View source for Bolivia

{{Short description|Country in South America}}
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{{About|the country}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Plurinational State of Bolivia
| native_name            = {{ubl|{{native name|es|Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia}}|{{native name|qu|Puliwya Achka Aylluska Mamallaqta}}|{{nativename|ay|Wuliwya Walja Ayllunakana Marka}}|{{native name|gn|Tetã Hetate'ýigua Volívia}}}}
| common_name            = Bolivia
| name                   = {{collapsible list |titlestyle = background:transparent;line-height:normal;text-align:center;font-size:84%; |title = {{resize|1.0 em|Co-official names}}{{efn|name=a|In Bolivia, [[Languages of Bolivia|other languages]] have been officially recognized as legitimate [[Indigenous language|autochthonous languages]].
* {{langx|qu|Puliwya Achka Aylluska Mamallaqta}}
* {{langx|ay|Wuliwya Walja Suyunakana Marka}}
|{{Infobox
 |subbox=yes
 |bodystyle=font-size:80%;font-weight:normal;
 |rowclass1 = mergedrow
 |label1=[[Quechuan languages|Quechua]]:
 |data1={{lang|qu|Puliwya Achka Aylluska Mamallaqta}}
 |rowclass2 = mergedrow
 |label2=[[Aymara language|Aymara]]:
 |data2={{lang|ay|Wuliwya Walja Suyunakana Marka}}
 |label3=[[Guaraní language|Guaraní]]:
 |data3={{lang|gn|Tetã Blúrinasionál Volívia}}
}}
}}}}
| image_flag             = Flag of Bolivia.svg

| flag_alt               = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom)
| flag_alt2              = 7 × 7 square patchwork with the (top left to bottom right) diagonals forming colored stripes (green, blue, purple, red, orange, yellow, white, green, blue, purple, red, orange, yellow, from top right to bottom left)
| other_symbol           = <div style="padding:0.3em;">[[File:Banner of the Qulla Suyu (1979).svg|100px|]]</div>
| other_symbol_type      = Dual flag: {{nobold|{{lang|es|[[Wiphala]]}}}}<ref>{{cite book |title= Spatial Concepts for Decolonizing the Americas |last1= León |first1= Ana María |last2= Herscher |first2= Andrew |editor-first1= Felipe |editor-last1= Hernández |editor-first2= Fernando Luiz |editor-last2= Lara |chapter= Indigenous Modernities: The Tocapu and Other American Grids |year= 2021 |isbn= 978-1-5275-7653-7 |page= 43 |publisher= Cambridge Scholars |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=F9BJEAAAQBAJ&dq=wiphala+bolivian+dual+flag&pg=PA43 |access-date= 18 March 2023 |archive-date= 10 April 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230410184646/https://books.google.com/books?id=F9BJEAAAQBAJ&dq=wiphala+bolivian+dual+flag&pg=PA43 |url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title= Culture and Customs of Bolivia |last= Galván |first= Javier A. |year= 2011 |isbn= 978-0-313-38364-9 |page= xxiii |publisher= ABC-CLIO |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=7RHY5j45GcAC&dq=wiphala+bolivian+dual+flag&pg=PR23 |access-date= 18 March 2023 |archive-date= 5 April 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230405182429/https://books.google.com/books?id=7RHY5j45GcAC&dq=wiphala+bolivian+dual+flag&pg=PR23 |url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Bolivia_2009.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Bolivia_2009.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |title= Bolivia (Plurinational State of)'s Constitution of 2009, English translation |website=constituteproject.org |publisher= Constitute (Oxford University Press)|access-date= 22 March 2022|quote= The symbols of the State are the red, yellow and green tri-color flag; the Bolivian national anthem; the coat of arms; the wiphala; the rosette; the kantuta flower and the patujú flower. (Art. 6 ii)}}</ref>
| image_coat             = Escudo de Bolivia.svg
| coa_size               = 100
| national_anthem        = {{native name|es|Himno Nacional de Bolivia|nolink=yes}}<br />"[[National Anthem of Bolivia]]"<br /><div style="display:inline-block;margin-top:0.4em;">[[File:Himno Nacional de Bolivia instrumental.ogg|center]]</div>
| image_map              = BOL orthographic.svg
| map_width              = 220px
| map_caption            = {{map caption |location_color=dark green |region=South America |region_color= gray}}
| capital                = [[Sucre]]{{efn|name=central_cities|Sucre is the constitutional capital and seat of the judicial branch of government, while the executive, legislative, and electoral branches are seated in La Paz.}}
| admin_center           = [[La Paz]]{{efn|name=central_cities}}
| largest_city           = [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra|Santa Cruz]]<br />{{coord|17|48|S|63|10|W}}
| official_languages     = {{Plainlist|
* [[Bolivian Spanish|Spanish]]
* [[Quechuan languages|Quechua]]
* [[Aymara language|Aymara]]
* [[Guarani language|Guarani]]
* [[Languages of Bolivia|Other indigenous languages]] 
}}
| ethnic_groups          = 
| ethnic_groups_year     = 
| religion_year          = 2020
| religion_ref           = <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thearda.com/world-religion/national-profiles?u=27c | title=National Profiles &#124; World Religion | access-date=12 March 2024 | archive-date=12 March 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240312161315/https://www.thearda.com/world-religion/national-profiles?u=27c | url-status=live}}</ref>
| religion               = {{unbulleted list
|{{Tree list}}
* 92.8% [[Christianity]]
** 81.4% [[Catholic Church in Bolivia|Catholicism]]
** 11.4% other [[List of Christian denominations|Christian]]
{{Tree list/end}}
|6.5% [[Irreligion in Latin America|no religion]]|0.7% [[Religion in Bolivia|other]]}}
| demonym                = Bolivian
| government_type        = Unitary [[presidential republic]]
| leader_title1          = [[President of Bolivia|President]]
| leader_name1           = [[Rodrigo Paz]]
| leader_title2          = [[Vice President of Bolivia|Vice President]]
| leader_name2           = [[Edmand Lara]]
| leader_title3          = [[President of the Chamber of Senators of Bolivia|President of the Senate]]
| leader_name3           = Diego Ávila 
| leader_title4          = [[President of the Chamber of Deputies of Bolivia|President of the Chamber of Deputies]]
| leader_name4           = Roberto Castro Salazar
| legislature            = [[Plurinational Legislative Assembly]]
| upper_house            = [[Chamber of Senators (Bolivia)|Chamber of Senators]]
| lower_house            = [[Chamber of Deputies (Bolivia)|Chamber of Deputies]]
| sovereignty_type       = [[Bolivian War of Independence|Independence]]
| sovereignty_note       = from [[Spain]]
| established_event1     = [[Bolivian Declaration of Independence|Declared]]
| established_date1      = 6 August 1825
| established_event2     = Recognized
| established_date2      = 21 July 1847
| established_event3     = [[Constitution of Bolivia|Current constitution]]
| established_date3      = 7 February 2009
| area_km2               = 1,098,581
| area_footnote          = 
| area_rank              = 27th <!-- Area rank should match [[List of countries and dependencies by area]] -->
| area_sq_mi             = 424,163
| percent_water          = 1.29
| population_census      = {{IncreaseNeutral}} 11,365,333<ref name="ine2024">{{cite web |title=Principales resultados - Censo 2024 |url=https://cpv2024.ine.gob.bo/index.php/principal/principales-resultados-v3/ |publisher=Instituto Nacional de Estadística |access-date=31 August 2025 |language=Spanish |date=2025 }}</ref>
| population_census_year = 2024
| population_census_rank = 84th
| population_density_km2 = 10.4
| population_density_sq_mi = 26,9
| population_density_rank = 224th
| FR_total_population_estimate_year = 124,428,245 (2019)<ref name=imf>{{cite web| url=https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2018/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=58&pr.y=4&sy=2016&ey=2023&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=218&s=NGDPD%2CPPPGDP%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=| title=Report for Selected Countries and Subjects| publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]]| access-date=29 August 2020| archive-date=27 May 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527192142/https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2018/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=58&pr.y=4&sy=2016&ey=2023&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=218&s=NGDPD%2CPPPGDP%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=| url-status=live}}</ref>
| GDP_PPP                = {{increase}} $144.098&nbsp;billion<ref name="IMFWEO.BO">{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2025/april/weo-report?c=218,&s=NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,LUR,LP,&sy=2025&ey=2030&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1|title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2025 (Bolivia) |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |date=22 April 2025 |access-date=22 April 2025}}</ref>
| GDP_PPP_rank           = 94th
| GDP_PPP_year           = 2025
| GDP_PPP_per_capita     = {{increase}} $11,574<ref name="IMFWEO.BO" />
| GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 120th
| GDP_nominal            = {{increase}} $56.339 billion &nbsp;<ref name="IMFWEO.BO" />
| GDP_nominal_rank       = 94th
| GDP_nominal_year       = 2025
| GDP_nominal_per_capita = {{increase}} $4,525<ref name="IMFWEO.BO" />
| GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 126th
| Gini                   = 40.9 <!--number only-->
| Gini_year              = 2021
| Gini_change            = decrease
| Gini_ref               = <ref>[https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?name_desc=false Gini index]</ref>
| Gini_rank              = 
| HDI                    = 0.733<!--number only-->
| HDI_year               = 2023<!-- Please use the year to which the data refers, not the publication year-->
| HDI_change             = increase <!--increase/decrease/steady/-->
| HDI_ref                = <ref name="HDI">{{cite web|url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2025|publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]]|date=30 April 2025|access-date=30 April 2025}}</ref>
| HDI_rank               = 108th
| currency               = [[Bolivian boliviano|Boliviano]]
| currency_code          = BOB
| time_zone              = [[UTC−04:00|BOT]]
| utc_offset             = −04:00
| date_format            = dd/mm/yyyy
| drives_on              = right
| calling_code           = [[Telephone numbers in Bolivia|+591]]
| iso3166code            = 
| cctld                  = [[.bo]]
}}

'''Bolivia''',{{Efn|{{IPAc-en|audio=en-us-Bolivia.ogg|b|ə|ˈ|l|ɪ|v|i|ə}}; {{IPA|es|boˈliβja|lang|ES-pe - Bolivia.ogg}}; {{langx|gn|Mborivia}} {{IPA|gn|ᵐboˈɾiʋja|}}; {{langx|ay|Wuliwya}} {{IPA|ay|wʊlɪwja|}}; {{langx|qu|Puliwya}} {{IPA|qu|pʊlɪwja|}}}} officially the '''Plurinational State of Bolivia''',{{efn|{{langx|es|link=no|Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia}} {{IPA|es|esˈtaðo pluɾinasjoˈnal de βoˈliβja||ES-pe - Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia.ogg}}}} is a [[landlocked country]] located in central [[South America]]. In simple terms the country's geography consists of a western [[Andes|Andean region]] and tropical lowlands to the east and north. More in detail the country features a diverse geography, including the vast [[Amazon rainforest|Amazonian]] plain, the [[Gran Chaco]], [[mesothermal valley|temperate valleys]], the high-altitude [[Altiplano|Altiplano plateau]], snow-capped peaks, mountains, encompassing a wide range of climates and biomes across its regions and cities. It includes part of the [[Pantanal]], the largest tropical wetland in the world, along its eastern border. It is bordered by [[Brazil]] to the [[Bolivia-Brazil border|north and east]], [[Paraguay]] to the southeast, [[Argentina]] to the [[Argentina-Bolivia border|south]], [[Chile]] to the [[Bolivia–Chile border|southwest]], and [[Peru]] to the west. The [[seat of government]] is [[La Paz]], which contains the executive, legislative, and electoral branches of government, while the constitutional capital is [[Sucre]], the seat of the [[judiciary of Bolivia|judiciary]]. While most population and urban centers lies in Andean region, the largest city and principal industrial center is [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra]], located on the eastern tropical lowlands.

