- You are here:
- Home
- › Travel & living abroad
- › Travel advice by country
- › Country profiles
- › South America and South Atlantic Islands
- › Bolivia
South America and South Atlantic Islands
Bolivia |
|
|
|
Country information
BOLIVIA TODAY
Country Facts
Full Name: Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia (Plurinational State of Bolivia)
Area: 1.28 million sq km (425,000 sq miles)
Population: 10 million (2010)
Constitutional Capital: Sucre (population: 132,000) Seat of Government: La Paz
People: Indigenous, primarily Aymara, Quechua, and Guarani, Mestizo
Language(s): Under the 2009 Constitution, all 36 Indigenous tongues are official languages, as well as Spanish
Religion(s): Roman Catholic (95%), Protestant (Evangelical Methodist)
Currency: Boliviano
Major political organisations: Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS);
Government: Democracy with elections held every five years. The 2009 State Constitution provides for an executive and a legislature consisting of a 36-member Senate and 130-member Chamber of Deputies.
Head of State: Juan Evo Morales Ayma
Foreign Minister: David Choquehuanca
Membership of international groupings/organisations: Bolivia holds membership of the UN; WTO; G-11; G77; Organisation of American States (OAS); Andean Community (CAN); Latin American Integration Association (ALADI); Rio Group; MERCOSUR (associate membership); Inter-American Developmental Bank (IADB); IMF, IMF, UNASUR (Union of South American Nations)
DID YOU KNOW?
Bolivia has not only has the highest capital city in the world La Paz (3,640m), but also the highest navigable lake, Titicaca (3,805m). British construction workers brought soccer to Bolivia in the 19th century. One of the clubs they founded, Always Ready, still exists today.
HEALTH
In the 2010 UN Human Development Report, Bolivia ranked 95th in the Human Development Indicator (HDI), with an HDI value of 0.643. Bolivia has a population of 10 million, 66% of which live in urban areas. The average life expectancy is now 66.3 years. UNDP figures show that infant mortality has fallen dramatically from 89 deaths before the age of one per 1000 live births in 1989 to 50 per 1000 in 2008. Only 65% of mothers receive medical attendance during labour and the maternal mortality rate of 229 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births is the second highest in Latin America and the Caribbean after Haiti.. The adult literacy rate is 90.7% and a national program for reading and writing ‘Yo Si Puedo’ (Yes I Can) was implemented in 2006. In December 2008 the President declared Bolivia free from illiteracy.
