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Geography of Bolivia

Location:Central South America, southwest of Brazil
Geographic coordinates:17 00 S, 65 00 W
Map references:South America
Area:total: 1,098,580 sq km
land: 1,084,390 sq km
water: 14,190 sq km
Area - comparative:slightly less than three times the size of Montana
Land 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)
Maritime claims:none (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
Elevation extremes:lowest point: Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m
Natural resources:tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower
Land use:arable land: 2.78%
permanent crops: 0.19%
other: 97.03% (2005)
Irrigated land:1,320 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:flooding in the northeast (March-April)
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
Environment - international agreements:party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
Geography - note:landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru

Bolivia Quickstats

  • Population: 9,119,152 (July 2007 est.)
  • Area: 1,098,580 sq km
  • Density: 8.4 /km² (210th)
  • GDP (total): $25.684 billion (101st)
  • GDP (per capita): $2,817 (125th)
  • Literacy: 86.7%

Languages of Bolivia

Useful to know

  • Currency: Boliviano (BOB)
  • Dial code: +591

International Trade

External sites

More Resources

Bolivia Internet

  • Usage: 480,000
  • Penetration: 5.1 %
  • Top Domain: .bl

WT eBusiness info:

  • Success Ranking: 100
  • Market testing: Untested
  • Overall risk: High
  • Overall reward: Low

e-maturity:

  • Tourism: 10%
  • eCommerce: 10%
  • Gaming: 10%
  • eLearning: 10%

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