The [[sovereign state]] of Bolivia is a [[Constitution of Bolivia|constitutionally]] [[unitary state]] divided into [[Departments of Bolivia|nine departments]]. Bolivia's geographic Andean-lowland divide is to extent matched by economic and cultural differences such as those associated with the [[camba]] and [[colla (demonym)|colla]] demonyms. One-third of the country is within the [[Andes|Andean]] mountain range. With an area of {{convert|1098581|km2|abbr=on}}, Bolivia is the fifth-largest country in South America after Brazil, Argentina, Peru and Colombia, and, alongside Paraguay, is one of two landlocked countries in the Americas. It is the largest [[landlocked country]] in the [[Southern Hemisphere]], and has [[inland port]]s accessing the Atlantic Ocean through two river systems: [[Acre River|Acre]]-[[Purus River|Purus]]-[[Amazon River|Amazon]] and [[Paraguay River|Paraguay]]-[[Paraná River|Paraná]]. Bolivia had a population of 11.4 million as of the latest census in 2024.<ref name="ine2024"/> It is [[Multinational state|multiethnic]], including [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Amerindians]], [[Mestizo]]s, and the descendants of [[Ethnic groups in Europe|Europeans]] and [[Demographics of Africa|Africans]]. Spanish is the official and predominant language, although 36 [[Languages of Bolivia|indigenous language]]s also have official status, of which the most commonly spoken are [[Guarani dialects|Guaraní]], [[Aymara language|Aymara]], and [[Quechuan languages|Quechua]].

Centuries prior to [[Spanish colonization]], much of what would become Bolivia formed part of the [[Tiwanaku polity]], which collapsed around 1000&nbsp;AD. The [[Colla–Inca War]] of the 1440s marked the beginning of [[Inca Empire|Inca rule]] in western Bolivia. The eastern and northern lowlands of Bolivia were inhabited by independent non-Andean Amazonian and [[Guaraní people|Guaraní]] tribes. Spanish [[conquistador]]es, arriving from [[Cusco]], Peru and [[Asunción]], Paraguay, forcibly took control of the region in the 16th century.

During the subsequent [[Spanish Empire|Spanish colonial period]], Bolivia was administered by the [[Real Audiencia of Charcas]]. Spain built its empire in large part upon the silver that was extracted from [[Cerro Rico]] in [[Potosí]]. Following an unsuccessful rebellion in [[Sucre]] on May 25, 1809, sixteen years of fighting would follow before the establishment of the Republic, named for [[Simón Bolívar]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=25 August 2013|title=Salem Press|url=https://salempress.com/store/samples/great_lives_from_history_19th/great_lives_from_history_19th_bolivar.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825121538/https://salempress.com/store/samples/great_lives_from_history_19th/great_lives_from_history_19th_bolivar.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=25 August 2013|access-date=23 November 2020}}</ref> Over the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Bolivia lost control of several peripheral territories to neighboring countries, such as the [[Republic of Acre|Acre]] territory after Brazil's 1899–1903 takeover, and the country's [[Litoral Department|Pacific coastal region]] which Chile [[War of the Pacific|seized in 1879]].

The Bolivia was ruled by an [[oligarchy]] composed of land-owning and mining interests until the [[Bolivian National Revolution]] of 1952 established [[universal suffrage]], nationalized lucrative [[tin mining]] and made a [[Land reform in Bolivia|limited land reform]]. 20th century Bolivia experienced a succession of military and civilian governments with the last non-elected military ruler leaving office in 1982. Under the 2006–2019 presidency of [[Evo Morales]], the country saw significant [[economic growth]] and political stability but was also accused of [[democratic backsliding]],<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Velasco Guachalla|first1=V. Ximena|last2=Hummel|first2=Calla|last3=Handlin|first3=Sam|author4-link=Amy Erica Smith|last4=Smith|first4=Amy Erica|date=2021|title=Latin America Erupts: When Does Competitive Authoritarianism Take Root?|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/797786|journal=Journal of Democracy|volume=32|issue=3|pages=63–77|doi=10.1353/jod.2021.0034|issn=1086-3214|doi-access=|s2cid=242488702|access-date=17 May 2024|archive-date=18 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018072257/https://muse.jhu.edu/article/797786|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Weyland|first=Kurt|date=2013|title=Latin America's Authoritarian Drift: The Threat from the Populist Left|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/512750|journal=Journal of Democracy|volume=24|issue=3|pages=18–32|doi=10.1353/jod.2013.0045|s2cid=154433853|issn=1086-3214|access-date=17 May 2024|archive-date=27 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221027143941/https://muse.jhu.edu/article/512750|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref> and was described as a [[competitive authoritarian]] regime.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Cameron|first=Maxwell A.|date=2018|title=Making Sense of Competitive Authoritarianism: Lessons from the Andes|journal=Latin American Politics and Society|volume=60|issue=2|pages=1–22|doi=10.1017/lap.2018.3|issn=1531-426X|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Levitsky|first1=Steven|last2=Loxton|first2=James|date=2013|title=Populism and competitive authoritarianism in the Andes|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/13510347.2013.738864|journal=Democratization|volume=20|issue=1|pages=107–136|doi=10.1080/13510347.2013.738864|s2cid=145185278|issn=1351-0347|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sánchez-Sibony|first=Omar|date=2021|title=Competitive Authoritarianism in Morales's Bolivia: Skewing Arenas of Competition|journal=Latin American Politics and Society|volume=63|issue=1|pages=118–144|doi=10.1017/lap.2020.35|issn=1531-426X|doi-access=free}}</ref> [[Freedom House]] classifies Bolivia as a partly-free democracy as of 2023, with a 66/100 score.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bolivia: Freedom in the World 2023 Country Report |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/bolivia/freedom-world/2023 |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=Freedom House |archive-date=28 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240428184805/https://freedomhouse.org/country/bolivia/freedom-world/2023 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Modern Bolivia is a member of the [[Non-Aligned Movement]] (NAM),<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nti.org/education-center/treaties-and-regimes/non-aligned-movement-nam |title=Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) – The Nuclear Threat Initiative |newspaper=The Nuclear Threat Initiative |access-date=19 October 2021 |archive-date=19 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211019023811/https://www.nti.org/education-center/treaties-and-regimes/non-aligned-movement-nam/ |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Organization of American States]] (OAS), [[Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization]] (ACTO), [[Bank of the South]], [[ALBA]], the [[Union of South American Nations]] (USAN), and [[Southern Common Market]] ({{lang|es|Mercosur}}).<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/07/26/bolivia-mercosur-gas-lithium-arce-coup-economy-politics/ |title=Bolivia's Busy Month |magazine=Foreign Policy |access-date=25 January 2025 |archive-date=5 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250105112744/https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/07/26/bolivia-mercosur-gas-lithium-arce-coup-economy-politics/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Bolivia remains a [[developing country]], and the second-poorest in South America, though it has slashed poverty rates and now has one of the fastest-growing economies on the continent (in terms of GDP). Its main economic resources include agriculture, [[forestry]], fishing, mining, and goods such as textiles and clothing, refined metals, and [[Oil refinery|refined petroleum]]. Bolivia is very [[Geology of Bolivia|geologically rich]], with mines producing [[tin]], silver, [[lithium]], and copper. The country is also known for [[Coca_in_Bolivia|its production of coca plants]] and refined [[cocaine]]. In 2021, estimated coca cultivation and cocaine production was reported to be 39,700 hectares and 317 metric tons, respectively.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 July 2022 |title=ONDCP Releases Data on Coca Cultivation and Production in the Andean Region {{!}} ONDCP |url=https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/ondcp/briefing-room/2022/07/14/ondcp-releases-data-on-coca-cultivation-and-production-in-the-andean-region/ |access-date=21 September 2023 |website=The White House |archive-date=2 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002050917/https://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/briefing-room/2022/07/14/ondcp-releases-data-on-coca-cultivation-and-production-in-the-andean-region/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
Bolivia is named after [[Simón Bolívar]], a [[Venezuela]]n leader in the [[Spanish American wars of independence]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://salempress.com/store/samples/great_lives_from_history_19th/great_lives_from_history_19th_bolivar.htm |title=Simón Bolívar |publisher=Salem Press |access-date=28 January 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130825121538/https://salempress.com/store/samples/great_lives_from_history_19th/great_lives_from_history_19th_bolivar.htm |archive-date=25 August 2013}}</ref> The leader of Venezuela, [[Antonio José de Sucre]], had been given the option by Bolívar to either unify [[Sucre|Charcas]] (present-day Bolivia) with the newly formed Republic of Peru, to unify with the [[United Provinces of the Río de la Plata]], or to formally declare its independence from Spain as a wholly independent state. Sucre opted to create a brand new state and on 6 August 1825, with local support, named it in honor of [[Simón Bolívar]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historia-bolivia.com/6-de-Agosto-Independencia-de-Bolivia/6 |title=6 de Agosto: Independencia de Bolivia |website=Historia-bolivia.com |access-date=14 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820091233/http://historia-bolivia.com/6-de-Agosto-Independencia-de-Bolivia/6 |archive-date=20 August 2011 |language=es}}</ref>

The original name was Republic of [[Simón Bolívar|Bolívar]]. Some days later, congressman Manuel Martín Cruz proposed: "If from [[Romulus]], Rome, then from [[Simón Bolívar|Bolívar]], Bolivia" ({{langx|es|Si de Rómulo, Roma; de Bolívar, Bolivia|links=no}}). The name was approved by the Republic on 3 October 1825. In 2009, a [[Constitution of Bolivia|new constitution]] changed the country's official name to "[[Plurinationalism|Plurinational State]] of Bolivia" to reflect the multi-ethnic nature of the country and the strengthened rights of Bolivia's indigenous peoples under the new constitution.<ref>{{cite book|first1=Ilan|last1=Kapoor|title=Universal Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jy5CEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA164|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=2021|isbn=978-0-19-760761-9|page=164}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|editor1-first=Clara|editor1-last=Irazábal|first=Marcela|last=Tovar-Restrepo|chapter=Nations within Nations: Transnationalism and Indigenous Citizenship in Latin America|title=Transbordering Latin Americas: Liminal Places, Cultures, and Powers (T)Here|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cfcJAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA150|publisher=Routledge|date=2013|isbn=978-1-135-02239-6|page=150|access-date=30 July 2022|archive-date=2 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202205451/https://books.google.com/books?id=cfcJAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA150#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref>

== History ==
{{Main|History of Bolivia}}

=== Pre-colonial ===
[[File:Templo de Kalasasaya, Tiwanaku.jpg|left|thumb|The [[Kalasasaya|Kalasasaya Temple]] of the [[Tiwanaku polity|Tiwanaku Polity]] (200 BC){{sfn|Kolata|1993|p=}}{{page needed|date=August 2025}}]]
The region now known as Bolivia had been occupied for over 2,500 years when the [[Aymara people|Aymara]] arrived; however, present-day Aymara associate themselves with the ancient civilization of the [[Tiwanaku Empire|Tiwanaku Polity]], which had its capital at [[Tiwanaku]], in Western Bolivia. The capital city of Tiwanaku dates back as early as 1500 BC, when it was a small, agriculturally-based village.{{sfn|Fagan|2001|p=203}}

The [[Aymara people|Aymara]] community grew to urban proportions between AD 600 and AD 800, becoming an important regional power in the southern [[Andes]] from [[La Paz]]. According to early estimates,{{When|date=February 2014}} the city covered approximately {{convert|6.5|sqkm|abbr=off|sp=us}} at its peak, and had between 15,000 and 30,000 inhabitants.{{sfn|Kolata|1993|p=145}} However, in 1996, [[Satellite imagery|satellite imaging]] was used to map the extent of preserved ''suka kollus'' ([[Raised field|flooded raised fields]]) across the three primary valleys of [[Tiwanaku]], with the results suggesting a population-carrying capacity of anywhere between 285,000 and 1,482,000 people.{{sfn|Kolata|1996|p={{page needed|date=July 2013}}}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tiwanaku, Bolivia - Crystalinks |url=https://www.crystalinks.com/tiwanaku.html |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=www.crystalinks.com}}</ref>

Around AD 400, Tiwanaku went from being a locally-dominant force to a 'predatory' state, aggressively expanding its reach into the [[Yungas]] and bringing its culture and ways to new peoples in Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. Nonetheless, Tiwanaku was not a violent or domineering culture; to expand its reach, the state exercised great political astuteness, created colonies, fostered local trade agreements (which made other cultures rather dependent), and instituted state cults.<ref name="McAndrews, Timothy L. 1997">{{cite journal|last1=McAndrews|first1=Timothy L.|last2=Albarracin-Jordan |first2= Juan |last3=Bermann |first3= Marc |title=Regional Settlement Patterns in the Tiwanaku Valley of Bolivia|journal=Journal of Field Archaeology|year=1997|volume=24|issue=1|pages=67–83|doi=10.2307/530562|jstor=530562 |issn = 0093-4690}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Rise and Fall |url=https://tiwanakuofbolivia.weebly.com/rise-and-fall.html |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Tiwanaku |language=en}}</ref>

As rainfall gradually decreased, the stores of food supplies decreased, and thus the elites lost power. Tiwanaku disappeared around AD 1000. The area remained uninhabited for centuries thereafter.{{sfn|Kolata|1993|p={{page needed|date=July 2013}}}}

Between 1438 and 1527, [[Incan Empire]] expanded from its capital at [[Cusco]], gaining control over much of what is now the Bolivian Andes, and extending its control into the fringes of the Amazon basin.

