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Basic Facts |
Country name |
conventional long form: Republic of Bolivia
conventional short form: Bolivia local long form: Republica de Bolivia local short form: Bolivia |
Gevernment type | republic |
Capital |
name: La Paz (administrative capital)
geographic coordinates: 16 30 S, 68 09 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Sucre (constitutional capital) |
Flag description | 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 |
Currency | boliviano (BOB) |
Internet country code | .bo |
Ports and terminals | Puerto Aguirre (on the Paraguay/Parana waterway, at the Bolivia/Brazil border); also, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay |
Agriculture products | soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber |
Industries | mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing |
Geography |
Location | Central South America, southwest of Brazil |
Coordinates | 17 00 S, 65 00 W |
Continent | South America |
Area |
total: 1,098,580 sq km
land: 1,084,390 sq km water: 14,190 sq km |
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) |
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 |
Natural resources | tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower |
Natural hazards | flooding in the northeast (March-April) |
People |
Population | 8,989,046 (July 2006 est.) |
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 (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official) |