84,400 tons in 1993; 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; alternative crop program aims to reduce illicit coca cultivation

Imports

$1.21 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.) commodities: capital goods 48%, chemicals 11%, petroleum 5%, food 5% (1993 est.) partners: US 24%, Argentina 13%, Brazil 11%, Japan 11% (1993 est.)

Industrial production

growth rate 5% (1994 est.)

Industries

mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverage, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing; illicit drug industry reportedly produces 15% of its revenues

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

8.5% (1994 est.)

National product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $18.3 billion (1994 est.)

National product per capita

$2,370 (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate

4.2% (1994 est.)

Overview

With its long history of semifeudal social controls, dependence on volatile prices for its mineral exports, and bouts of hyperinflation, Bolivia has remained one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries. However, Bolivia has experienced generally improving economic conditions since the PAZ Estenssoro administration (1985-89) introduced market-oriented policies which reduced inflation from 11,700% in 1985 to about 20% in 1988. PAZ Estenssoro was followed as President by Jaime PAZ Zamora (1989-93) who continued the free-market policies of his predecessor, despite opposition from his own party and from Bolivia's once powerful labor movement. By maintaining fiscal discipline, PAZ Zamora helped reduce inflation to 9.3% in 1993, while GDP grew by an annual average of 3.25% during his tenure. Inaugurated in August 1993, President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA has vowed to advance the market-oriented economic reforms he helped launch as PAZ Estenssoro's planning minister. His successes so far have included an inflation rate that continues to decrease - the 1994 rate of 8.5% was the lowest in ten years - the signing of a free trade agreement with Mexico, and progress on his unique privatization plan. The main privatization bill was passed by the Bolivian legislature in late March 1994. Related laws - one that establishes SIRESE, the regulatory agency that will oversee the privatizations, and another that outlines the rules for privatization in the electricity sector - were approved later in the year.

Unemployment rate

6.2% (1994 est.)

Radio

broadcast stations: AM 129, FM 0, shortwave 68 radios: NA

Telephone system

about 150,000 telephones; about 2.0 telephones/100 persons; new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones in La Paz and other cities; microwave radio relay system being expanded; improved international services local: NA intercity: microwave radio relay system international: 1 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth station

Television

broadcast stations: 43 televisions: NA

Airports

total: 1,382 with paved runways over 3,047 m: 3 with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 with paved runways under 914 m: 1,016 with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 77 with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 275

Highways

total: 42,815 km paved: 1,865 km unpaved: gravel 12,000 km; improved/unimproved earth 28,950 km

Inland waterways

10,000 km of commercially navigable waterways

Merchant marine

total: 1 cargo ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,214 GRT/6,390 DWT

Pipelines

crude oil 1,800 km; petroleum products 580 km; natural gas 1,495 km

Ports

none; however, Bolivia has free port privileges in the maritime ports of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay

Railroads

total: 3,684 km (single track) narrow gauge: 3,652 km 1.000-m gauge; 32 km 0.760-m gauge

Branches

Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval Boliviana, includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana), National Police Force (Policia Nacional de Bolivia)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $134 million; 1.9% of GDP (1994) ________________________________________________________________________ BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Note--Bosnia and Herzegovina is set to enter its third year of interethnic civil strife which began in the spring of 1992 after the Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina held a referendum on independence. Bosnia's Serbs - supported by neighboring Serbia - responded with armed resistance aimed at partitioning the republic along ethnic lines and joining Serb-held areas to 'greater Serbia'. In March 1994, Bosnia's Muslims and Croats reduced the number of warring factions from three to two by signing an agreement in Washington, DC, creating the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. A group of rebel Muslims, however, continues to battle government forces in the northwest enclave of Bihac. A Contact Group of countries, the US, UK, France, Germany, and Russia, continues to seek a resolution between the Federation and the Bosnian Serbs. In July of 1994 the Contact Group presented a plan to the warring parties that roughly equally divides the country between the two, while maintaining Bosnia in its current internationally recognized borders. The Federation agreed to the plan almost immediately, while the Bosnian Serbs rejected it.

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 1,885,485; males fit for military service 1,226,218; males reach military age (19) annually 81,065 (1995 est.)