=== Colonial period ===
[[File:PMa BOL 108 Sucre.jpg|thumb|The [[Potosí|Villa Imperial de Potosí]], established in 1545, held great significance for the Spanish colonial empire, as its abundant mineral wealth accounted for over half of the global silver production during the colonial period.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lane |first=Kris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gmGPDwAAQBAJ&dq=potosi+was+of+major+significance+to+the+Spanish+colonial+empire+due+to+its+wealth+of+mineral+resources,+supplying+over+half+of+the+world's+silver+during+the+colonial+period.+&pg=PR10 |title=Potosi: The Silver City That Changed the World |date=2019-05-28 |publisher=Univ of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-97363-3 |language=en}}</ref> ]]
The Spanish conquest of the [[Inca empire]] began in 1524 and was mostly completed by 1533. The territory now called Bolivia was known as Charcas, and was under the authority of Spain. Local government came from the [[Real Audiencia of Charcas|Audiencia de Charcas]] located in Chuquisaca (La Plata—modern [[Sucre]]). Founded in 1545 as a mining town, [[Potosí]] soon produced fabulous wealth, becoming the largest city in the [[New World]] with a population exceeding 150,000 people.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.common-place.org/vol-03/no-04/potosi/ |title=The High Place: Potosi |last=Demos |first= John |publisher=Common-place.org |access-date=14 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114061035/http://www.common-place.org/vol-03/no-04/potosi/ |archive-date=14 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Demos |first=John |title=The High Place: Potosi |url=https://commonplace.online/article/high-place-potosi/ |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Commonplace |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[File:Church in Historic Center - Sucre - Bolivia.jpg|thumb|[[Metropolitan Cathedral of Sucre]] in Sucre, a UNESCO World Heritage city]]
By the late 16th century, Bolivian silver was an important source of revenue for the [[Spanish Empire]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761575057_13/Spain.html |title=Conquest in the Americas |publisher=MSN Encarta |date=28 October 2009 |access-date=14 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028035130/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761575057_13/Spain.html |archive-date=28 October 2009}}</ref> A steady stream of natives served as labor force under the brutal, slave conditions of the Spanish version of the pre-Columbian draft system called the [[Mita (Inca)|mita]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/bolivia/29.htm |title=Bolivia – Ethnic Groups |publisher=Countrystudies.us |access-date=30 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629084332/http://countrystudies.us/bolivia/29.htm |archive-date=29 June 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> Charcas was transferred to the [[Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata]] in 1776 and the people from Buenos Aires, the capital of the Viceroyalty, coined the term "[[Upper Peru]]" ({{Langx|es|link=no|Alto Peru}}) as a popular reference to the Royal Audiencia of Charcas. [[Túpac Katari]] led the indigenous rebellion that laid siege to [[La Paz]] in March 1781,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Robins |first1= Nicholas A.|last2=Jones |first2= Adam|title=Genocides by the Oppressed: Subaltern Genocide in Theory and Practice|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AX3UCk_PdEwC|year=2009|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0-253-22077-6|pages=1–2|access-date=14 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015203222/https://books.google.com/books?id=AX3UCk_PdEwC|archive-date=15 October 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> during which 20,000 people died.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.duke.edu/~ems19/rebellions/rebellions.html |title=Rebellions |publisher=History Department, Duke University |date=22 February 1999 |access-date=14 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120131062804/http://www.duke.edu/~ems19/rebellions/rebellions.html |archive-date=31 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Stierman |first=Beth |date=2021-09-05 |title=Bartolina Sisa, a Bolivian heroine |url=https://chacofund.org/bartolina-sisa-a-bolivian-heroine/ |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=The Chaco Fund |language=en-US}}</ref> As Spanish royal authority weakened during the [[Napoleonic Wars]], sentiment against colonial rule grew.

=== Independence and subsequent wars ===
{{More citations needed section|date=May 2025}}{{Main|History of Bolivia (1809–1920)}}

The [[Bolivian War of Independence|struggle for independence]] started in the city of [[Sucre]] on 25 May 1809 and the [[Chuquisaca Revolution]] (Chuquisaca was then the name of the city) is known as the first cry of Freedom in Latin America.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Cuestas |first=Solange Leonor Zalles |date=2023 |title=LA APUESTA POR EL REALISMO EN CHUQUISACA INICIANDO EL PROCESO DE INDEPENDENCIA. 1809-1812 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/2784771022/B92E43993CE949AEPQ/3?accountid=196403&sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals |journal=Naveg@mérica |language=es |issue=30 |pages=1-30 |via=ProQuest}}</ref> That revolution was followed by the [[La Paz revolution]] on 16 July 1809.<ref name=":3" /> The La Paz revolution marked a complete split with the Spanish government, while the Chuquisaca Revolution established a local independent junta in the name of the Spanish King deposed by Napoleon Bonaparte.<ref name=":3" /> Both revolutions were short-lived and defeated by the Spanish authorities in the Viceroyalty of the Rio de La Plata, but the following year the [[Spanish American wars of independence]] raged across the continent.<ref name=":3" />

Bolivia was captured and recaptured many times during the war by the [[Royalist (Spanish American Revolution)|royalists]] and patriots.<ref name=":3" /> Buenos Aires sent three military campaigns, all of which were defeated, and eventually limited itself to protecting the national borders at Salta.<ref name=":3" /> Bolivia was finally freed of Royalist dominion by Marshal [[Antonio José de Sucre]], with a military campaign coming from the North in support of the campaign of [[Simón Bolívar]]. After 16 years of war the Republic was [[Bolivian Declaration of Independence|proclaimed]] on 6 August 1825.

[[File:Coat of arms of Bolivia (1825).svg|thumb|The first coat of arms of Bolivia, formerly named the Republic of Bolívar in honor of [[Simón Bolívar]]]]

In 1836, Bolivia, under the rule of [[Marshal]] [[Andrés de Santa Cruz]], invaded Peru to reinstall the deposed president, General [[Luis José de Orbegoso]]. Peru and Bolivia formed the [[Peru-Bolivian Confederation]], with de Santa Cruz as the ''Supreme Protector''. Following tension between the Confederation and Chile, Chile declared war on 28 December 1836. Argentina separately declared war on the Confederation on 9 May 1837. The Peruvian-Bolivian forces achieved several major victories during the [[War of the Confederation]]: the defeat of the Argentine expedition and the defeat of the first Chilean expedition on the fields of [[Paucarpata District|Paucarpata]] near the city of [[Arequipa]]. The Chilean army and its Peruvian rebel allies surrendered unconditionally and signed the Paucarpata Treaty. The treaty stipulated that Chile would withdraw from Peru-Bolivia, Chile would return captured Confederate ships, economic relations would be normalized, and the Confederation would pay Peruvian debt to Chile. However, the Chilean government and public rejected the peace treaty. Chile organized a second attack on the Confederation and defeated it in the [[Battle of Yungay]]. After this defeat, Santa Cruz resigned and went to exile in Ecuador and then Paris, and the Peruvian-Bolivian Confederation was dissolved.
[[File:Fachada del Banco Nacional de Bolivia, Sucre Bolivia.jpg|left|thumb|Historic headquarters of [[Banco Nacional de Bolivia]] in Sucre]]
Following the renewed independence of Peru, Peruvian president General [[Agustín Gamarra]] invaded Bolivia. On 18 November 1841, the battle de Ingavi took place, in which the Bolivian Army defeated the Peruvian troops of Gamarra (killed in the battle). After the victory, Bolivia invaded Peru on several fronts. The eviction of the Bolivian troops from the south of Peru would be achieved by the greater availability of material and human resources of Peru; the Bolivian Army did not have enough troops to maintain an occupation. In the district of Locumba – Tacna, a column of Peruvian soldiers and peasants defeated a Bolivian regiment in the so-called Battle of Los Altos de Chipe (Locumba). In the district of Sama and in Arica, the Peruvian colonel José María Lavayén organized a troop that managed to defeat the Bolivian forces of Colonel Rodríguez Magariños and threaten the port of Arica. In the battle of Tarapacá on 7 January 1842, Peruvian militias formed by the commander Juan Buendía defeated a detachment led by Bolivian colonel José María García, who died in the confrontation. Bolivian troops left Tacna, Arica and Tarapacá in February 1842, retreating towards Moquegua and Puno.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Albarracín: La portentosa Heroicidad|last=Cavagnaro Orellana|first=Luis|publisher=Archivo Regional de Tacna|year=2002}}</ref> The battles of Motoni and Orurillo forced the withdrawal of Bolivian forces occupying Peruvian territory and exposed Bolivia to the threat of counter-invasion. The Treaty of Puno was signed on 7 June 1842, ending the war. However, the climate of tension between Lima and La Paz would continue until 1847, when the signing of a Peace and Trade Treaty became effective.

A period of political and economic instability in the early-to-mid-19th century weakened Bolivia. In addition, during the [[War of the Pacific]] (1879–83), Chile occupied vast territories rich in [[natural resources]] south west of Bolivia, including the Bolivian [[coast]]. Chile took control of today's [[Chuquicamata]] area, the adjoining rich ''salitre'' ([[Sodium nitrate|saltpeter]]) fields, and the port of [[Antofagasta]] among other Bolivian territories.

Since independence, Bolivia has lost over half of its territory to neighboring countries.<ref>{{cite book |last=McGurn Centellas |first=Katherine |date=June 2008 |title=For Love of Land and Laboratory: Nation-building and Bioscience in Bolivia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VXD4SlJQYDgC&pg=PA97 |location=Chicago |isbn=978-0-549-56569-7 |access-date=14 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015203222/https://books.google.com/books?id=VXD4SlJQYDgC&pg=PA97 |archive-date=15 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Through diplomatic channels in 1909, it lost the basin of the Madre de Dios River and the territory of the Purus in the Amazon, yielding 250,000&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> to Peru.<ref>{{Citation|last=Portal Educabolivia|title=Pérdidas territoriales de Bolivia|date=1 August 2014|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ftw65nhfXsA| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211123/Ftw65nhfXsA| archive-date=23 November 2021 | url-status=live|access-date=28 May 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It also lost the [[Acre (state)|state of Acre]], in the [[Acre War]], important because this region was known for its production of rubber. Peasants and the Bolivian army fought briefly but after a few victories, and facing the prospect of a total war against Brazil, it was forced to sign the [[Treaty of Petrópolis]] in 1903, in which Bolivia lost this rich territory. Popular myth has it that Bolivian president Mariano Melgarejo (1864–71) traded the land for what he called "a magnificent white horse" and Acre was subsequently flooded with Brazilians, which ultimately led to confrontation and fear of war with Brazil.<ref>{{Cite web|title=National Gallery: Bolivia {{!}} History Today|url=https://www.historytoday.com/national-gallery/national-gallery-bolivia|access-date=5 November 2021|website=www.historytoday.com|archive-date=5 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105031712/https://www.historytoday.com/national-gallery/national-gallery-bolivia|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In the late 19th century, an increase in the world price of silver brought Bolivia relative prosperity and political stability.

=== Early 20th century ===

{{Main|History of Bolivia (1920–1964)}}
[[File:Map Bolivia territorial loss-en.svg|thumb|left|Bolivia's territorial losses (1867–1938)]]
During the early 20th century, [[tin]] replaced silver as the country's most important source of wealth. A succession of governments controlled by the economic and social elite followed [[laissez-faire]] capitalist policies through the first 30 years of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rabanus |first= David |url=http://www.bolivien-liest.de/en/country_en.html |title=Background note: Bolivia |publisher=Bolivien-liest.de |access-date=14 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825224419/http://www.bolivien-liest.de/en/country_en.html |archive-date=25 August 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Living conditions of the native people, who constitute most of the population, remained deplorable. With work opportunities limited to primitive conditions in the mines and in large estates having nearly feudal status, they had no access to education, economic opportunity, and [[Participation (decision making)|political participation]]. Bolivia's defeat by Paraguay in the [[Chaco War]] (1932–1935), where Bolivia lost a great part of the [[Gran Chaco]] region in dispute, marked a turning-point.<ref>{{cite book |last=Osborne |first= Harold |title=Bolivia: A Land Divided |publisher=London: Royal Institute of International Affairs |year=1954}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=History World |title=History of Bolivia |publisher=National Grid for Learning |year=2004 |url=http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ac11 |access-date=12 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060821200723/http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ac11 |archive-date=21 August 2006 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Forero |first=Juan |title=History Helps Explain Bolivia's New Boldness |work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/07/weekinreview/07forero.html |date=7 May 2006 |access-date=26 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416175436/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/07/weekinreview/07forero.html |archive-date=16 April 2009 |url-status=live}} [http://www.geography.wisc.edu/archiveNews/2006/pdf/NYT-History%20Geography%20Bolivia.pdf (PDF)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090324233328/http://www.geography.wisc.edu/archiveNews/2006/pdf/NYT-History%20Geography%20Bolivia.pdf |date=24 March 2009}}, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Department of Geography</ref>

On 7 April 1943, Bolivia entered [[World War II]], joining part of the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]], which caused president [[Enrique Peñaranda]] to declare war on the [[Axis powers]] of [[Nazi Germany|Germany]], [[Fascist Italy (1922-1943)|Italy]] and [[Empire of Japan|Japan]].

In 1945, Bolivia became a founding member of the United Nations.

The [[Revolutionary Nationalist Movement]] (MNR), the most historic political party, emerged as a broad-based party. Denied its victory in the 1951 presidential elections, the MNR led a successful revolution in 1952. Under President [[Víctor Paz Estenssoro]], the MNR, having strong popular pressure, introduced [[universal suffrage]] into his political platform and carried out a sweeping land-reform promoting rural education and nationalization of the country's largest tin mines.

=== Late 20th century ===

{{Main|History of Bolivia (1964–1982)}}
[[File:GralHugoBanzerSuarez.jpg|thumb|upright|In 1971, [[Hugo Banzer Suárez]], supported by the CIA, [[United States involvement in regime change|forcibly ousted]] President Torres in a coup.]]
Twelve years of tumultuous rule left the MNR divided. In 1964, a military [[military dictatorship|junta]] overthrew President Paz Estenssoro at the outset of his third term. The 1969 death of President [[René Barrientos]], a former member of the junta who was elected president in 1966, led to a succession of weak governments. Alarmed by the rising Popular Assembly and the increase in the popularity of President [[Juan José Torres]], the military, the MNR, and others installed [[Hugo Banzer]] as president in 1971. He returned to the presidency in 1997 through 2001. Torres, who had fled Bolivia, was kidnapped and assassinated in 1976 as part of [[Operation Condor]], the U.S.-supported campaign of political repression by South American right-wing dictators.<ref>{{cite news |title=Operation Condor on Trial in Argentina |url=http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/03/operation-condor-on-trial-in-argentina/ |work=[[Inter Press Service]] |date=5 March 2013 |access-date=17 November 2019 |archive-date=24 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220824093106/http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/03/operation-condor-on-trial-in-argentina/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

The United States' [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA) financed and trained the Bolivian military dictatorship in the 1960s. The revolutionary leader [[Che Guevara]] was killed by a team of CIA officers and members of the Bolivian Army on 9 October 1967, in Bolivia. [[Félix Rodríguez (soldier)|Félix Rodríguez]] was a CIA officer on the team with the Bolivian Army that captured and shot Guevara.<ref name="BBC-2007-10-8">{{Cite journal| url= https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7027619.stm| title= CIA man recounts Che Guevara's death| last= Grant| first= Will| date= 8 October 2007| journal= BBC News| access-date= 2 January 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100127043721/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7027619.stm| archive-date= 27 January 2010| url-status= live}}</ref> Rodriguez said that after he received a Bolivian presidential execution order, he told "the soldier who pulled the trigger to aim carefully, to remain consistent with the Bolivian government's story that Che had been killed in action during a clash with the Bolivian army." Rodriguez said the US government had wanted Che in Panama, and "I could have tried to falsify the command to the troops, and got Che to Panama as the US government said they had wanted", but that he had chosen to "let history run its course" as desired by Bolivia.<ref name="XXXI-172">{{Cite journal |title=Statements by Ernesto "Che" Guevara Prior to His Execution in Bolivia |url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/frus/johnsonlb/xxxi/36271.htm |journal=Foreign Relations of the United States |volume=XXXI, South and Central America; Mexico |id=XXXI: 172 |date=13 October 1967 |publisher=[[United States Department of State]] |access-date=22 May 2019 |archive-date=24 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220824093118/https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/frus/johnsonlb/xxxi/36271.htm |url-status=live}}</ref>

Elections in 1978 were marked by fraud and those in 1979 were inconclusive. There were [[Coup d'état|coups d'état]], counter-coups, and caretaker governments. Following the 1980 election, General [[Luis García Meza]] carried out a coup d'état. The [[Bolivian Workers' Center]], which tried to resist the putsch, was violently repressed. More than a thousand people were killed in less than a year. Cousin of one of the country's most important narco-traffickers, García Meza favored the production of cocaine.<ref>A Concise History of Bolivia, Cambridge Concise Histories, by Herbert S. Klein</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/theticket/articles/2006/0120/1137626790492.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130126130236/http://www.irishtimes.com/theticket/articles/2006/0120/1137626790492.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 January 2013 |title=Astroturfing all the way to No 1 |last=Boyd |first=Brian |date=20 January 2006 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |access-date=7 April 2010}}</ref> After a military rebellion forced out García Meza in 1981, three other military governments in fourteen months struggled with Bolivia's growing economic problems. Unrest forced the military to convoke the [[National Congress of Bolivia|Congress]] elected in 1980, and allow it to choose a new president. In October 1982, [[Hernán Siles Zuazo]] again became president, twenty-two years after the end of his first term of office (1956–1960).

=== Democratic transition ===
{{main|History of Bolivia (1982–present)}}
In 1993, [[Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada]] was elected [[President of Bolivia|president]] in alliance with the [[Revolutionary Liberation Movement Tupaq Katari|Tupac Katari Revolutionary Liberation Movement]], which inspired indigenous-sensitive and multicultural-aware policies.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact94/wf950032.txt|title=1994 CIA World FactBook|access-date=4 March 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100418005802/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact94/wf950032.txt|archive-date=18 April 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> Sánchez de Lozada pursued an aggressive economic and social reform agenda. The most dramatic reform was privatization under the "capitalization" program, under which investors, typically foreign, acquired 50% ownership and management control of public enterprises in return for agreed upon capital investments.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/01/business/international-business-bolivia-sells-utility-to-us-companies.html|title=INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS; Bolivia Sells Utility to U.S. Companies|last=Sims |first=Calvin |date=1 July 1995|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=31 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020155505/http://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/01/business/international-business-bolivia-sells-utility-to-us-companies.html|archive-date=20 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Ewing|first1=Andrew|last2=Goldmark|first2=Susan|year=1994|title=Privatization by Capitalization : The Case of Bolivia – A Popular Participation Recipe for Cash-Starved SOEs|url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/11679|journal=Viewpoint|publisher=World Bank|access-date=31 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011195151/https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/11679|archive-date=11 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1993, Sanchez de Lozada introduced the ''Plan de Todos'', which led to the decentralization of government, introduction of [[intercultural bilingual education]], implementation of [[Agriculture|agrarian]] legislation, and [[privatization]] of state owned businesses. The plan explicitly stated that Bolivian citizens would own a minimum of 51% of enterprises; under the plan, most [[Government-owned corporation|state-owned enterprises]] (SOEs), though not mines, were sold.<ref>{{cite web|title=Historia de la República de Bolivia|url=http://www.mirabolivia.com/edu/historia.htm|access-date=4 March 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100228053542/http://www.mirabolivia.com/edu/historia.htm|archive-date=28 February 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> This privatization of SOEs led to a [[neoliberal]] structuring.<!--that acknowledged a diverse population within Bolivia. – Acknowledged how so?--><ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.temple.edu/gus/kohl/documents/kohlplancitizenshipIJURR603.pdf |doi=10.1111/1468-2427.00451 |title=Restructuring Citizenship in Bolivia: El Plan de Todos |last=Kohl |first=Benjamin |year=2003 |journal=International Journal of Urban and Regional Research |volume=27 |issue=2 |page=337 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208112503/https://www.temple.edu/gus/kohl/documents/kohlplancitizenshipIJURR603.pdf |archive-date=8 February 2013 |citeseerx=10.1.1.363.2012}}</ref>

The reforms and economic restructuring were strongly opposed by certain segments of society, which instigated frequent and sometimes violent protests, particularly in La Paz and the Chapare [[coca]]-growing region, from 1994 through 1996. The indigenous population of the [[Andes|Andean]] region was not able to benefit from government reforms.<ref>{{cite book|last=Lucero|first=José Antonio|editor=John Burdick |editor2=Philip Oxhorn |editor3=Kenneth M. Roberts|title=Beyond neoliberalism in Latin America?|year=2009|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-0-230-61179-5|chapter=Decades Lost and Won: The Articulations of Indigenous Movements and Multicultural Neoliberalism in the Andes}}</ref> During this time, the umbrella labor-organization of Bolivia, the [[Central Obrera Boliviana]] (COB), became increasingly unable to effectively challenge government policy. A [[1995 Bolivian state of siege|teachers' strike in 1995]] was defeated because the COB could not marshal the support of many of its members, including construction and factory workers.

====General Banzer presidency (1997–2002)====
In the 1997 elections, General [[Hugo Banzer]], leader of the [[Nationalist Democratic Action]] party (ADN) and former dictator (1971–1978), won 22% of the vote, while the MNR candidate won 18%. At the outset of his government, President Banzer launched a policy of using special police-units to eradicate physically the illegal coca of the Chapare region. The [[Revolutionary Left Movement (Bolivia)|Revolutionary Left Movement]] (MIR) of Jaime Paz Zamora remained a coalition-partner throughout the Banzer government, supporting this policy (called the Dignity Plan).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://chakana.nl/files/pub/AssiesSalman_2005_Ethnicity-and-Politics-in-Bolivia.pdf |title=Ethnicity and Politics in Bolivia |publisher=Ethnopolitics 4(3):269–297 |date=September 2005 |access-date=14 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724150223/http://chakana.nl/files/pub/AssiesSalman_2005_Ethnicity-and-Politics-in-Bolivia.pdf |archive-date=24 July 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The Banzer government continued the free-market and privatization-policies of its predecessor. The relatively robust economic growth of the mid-1990s continued until about the third year of its term in office. After that, regional, global and domestic factors contributed to a decline in economic growth. Financial crises in Argentina and Brazil, lower world prices for export commodities, and reduced employment in the coca sector depressed the Bolivian economy. The public also perceived a significant amount of public sector corruption. These factors contributed to increasing social protests during the second half of Banzer's term.

Between January 1999 and April 2000, large-scale [[2000 Cochabamba protests|protests]] erupted in [[Cochabamba]], Bolivia's third largest city at the time, in response to the [[Water privatization|privatization of water]] resources by foreign companies and a subsequent doubling of water prices. On 6 August 2001, Banzer resigned from office after being diagnosed with cancer. He died less than a year later. Vice President [[Jorge Quiroga|Jorge Fernando Quiroga Ramírez]] completed the final year of his term.

==== Sánchez de Lozada and Mesa presidencies (2002–2005) ====
In the June 2002 national elections, former President [[Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada]] (MNR) placed first with 22.5% of the vote, followed by coca-advocate and native peasant-leader [[Evo Morales]] ([[Movement for Socialism (Bolivia)|Movement Toward Socialism]], MAS) with 20.9%. A July agreement between the MNR and the fourth-place MIR, which had again been led in the election by former President Jaime Paz Zamora, virtually ensured the election of Sánchez de Lozada in the congressional run-off, and on 6 August he was sworn in for the second time. The MNR platform featured three overarching objectives: economic reactivation (and job creation), anti-corruption, and social inclusion.

In 2003, the [[Bolivian gas conflict]] broke out. On 12 October 2003, the government imposed martial law in El Alto after 16 people were shot by the police and several dozen wounded in violent clashes. Faced with the option of resigning or more bloodshed, Sánchez de Lozada offered his resignation in a letter to an emergency session of Congress. After his resignation was accepted and his vice president, [[Carlos Mesa]], invested, he left on a commercially scheduled flight for the United States.

The country's internal situation became unfavorable for such political action on the international stage. After a resurgence of gas protests in 2005, Carlos Mesa attempted to resign in January 2005, but his offer was refused by Congress. On 22 March 2005, after weeks of new street protests from organizations accusing Mesa of bowing to U.S. corporate interests, Mesa again offered his resignation to Congress, which was accepted on 10 June. The chief justice of the Supreme Court, [[Eduardo Rodríguez (politician)|Eduardo Rodríguez]], was sworn as interim president to succeed the outgoing Carlos Mesa.

====Morales presidency (2005–2019)====
[[File:Presidentes_del_Perú_y_Bolivia_inauguran_Encuentro_Presidencial_y_III_Gabinete_Binacional_Perú-Bolivia_(36962597345)_(cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|Former President, [[Evo Morales]]]]
[[Evo Morales]] won the [[Bolivian presidential election, 2005|2005 presidential election]] with 53.7% of the votes.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/19/world/americas/coca-advocate-wins-election-for-president-in-bolivia.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150529185642/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/19/world/americas/coca-advocate-wins-election-for-president-in-bolivia.html |archive-date=29 May 2015 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Coca Advocate Wins Election for President in Bolivia |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=19 December 2005 |access-date=4 October 2020}}</ref> On 1 May 2006, Morales announced his intent to [[Bolivian gas conflict|re-nationalize Bolivian hydrocarbon assets]] following protests which demanded this action.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/02/world/americas/02bolivia.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060623191023/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/02/world/americas/02bolivia.html |archive-date=23 June 2006 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Bolivian Nationalizes the Oil and Gas Sector |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=2 May 2006 |access-date=4 October 2020}}</ref> Fulfilling a campaign promise, on 6 August 2006, Morales opened the [[Bolivian Constituent Assembly]] to begin writing a new constitution aimed at giving more power to the indigenous majority.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/5251306.stm |title=Push for new Bolivia constitution |work=BBC News |date=6 August 2006 |access-date=30 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327011109/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5251306.stm |archive-date=27 March 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>

2009 marked the creation of a new constitution and the renaming of the country to the Plurinational State of Bolivia. The previous constitution did not allow a consecutive reelection of a president, but the new constitution allowed for just one reelection, starting the dispute if Evo Morales was enabled to run for a second term arguing he was elected under the last constitution. This also triggered a new general election in which Evo Morales was re-elected with 61.36% of the vote. His party, [[Movement for Socialism (Bolivia)|Movement for Socialism]], also won a two-thirds majority in both houses of the [[National Congress of Bolivia|National Congress]].<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Carroll|first1=Rory|last2=Schipani|first2=Andres|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/dec/07/morales-presidential-victory|title=Evo Morales wins landslide victory in Bolivian presidential elections|date=7 December 2009|work=The Guardian|access-date=9 March 2020|issn=0261-3077|archive-date=19 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519000700/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/dec/07/morales-presidential-victory|url-status=live}}</ref> By 2013, after being reelected under the new constitution, Evo Morales and his party attempted a third term as President of Bolivia. The opposition argued that a third term would be unconstitutional, but the Bolivian Constitutional Court ruled that Morales' first term under the previous constitution did not count towards his term limit.<ref>{{Cite news|date=21 May 2013|title=Bolivia: New law backs President Evo Morales third term|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-22605030|access-date=4 October 2020|archive-date=11 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211163602/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-22605030|url-status=live}}</ref> This allowed Evo Morales to run for a third term in 2014, and he was re-elected with 64.22% of the vote.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2014/10/12/world/americas/bolivia-elections/index.html|title=Evo Morales declares victory in Bolivian election|author1=Carlos Montero|author2=Catherine E. Shoichet|website=CNN|date=12 October 2014|access-date=9 March 2020|archive-date=17 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217225042/https://www.cnn.com/2014/10/12/world/americas/bolivia-elections/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref> During his third term, Evo Morales began to plan for a fourth, and the [[2016 Bolivian constitutional referendum]] asked voters to override the constitution and allow Evo Morales to run for an additional term in office. Morales narrowly lost the referendum;<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dw.com/en/bolivians-protest-after-supreme-court-allows-president-evo-morales-to-run-for-fourth-term/a-46622525 |title=Bolivians protest after Supreme Court allows President Evo Morales to run for fourth term |date=6 December 2018 |publisher=Deutsche Welle |access-date=9 March 2020 |archive-date=27 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191027113640/https://www.dw.com/en/bolivians-protest-after-supreme-court-allows-president-evo-morales-to-run-for-fourth-term/a-46622525 |url-status=live}}</ref> however, in 2017 his party then petitioned the Bolivian Constitutional Court to override the constitution on the basis that the [[American Convention on Human Rights]] made term limits a human rights violation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nacla.org/news/2017/12/20/bolivia-says-goodbye-term-limits|title=Bolivia Says Goodbye to Term Limits|website=NACLA|access-date=9 March 2020|archive-date=18 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200118180032/https://nacla.org/news/2017/12/20/bolivia-says-goodbye-term-limits|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Inter-American Court of Human Rights]] determined that term limits are not a human rights violation in 2018;<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_release.asp?sCodigo=S-011/18|title=OAS – Organization of American States: Democracy for peace, security, and development|last=OAS|date=1 August 2009|website=www.oas.org|access-date=9 March 2020|archive-date=18 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518235022/https://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_release.asp?sCodigo=S-011/18|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2018)010-e|title=Venice Commission Report on Term-Limits Part I – Presidents|publisher=Council of Europe, Venice Commission|access-date=3 September 2019|archive-date=6 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906000942/https://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2018)010-e|url-status=live}}</ref> however, once again the Bolivian Constitutional Court ruled that Morales has permission to run for a fourth term in the 2019 elections, and this permission was not retracted. "[T]he country's highest court overruled the constitution, scrapping term limits altogether for every office. Morales can now run for a fourth term in 2019 – and for every election thereafter."<ref>{{Cite web|date=3 December 2017|title=Evo for ever? Bolivia scraps term limits as critics blast "coup" to keep Morales in power|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/03/evo-morales-bolivia-president-election-limits|access-date=4 October 2020|website=The Guardian|archive-date=4 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004030333/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/03/evo-morales-bolivia-president-election-limits|url-status=live}}</ref>

The revenues generated by the partial [[nationalization]] of hydrocarbons made it possible to finance several social measures: the Renta Dignidad (or old age minimum) for people over 60 years old; the Juana Azurduy voucher (named after the revolutionary Juana Azurduy de Padilla, 1780–1862), which ensures the complete coverage of medical expenses for pregnant women and their children in order to fight infant mortality; the Juancito Pinto voucher (named after a child hero of the Pacific War, 1879–1884), an aid paid until the end of secondary school to parents whose children are in school in order to combat school dropout, and the Single Health System, which since 2018 has offered all Bolivians free medical care.<ref>« Bolivia, una mirada a los logros más importantes del nuevo modelo económico », Economía Plural, La Paz, 2019.</ref>

The reforms adopted made the Bolivian economic system the most successful and stable in the region. Between 2006 and 2019, GDP grew from $9 billion to over $40 billion, real wages increased, GDP per capita tripled, foreign exchange reserves rose, inflation was essentially eliminated, and extreme poverty fell from 38% to 15%, a 23-point drop.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.dw.com/es/cu%C3%A1les-son-las-claves-del-%C3%A9xito-econ%C3%B3mico-boliviano/a-49541834 | title=¿Cuáles son las claves del éxito económico boliviano? &#124; DW &#124; 12.07.2019 | website=[[Deutsche Welle]] | access-date=13 November 2022 | archive-date=3 May 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200503011154/https://www.dw.com/es/cu%C3%A1les-son-las-claves-del-%C3%A9xito-econ%C3%B3mico-boliviano/a-49541834 | url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Áñez presidency (2019–2020) ====
{{See also|2019 Bolivian general election|2019 Bolivian political crisis}}

During the 2019 elections, the [[2019 Bolivian general election|''Transmisión de Resultados Electorales Preliminares'' (TREP)]] (a quick count process used in Latin America as a transparency measure in electoral processes) was interrupted; at the time, Morales had a lead of 46.86 percent to Mesa's 36.72, after 95.63 percent of tally sheets were counted.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Long|first=Guillaume|title=What Happened in Bolivia's 2019 Vote Count? The Role of the OAS Electoral Observation Mission|url=https://cepr.net/images/stories/reports/bolivia-elections-2019-11.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://cepr.net/images/stories/reports/bolivia-elections-2019-11.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live|journal=Center for Economic and Policy Research|pages=18}}</ref> Two days after the interruption, the official count showed Morales fractionally clearing the 10-point margin he needed to avoid a runoff election, with the final official tally counted as 47.08 percent to Mesa's 36.51 percent, starting a wave of protests and tension in the country.

Amidst allegations of fraud perpetrated by the Morales government, widespread [[2019 Bolivian protests|protests]] were organized to dispute the election. On 10 November, the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS) released a preliminary report concluding several irregularities in the election,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Consulates in Argentina operational bases for Bolivian electoral fraud|url=https://en.mercopress.com/2019/12/14/consulates-in-argentina-operational-bases-for-bolivian-electoral-fraud|website=MercoPress|access-date=15 June 2020|archive-date=15 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615065319/https://en.mercopress.com/2019/12/14/consulates-in-argentina-operational-bases-for-bolivian-electoral-fraud|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=Valdivia|first1=Walter D.|date=17 March 2020|title=Bolivia's Electoral Fraud Reckoning|first2=Diego|last2=Escobari|url=https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/evo-morales-bolivia-presidential-election-fraud-by-walter-d-valdivia-and-diego-escobari-2020-03|access-date=15 June 2020|website=Project Syndicate|archive-date=8 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210908131157/https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/evo-morales-bolivia-presidential-election-fraud-by-walter-d-valdivia-and-diego-escobari-2020-03|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=12 pruebas del supuesto fraude electoral presentadas por ingenieros de la UMSA|url=https://eldeber.com.bo/154574_12-pruebas-del-supuesto-fraude-electoral-presentadas-por-ingenieros-de-la-umsa|access-date=15 June 2020|website=El Deber|date=25 October 2019|language=es|archive-date=15 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615065320/https://eldeber.com.bo/154574_12-pruebas-del-supuesto-fraude-electoral-presentadas-por-ingenieros-de-la-umsa|url-status=live}}</ref> though these findings were heavily disputed.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Anatoly Kurmanaev|author2=Maria Silvia Trigo|title=A Bitter Election. Accusations of Fraud. And Now Second Thoughts|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/07/world/americas/bolivia-election-evo-morales.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607230016/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/07/world/americas/bolivia-election-evo-morales.html |archive-date=7 June 2020 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=5 August 2020|newspaper=The New York Times|date=7 June 2020}}</ref> ''The New York Times'' reported on 7 June 2020 that the OAS analysis immediately after the 20 October election was flawed yet fuelled "a chain of events that changed the South American nation's history".<ref>{{Cite news|last=Weisbrot|first=Mark|date=18 September 2020|title=Silence reigns on the US-backed coup against Evo Morales in Bolivia|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/sep/18/silence-us-backed-coup-evo-morales-bolivia-american-states|access-date=23 October 2020|issn=0261-3077|archive-date=18 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211118195440/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/sep/18/silence-us-backed-coup-evo-morales-bolivia-american-states|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Greenwald|first=Glenn|date=8 June 2020|title=The New York Times Admits Key Falsehoods That Drove Last Year's Coup in Bolivia: Falsehoods Peddled by the U.S., Its Media, and the Times|url=https://theintercept.com/2020/06/08/the-nyt-admits-key-falsehoods-that-drove-last-years-coup-in-bolivia-falsehoods-peddled-by-the-u-s-its-media-and-the-nyt/|access-date=23 October 2020|website=The Intercept|archive-date=21 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921043143/https://theintercept.com/2020/06/08/the-nyt-admits-key-falsehoods-that-drove-last-years-coup-in-bolivia-falsehoods-peddled-by-the-u-s-its-media-and-the-nyt/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Jordan|first=Chuck|date=4 September 2020|title=Congress should investigate OAS actions in Bolivia|url=https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/515085-congress-should-investigate-oas-actions-in-bolivia|access-date=23 October 2020|website=The Hill|archive-date=24 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024074517/https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/515085-congress-should-investigate-oas-actions-in-bolivia|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Mapa Electoral de Bolivia 2020 Bolivia.svg|thumb|[[2020 Bolivian general election]], results by department]]
[[File:Canciller Andrés Allamand participa del saludo protocolar al Presidente de Bolivia, Luis Arce, y al Vicepresidente, David Choquehuanca 02.jpg|thumb|Inauguration of [[Luis Arce]] and [[David Choquehuanca]] on 8 November 2020]]
After weeks of protests, Morales resigned on national television shortly after the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces General [[Williams Kaliman]] had urged that he do so to restore "peace and stability".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Londoño|first=Ernesto|date=10 November 2019|title=Bolivian Leader Evo Morales Steps Down|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/10/world/americas/evo-morales-bolivia.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/10/world/americas/evo-morales-bolivia.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |url-access=limited|work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Bolivia's president announces resignation|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-latin-america-50371215|access-date=4 October 2020|archive-date=14 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414232830/https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-latin-america-50371215|url-status=live}}</ref> Opposition Senator [[Jeanine Áñez]] declared herself interim president, claiming constitutional succession after the president, vice president and both head of the legislature chambers. She was confirmed as interim president by the constitutional court who declared her succession to be constitutional and automatic.<ref>{{Cite web|title=TCP reconoce posesión de Jeanine Añez|url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/11/12/tcp-reconoce-posesion-de-jeanine-anez-237202.html|website=www.paginasiete.bo|access-date=11 December 2019|archive-date=11 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211023739/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2019/11/12/tcp-reconoce-posesion-de-jeanine-anez-237202.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=13 November 2019|title=What's next for Bolivia?|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-50403648|access-date=14 April 2020|archive-date=1 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200701232812/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-50403648|url-status=live}}</ref> International politicians, scholars and journalists are divided between describing the event as a coup or a spontaneous social uprising against an unconstitutional fourth term.<ref name="BC2"><nowiki/>
*{{cite news|title=Bolivian President Evo Morales resigns|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-50370013|newspaper=BBC News|date=11 November 2019|access-date=23 March 2020|archive-date=25 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191125054606/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-50370013|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|date=10 November 2019|title=Bolivian president Evo Morales resigns after election result dispute|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/10/bolivian-president-evo-morales-resigns-after-election-result-dispute|access-date=10 November 2019|website=The Guardian|archive-date=11 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111055233/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/10/bolivian-president-evo-morales-resigns-after-election-result-dispute|url-status=live}}
*{{Cite news|date=11 November 2019|title=Nicaraguan government denounces "coup" in Bolivia: statement|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nicaragua-bolivia-idUSKBN1XL06O|access-date=11 November 2019|archive-date=11 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111222822/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nicaragua-bolivia-idUSKBN1XL06O|url-status=live}}
*{{cite news|date=11 November 2019|title=Mexico says Bolivia suffered coup due to military pressure on Morales|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bolivia-election-mexico-minister/mexico-says-bolivia-suffered-coup-due-to-military-pressure-on-morales-idUSKBN1XL1S5|access-date=23 March 2020|archive-date=12 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191112013317/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bolivia-election-mexico-minister/mexico-says-bolivia-suffered-coup-due-to-military-pressure-on-morales-idUSKBN1XL1S5|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|author=Sofia Sanchez Manzanaro|author2=Marta Rodríguez|date=12 November 2019|title=Evo Morales political asylum: Is Bolivia facing a coup d'etat?|url=https://www.euronews.com/2019/11/11/evo-morales-resigns-is-bolivia-facing-a-coup-d-etat|website=Euronews|access-date=23 March 2020|archive-date=18 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200118233243/https://www.euronews.com/2019/11/11/evo-morales-resigns-is-bolivia-facing-a-coup-d-etat|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|author=John Bowden|date=11 November 2019|title=Sanders "very concerned about what appears to be a coup" in Bolivia|url=https://thehill.com/policy/international/469951-sanders-says-very-concerned-about-what-appear-to-be-a-coup-in-bolivia|website=The Hill|access-date=23 March 2020|archive-date=5 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200605062922/https://thehill.com/policy/international/469951-sanders-says-very-concerned-about-what-appear-to-be-a-coup-in-bolivia|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|date=11 November 2019|title=AP Explains: Did a coup force Bolivia's Evo Morales out?|url=https://apnews.com/6b2c94306089451d9761878c9f7ce2f1|access-date=4 December 2019|website=[[Associated Press]]|quote=Whether the events Sunday in Bolivia constitute a coup d'état is now the subject of debate in and outside the nation.&nbsp;... Bolivia's 'coup' is largely a question of semantics|archive-date=24 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024092220/https://apnews.com/6b2c94306089451d9761878c9f7ce2f1|url-status=live}}
</ref><ref>
*{{Cite news|last=Fisher|first=Max|date=12 November 2019|title=Bolivia Crisis Shows the Blurry Line Between Coup and Uprising|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/12/world/americas/bolivia-evo-morales-coup.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/12/world/americas/bolivia-evo-morales-coup.html |archive-date=1 January 2022 |url-access=limited|access-date=4 December 2019|issn=0362-4331|quote=But the Cold War-era language of coups and revolutions demands that such cases fit into clear narratives.&nbsp;... Experts on Bolivia and on coups joined forces on Monday to challenge the black-and-white characterizations, urging pundits and social media personalities to see the shades of gray.}}{{cbignore}}
*{{cite web|last=de Haldevang|first=Max|date=15 November 2019|title=The world's as divided about Bolivia's alleged coup as Bolivians themselves|url=https://qz.com/1748281/experts-are-divided-on-evo-morales-and-bolivias-alleged-coup/|access-date=4 December 2019|website=[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]]|quote=So...<!-- The elipsis is used this way in the source. -->was it a coup? Experts are as divided as everyone else on the question.|archive-date=6 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191206124449/https://qz.com/1748281/experts-are-divided-on-evo-morales-and-bolivias-alleged-coup/|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|last=Johnson|first=Keith|title=Why Is Evo Morales Suddenly No Longer President of Bolivia?|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/11/11/evo-morales-resigns-president-bolivia/|access-date=4 December 2019|website=[[Foreign Policy]]|date=11 November 2019|quote=It's not a coup in any sense of the word, and Bolivia and Latin America have experience with actual coups. The army did not take charge of Bolivia. Morales, despite his protestations that police had an arrest warrant for him, is not in custody or even being sought.|archive-date=15 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215120051/https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/11/11/evo-morales-resigns-president-bolivia/|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|date=14 November 2019|title=Bolivia reflects the deep polarization crisis in Latin America|url=https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/bolivia-reflects-the-deep-polarization-crisis-in-latin-america/|access-date=4 December 2019|website=[[Atlantic Council]]|quote=Countries are debating why Evo Morales left power. Did he leave power of his own volition or was it a coup? There are two different responses to that question based on which country is speaking.|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204145704/https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/bolivia-reflects-the-deep-polarization-crisis-in-latin-america/|url-status=live}}
*{{cite web|last=Adams|first=David C.|date=12 November 2019|title=Coup or not a coup? Bolivia's Evo Morales flees presidential crisis|url=https://www.univision.com/univision-news/latin-america/coup-or-no-coup-bolivias-presidential-crisis|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204145422/https://www.univision.com/univision-news/latin-america/coup-or-no-coup-bolivias-presidential-crisis|archive-date=4 December 2019|publisher=[[Univision]]|quote=The discussion over whether it was a coup falls largely along ideological lines. Left wing supporters of Morales point like to point to a long history of military coups in Latin America, while critics of the former president point to the 14 years he spent in power, in violation of constitutional term limits.&nbsp;... But political experts say the events hardly resemble a classic coup scenario.&nbsp;... In a typical coup, the military usually take a more proactive role, taking up arms against the sitting ruler and installing one of their own in the presidential palace, at least temporarily.}}</ref> Protests to reinstate Morales as president continued becoming highly violent: burning public buses and private houses, destroying public infrastructure and harming pedestrians.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Concejales exigen rigurosidad en la investigación sobre la quema de los 66 buses PumaKatari|work=Concejo Municipal de La Paz |date=21 January 2021|url=https://www.concejomunicipal.bo/2021/01/21/concejales-exigen-rigurosidad-en-la-investigacion-sobre-la-quema-de-los-66-buses-pumakatari/|access-date=26 April 2021|language=es|archive-date=26 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426072523/https://www.concejomunicipal.bo/2021/01/21/concejales-exigen-rigurosidad-en-la-investigacion-sobre-la-quema-de-los-66-buses-pumakatari/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Fiscalía rechaza investigar la quema de buses Pumakatari|url=https://correodelsur.com/seguridad/20201203_fiscalia-rechaza-investigar-la-quema-de-buses-pumakatari.html|access-date=26 April 2021|website=Correo del Sur|language=es|archive-date=26 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426072522/https://correodelsur.com/seguridad/20201203_fiscalia-rechaza-investigar-la-quema-de-buses-pumakatari.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Interrumpen declaración de periodista que denunciaba quema de su casa ante la CIDH|url=http://anp-bolivia.com/interrumpen-declaracion-de-periodista-que-denunciaba-quema-de-su-casa-ante-la-cidh/|access-date=26 April 2021|website=Asociación Nacional de Prensa Boliviana|language=es|archive-date=8 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608150751/https://anp-bolivia.com/interrumpen-declaracion-de-periodista-que-denunciaba-quema-de-su-casa-ante-la-cidh/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Imputan por tres delitos a dos implicados en la quema de la casa de Waldo Albarracín|url=https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/01/24/imputan-por-tres-delitos-a-dos-implicados-en-la-quema-de-la-casa-de-waldo-albarracin/|access-date=26 April 2021|website=La Razón|archive-date=26 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426072522/https://www.la-razon.com/nacional/2020/01/24/imputan-por-tres-delitos-a-dos-implicados-en-la-quema-de-la-casa-de-waldo-albarracin/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Las imágenes de una nueva jornada de violencia y tensión callejera en Bolivia tras la renuncia de Evo Morales|language=es|work=BBC News Mundo|url=https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-50384460|access-date=26 April 2021|archive-date=26 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426072521/https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-50384460|url-status=live}}</ref> The protests were met with more violence by security forces against Morales supporters after Áñez exempted police and military from criminal responsibility in operations for "the restoration of order and public stability".<ref name="Estes 20192">{{Cite news|author=Nick Estes|date=26 November 2019|title=Is Bolivia turning into a rightwing military dictatorship?|work=The Guardian|url=http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/nov/26/bolivia-rightwing-military-dictatorship|access-date=23 October 2020|archive-date=26 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026032602/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/nov/26/bolivia-rightwing-military-dictatorship|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Miranda|first=Boris|date=20 November 2020|title=Crisis en Bolivia: las violentas protestas de partidarios de Evo Morales dejan 6 muertos y críticas a la represión del gobierno interino|url=https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-50484092|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200119124925/https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-50484092|archive-date=19 January 2020|language=es|newspaper=BBC News Mundo}}</ref>

In April 2020, the interim government took out a loan of more than $327&nbsp;million from the [[International Monetary Fund]] to meet the country's needs during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref name="sopitas1802212">{{cite news|last1=Ponce|first1=Erick|date=18 February 2021|title=¿Por qué Bolivia regresó crédito para enfrentar la pandemia de COVID al FMI?|language=es|work=Sopitas.com|url=https://www.sopitas.com/noticias/bolivia-regreso-credito-enfrentar-pandemia-covid-fmi/|access-date=19 February 2021|archive-date=19 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219014736/https://www.sopitas.com/noticias/bolivia-regreso-credito-enfrentar-pandemia-covid-fmi/|url-status=live}}</ref> New elections were scheduled for 3 May 2020. In response to the [[COVID-19 pandemic|coronavirus pandemic]], the Bolivian electoral body, the TSE, made an announcement postponing the election. MAS reluctantly agreed with the first delay only. A date for the new election was delayed twice more, in the face of massive protests and violence.<ref>{{Cite web|date=23 September 2020|title=Bolivia, sumida en la violencia antes de las elecciones|url=https://www.dw.com/es/bolivia-sumida-en-la-violencia-antes-de-las-elecciones/a-55034034|access-date=4 October 2020|website=Deutsche Welle|language=es-ES|archive-date=6 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201006113632/https://www.dw.com/es/bolivia-sumida-en-la-violencia-antes-de-las-elecciones/a-55034034|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=24 March 2020|title=Copa Says Legislative Will Define New Election Date After Quarantine|url=http://www.la-razon.com/nacional/elecciones-presidencia-tse-asamblea_0_3336266412.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200326150254/http://www.la-razon.com/nacional/elecciones-presidencia-tse-asamblea_0_3336266412.html|archive-date=26 March 2020|access-date=26 March 2020|website=La Razon|language=es}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=25 March 2020|title=Parties in the electoral race avoid fixing the date of the elections; await quarantine report|url=http://www.la-razon.com/nacional/elecciones-bolivia-partidos-tse-coronavirus_0_3336866313.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200326150254/http://www.la-razon.com/nacional/elecciones-bolivia-partidos-tse-coronavirus_0_3336866313.html|archive-date=26 March 2020|access-date=26 March 2020|website=La Razon|language=es}}</ref> The final proposed date for the elections was 18 October 2020.<ref>{{cite web|date=8 September 2020|title=La Unión Europea enviará una misión de expertos a las elecciones de Bolivia del 18 de octubre|url=https://www.infobae.com/america/america-latina/2020/09/08/la-union-europea-enviara-una-mision-de-expertos-a-las-elecciones-de-bolivia-del-18-de-octubre/|access-date=10 September 2020|website=infobae|language=es-ES|archive-date=9 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200909222810/https://www.infobae.com/america/america-latina/2020/09/08/la-union-europea-enviara-una-mision-de-expertos-a-las-elecciones-de-bolivia-del-18-de-octubre/|url-status=live}}</ref> Observers from the OAS, UNIORE, and the UN all reported that they found no fraudulent actions in the 2020 elections.<ref>{{Cite web|title=ONU, OEA y Uniore descartan fraude en elecciones generales|url=https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/10/23/onu-oea-uniore-descartan-fraude-en-elecciones-generales-272528.html|access-date=24 October 2020|website=www.paginasiete.bo|language=es|archive-date=14 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414225506/https://www.paginasiete.bo/nacional/2020/10/23/onu-oea-uniore-descartan-fraude-en-elecciones-generales-272528.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The [[2020 Bolivian general election|general election]] had a record voter turnout of 88.4% and ended in a landslide win for MAS which took 55.1% of the votes compared to 28.8% for centrist former president Carlos Mesa. Both Mesa and Áñez conceded defeat.<ref>{{Cite web|date=19 October 2020|title=Morales aide claims victory in Bolivia's election redo|url=https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-bolivia-evo-morales-elections-voting-fraud-and-irregularities-a3a68ec5df5889cc4010d5329603cb20|access-date=19 October 2020|website=AP News|archive-date=20 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201020061433/https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-bolivia-evo-morales-elections-voting-fraud-and-irregularities-a3a68ec5df5889cc4010d5329603cb20|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=23 October 2020|title=How Bolivia's left returned to power months after Morales was forced out|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/23/bolivia-left-return-power-evo-morales-mas|access-date=24 October 2020|website=The Guardian|archive-date=24 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024032405/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/23/bolivia-left-return-power-evo-morales-mas|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Luis Arce presidency (2020–2025) ====
On 8 November 2020, [[Luis Arce]] was sworn in as President of Bolivia alongside his Vice President [[David Choquehuanca]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Bolivia's Arce sworn in as socialists return to power after turbulent year |url=https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20201109-bolivia-s-arce-sworn-in-as-socialists-return-to-power-after-turbulent-year |work=France 24 |date=9 November 2020 |access-date=8 December 2022 |archive-date=8 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221208230256/https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20201109-bolivia-s-arce-sworn-in-as-socialists-return-to-power-after-turbulent-year |url-status=live}}</ref> In February 2021, the Arce government returned an amount of around $351&nbsp;million to the IMF. This comprised a loan of $327&nbsp;million taken out by the interim government in April 2020 and interest of around $24&nbsp;million. The government said it returned the loan to protect Bolivia's economic sovereignty and because the conditions attached to the loan were unacceptable.<ref name="sopitas1802212"/>

On 26 June 2024, a [[2024 Bolivian coup d'état attempt|military coup attempt]] led by [[Juan José Zúñiga]] ended after lasting only 5 hours. In the evening of 26 June, Bolivian police arrested Zúñiga.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ramos |first=Daniel |date=June 26, 2024 |title=Bolivia coup attempt fails after military assault on presidential palace |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bolivias-president-slams-irregular-mobilization-army-units-2024-06-26/ |access-date=June 26, 2024 |website=Reuters}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/bolivian-president-survives-failed-coup-calls-democracy-respected | title=Bolivian president survives failed coup, calls for 'democracy to be respected,' army general arrested | website=[[Fox News]] | date=26 June 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/06/26/americas/bolivia-coup-attempt-claims-intl-latam/index.html | title=Attempted coup in Bolivia fails after president calls on country to mobilize in defense of democracy | website=[[CNN]] | date=26 June 2024}}</ref>

==== 2025 election and Rodrigo Paz presidency (2025–present) ====
{{See also|2025 Bolivian general election}}

In October 2025, [[Rodrigo Paz]] of the centre-right [[Christian Democratic Party (Bolivia)|Christian Democratic Party]] (PDC) won the run-off race of the [[2025 Bolivian general election|election]] against right-wing former president [[Jorge  Quiroga]], meaning the end of governance by the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party and a clear political shift to the right.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rowlands |first1=Lyndal |title=Bolivia elects centre-right Rodrigo Paz as president |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/10/20/bolivia-elects-centre-right-rodrigo-paz-as-president |work=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> 
On 8 November 2025, Rodrigo Paz was sworn in as Bolivia’s new president during Bolivia's worst economic crisis in 40 years.<ref>{{cite news |title=Bolivia’s President Paz sworn in, ties with US to resume at ambassador level |url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251108-bolivia-s-new-president-takes-over-inherits-economic-mess |work=France 24 |date=8 November 2025 |language=en}}</ref>

== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Bolivia}}
[[File:Satellite image of Bolivia in June 2002.jpg|left|thumb|Satellite image of Bolivia: The western region is defined by the [[Andes|Andes Mountains]] and the [[Altiplano]] plateau, whereas the eastern region is characterized by the extensive lowland plains of the [[Amazon basin|Amazon Basin]].]]
Bolivia is located in the central zone of South America, between 57°26'–69°38'W and 9°38'–22°53'S. With an area of {{convert|1098581|km2|sqmi|sp=us}}, Bolivia is the world's 28th-largest country, and the fifth largest country in South America,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2147rank.html | title=Country Comparison :: Area | work=[[The World Factbook]] | publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]] | access-date=12 February 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140209041128/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2147rank.html | archive-date=9 February 2014 | url-status=dead}}</ref> extending from the [[Andes|Central Andes]] through part of the ''[[Gran Chaco]]'', [[Pantanal]] and as far as the [[Amazon rainforest|Amazon]]. The geographic center of the country is the so-called ''Puerto Estrella'' ("Star Port") on the [[Río Grande (Bolivia)|Río Grande]], in [[Ñuflo de Chávez Province]], [[Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia|Santa Cruz Department]].

The geography of the country exhibits a great variety of terrain and climates. Bolivia has a high level of [[biodiversity]],<ref>{{Cite web|date=21 May 2016|title=The top 10 most biodiverse countries|url=https://news.mongabay.com/2016/05/top-10-biodiverse-countries/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219020710/https://news.mongabay.com/2016/05/top-10-biodiverse-countries/|archive-date=19 February 2021|access-date=23 February 2021|website=Mongabay Environmental News|quote=Several countries — Bolivia&nbsp;... narrowly missed the top 10. For some plant and animal groups, some of these countries do make their respective top 10s}}</ref> considered one of the greatest in the world, as well as several [[ecoregion]]s with ecological sub-units such as the ''[[Altiplano]]'', [[tropical rainforest]]s (including [[Amazon rainforest]]), dry [[valley]]s, and the ''[[Chiquitania]]'', which is a [[Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands|tropical savanna]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://birdsofbolivia.org/es/pajareando-en-bolivia/ecorregiones/|title=ECORREGIONES|website=Birds of Bolivia}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Sabanas Abiertas Bien Drenadas de la Chiquitanía y el Beni|lang=es|url=https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.722407/Sabanas_Abiertas_Bien_Drenadas_de_la_Chiquitan%C3%ADa_y_el_Beni|year=2025}}</ref> These areas feature enormous variations in altitude, from an elevation of {{convert|6542|m|ft|sp=us}} above sea level in [[Nevado Sajama]] to nearly {{convert|70|m|ft|sp=us}} along the [[Paraguay River]]. Although a country of great geographic diversity, Bolivia has remained a [[landlocked country]] since the [[War of the Pacific]]. [[Puerto Suárez]], [[San Matías, Santa Cruz|San Matías]] and [[Puerto Quijarro]] are located in the [[Pantanal|Bolivian Pantanal]]. In Bolivia [[forest cover]] is around 47% of the total land area, equivalent to 50,833,760&nbsp;ha of forest in 2020, down from 57,804,720&nbsp;ha in 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 50,771,160&nbsp;ha and planted forest covered 62,600&nbsp;ha. Of the naturally regenerating forest 0% was reported to be [[primary forest]] (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 24% of the forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 100% of the forest area was reported to be under [[State ownership|public ownership]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/a6e225da-4a31-4e06-818d-ca3aeadfd635/content |title=Terms and Definitions FRA 2025 Forest Resources Assessment, Working Paper 194 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |year=2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020, Bolivia |url=https://fra-data.fao.org/assessments/fra/2020/BOL/home/overview |website=Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations}}</ref>

Bolivia can be divided into three [[Physical geography|physiographic]] regions:
*'''The Andean region''' in the southwest spans 28% of the national territory, extending over {{convert|307603|km2|sqmi|sp=us}}. This area is located above {{convert|3000|m|ft|sp=us}} altitude and is located between two big Andean chains, the ''[[Cordillera Occidental (Bolivia)|Cordillera Occidental]]'' ("Western Range") and the ''[[Cordillera Central (Bolivia)|Cordillera Central]]'' ("Central Range"), with some of the highest spots in the Americas such as the [[Nevado Sajama]], with an altitude of {{convert|6542|m|ft|sp=us}}, and the [[Illimani]], at {{convert|6462|m|ft|sp=us}}. Also located in the Cordillera Central is [[Lake Titicaca]], the highest commercially navigable lake in the world and the largest lake in South America;<ref>{{cite web | url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5080/ | title=Lake Titicaca | publisher=[[UNESCO]] | date=17 June 2005 | access-date=12 February 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140217125355/https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5080/ | archive-date=17 February 2014 | url-status=live}}</ref> the lake is shared with Peru. Also in this region are the ''[[Altiplano]]'' and the ''[[Salar de Uyuni]]'', which is the largest [[Salt pan (geology)|salt flat]] in the world and an important source of [[lithium]].
*The '''Sub-Andean region''' in the center and south of the country is an intermediate region between the ''[[Altiplano]]'' and the eastern ''[[Plain|llanos]]'' (plain); this region comprises 13% of the territory of Bolivia, extending over {{convert|142815|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}, and encompassing the Bolivian valleys and the Yungas region. It is distinguished by its farming activities and its temperate climate.
*The '''Llanos region''' in the northeast comprises 59% of the territory, with {{convert|648163|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}. It is located to the north of the Cordillera Central and extends from the Andean foothills to the [[Paraguay River]]. It is a region of flat land and small plateaus, all covered by extensive rain forests containing enormous biodiversity. The region is below {{convert|400|m|ft|sp=us}} above sea level.

=== Geology ===
{{unreferenced section|date=August 2025}}
[[File:Sol de Mañana coloración roja.jpg|thumb|[[Sol de Mañana]] (''Morning Sun'' in Spanish), a geothermal field in [[Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve]], is characterized by intense volcanic activity with [[fumarole]]s and [[geyser]]s, emitting pressurized steam up to 50 meters high.]]The [[geology of Bolivia]] comprises a variety of different [[lithology|lithologies]] as well as [[plate tectonics|tectonic]] and sedimentary environments. On a synoptic scale, geological units coincide with topographical units. Most elementally, the country is divided into a mountainous western area affected by the [[subduction]] processes in the Pacific and an eastern lowlands of stable [[platform (geology)|platforms]] and [[shield (geology)|shields]]. The Bolivian [[Andes]] is divided into three main ranges; these are from west to east: the [[Cordillera Occidental (Bolivia)|Cordillera Occidental]] that makes up the border to [[Chile]] and host several active [[volcano]]es and [[Geothermal activity|geothermal]] areas, [[Cordillera Central (Bolivia)|Cordillera Central]] (in some contexts also called Cordillera Oriental) once extensively mined for [[silver]] and [[tin]] and the relatively low [[Cordillera Oriental (Bolivia)|Cordillera Oriental]] that rather than being a range by its own is the eastern continuation of the Central Cordillera as a [[fold and thrust belt]]. The eastern lowlands and sub-Andean zone in [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]], [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]], and [[Tarija Department]]s was once an old [[Paleozoic]] [[sedimentary basin]] that hosts valuable [[Petroleum reserve|hydrocarbon reserves]]. Further east close to the border with Brazil lies the Guaporé Shield, made up of stable [[Precambrian]] crystalline rock.

=== Climate ===
[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map BOL present.svg|thumb|upright=1.4|Bolivia map of Köppen climate classification<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Beck |first1=Hylke E. |last2=Zimmermann |first2=Niklaus E. |last3=McVicar |first3=Tim R. |last4=Vergopolan |first4=Noemi |last5=Berg |first5=Alexis |last6=Wood |first6=Eric F. |title=Present and future Köppen-Geiger climate classification maps at 1-km resolution |journal=Scientific Data |date=30 October 2018 |volume=5 |article-number=180214 |doi=10.1038/sdata.2018.214|pmid=30375988 |pmc=6207062 |bibcode=2018NatSD...580214B}}</ref>]]The climate of Bolivia varies drastically from one eco-region to the other, from the tropics in the eastern ''[[Plain|llanos]]'' to a [[polar climate]] in the western Andes. The summers are warm, humid in the east and dry in the west, with rains that often modify temperatures, humidity, winds, [[atmospheric pressure]] and evaporation, yielding very different climates in different areas. When the climatological phenomenon known as ''[[El Niño-Southern Oscillation|El Niño]]''<ref>{{cite web |language=es |url=http://www.itdg.org.pe/archivos/desastres/reportemarzo.pdf |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20050308110026/http://www.itdg.org.pe/archivos/desastres/reportemarzo.pdf |archive-date=8 March 2005 |title=Fortalecimiento de las Capacidades locales para enfrentar El Fenómeno del Niño en Peru y Bolivia |publisher=itdg.org.pe |access-date=14 July 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Deja 56 muertos "El Niño" en Bolivia |publisher=El Financiero |url=http://www.elfinanciero.com.mx/ElFinanciero/Portal/cfpages/contentmgr.cfm?docId=48449&docTipo=1&orderby=docid&sortby=ASC |access-date=14 July 2013 |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927001813/http://www.elfinanciero.com.mx/ElFinanciero/Portal/cfpages/contentmgr.cfm?docId=48449&docTipo=1&orderby=docid&sortby=ASC |archive-date=27 September 2007}}</ref> takes place, it causes great alterations in the weather. Winters are very cold in the west, and it snows in the mountain ranges, while in the western regions, windy days are more common. The autumn is dry in the non-tropical regions.
*''Llanos''. A [[Humidity|humid]] [[tropical climate]] with an average temperature of {{convert|25|°C|F}}. The wind coming from the [[Amazon rainforest]] causes significant rainfall. In May, there is low precipitation because of dry winds, and most days have clear skies. Even so, winds from the south, called ''surazos'', can bring cooler temperatures lasting several days.
*''[[Altiplano]]''. [[Desert climate|Desert]]-[[Polar climate|Polar]] climates, with strong and cold winds. The average temperature ranges from 15 to 20&nbsp;°C. At night, temperatures descend drastically to slightly above 0&nbsp;°C, while during the day, the weather is dry and [[Sunlight|solar radiation]] is high. [[Ground frost]]s occur every month, and snow is frequent.
*Valleys and ''Yungas''. [[Temperateness|Temperate]] climate. The humid northeastern winds are pushed to the mountains, making this region very humid and rainy. Temperatures are cooler at higher elevations. Snow occurs at altitudes of {{convert|2000|m|ft|sp=us}}.
*''[[Gran Chaco|Chaco]]''. [[Subtropics|Subtropical]] [[semi-arid climate]]. Rainy and humid in January and the rest of the year, with warm days and cold nights.

=== Impact of climate change ===
[[File:Chacaltaya, Bolivia.jpg|thumb|[[Chacaltaya]] ski resort, [[La Paz Department (Bolivia)|La Paz Department]]]]
Bolivia is especially vulnerable to the negative consequences of [[climate change]]. Twenty percent of the world's tropical [[glacier]]s are located within the country,<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://d1tn3vj7xz9fdh.cloudfront.net/s3fs-public/file_attachments/bolivia-climate-change-adaptation-0911_4.pdf|title=Bolivia Climate change, poverty and adaptation|date=October 2009|publisher=Oxfam International|access-date=12 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222211/https://d1tn3vj7xz9fdh.cloudfront.net/s3fs-public/file_attachments/bolivia-climate-change-adaptation-0911_4.pdf|archive-date=15 December 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> and are more sensitive to change in temperature due to the tropical climate they are located in. Temperatures in the Andes increased by 0.1&nbsp;°C per decade from 1939 to 1998, and more recently the rate of increase has tripled (to 0.33&nbsp;°C per decade from 1980 to 2005),<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Rangecroft|first1=Sally|last2=Harrison|first2=Stephan|last3=Anderson|first3=Karen|last4=Magrath|first4=John|last5=Castel|first5=Ana Paola |last6=Pacheco|first6=Paula|date=November 2013|title=Climate Change and Water Resources in Arid Mountains: An Example from the Bolivian Andes|journal=Ambio|volume=42|issue=7|pages=852–863|doi=10.1007/s13280-013-0430-6 |issn=0044-7447 |pmc=3790128|pmid=23949894|bibcode=2013Ambio..42..852R}}</ref> causing glaciers to recede at an accelerated pace and create unforeseen water shortages in Andean agricultural towns. Farmers have taken to temporary city jobs when there is poor yield for their crops, while others have started permanently leaving the agricultural sector and are migrating to nearby towns for other forms of work;<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Berkes|first1=Fikret|last2=Boillat|first2=Sébastien|date=31 October 2013|title=Perception and Interpretation of Climate Change among Quechua Farmers of Bolivia: Indigenous Knowledge as a Resource for Adaptive Capacity|journal=Ecology and Society|volume=18|issue=4|article-number=art21 |doi=10.5751/ES-05894-180421 |issn=1708-3087|url=http://dlc.dlib.indiana.edu/dlc/bitstream/handle/10535/9194/ES-2013-5894.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|access-date=6 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180721042143/http://dlc.dlib.indiana.edu/dlc/bitstream/handle/10535/9194/ES-2013-5894.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|archive-date=21 July 2018|url-status=live|doi-access=free}}</ref> some view these migrants as the first generation of [[Environmental migrant|climate refugees]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/video/2013/02/05/melting_glaciers_the_slow_disaster_in_the_andes_bolivia|title=Melting glaciers: The Slow Disaster in the Andes|website=World Bank|access-date=12 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180301074847/http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/video/2013/02/05/melting_glaciers_the_slow_disaster_in_the_andes_bolivia|archive-date=1 March 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Cities that are neighbouring agricultural land, like El Alto, face the challenge of providing services to the influx of new migrants; because there is no alternative water source, the city's water source is now being constricted.

Bolivia's government and other agencies have acknowledged the need to instill new policies battling the [[effects of climate change]]. The [[World Bank]] has provided funding through the [[Climate Investment Funds]] (CIF) and are using the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR II) to construct new [[irrigation]] systems, protect riverbanks and basins, and work on building water resources with the help of indigenous communities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2014/07/25/world-bank-fund-climate-change-adaptation-bolivia|title=World Bank to Help Fund Climate Change Adaptation in Bolivia|website=World Bank|access-date=12 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181216030915/http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2014/07/25/world-bank-fund-climate-change-adaptation-bolivia|archive-date=16 December 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Biodiversity ===
[[File:Llamas, Laguna Milluni y Nevado Huayna Potosí (La Paz - Bolivia).jpg|thumb|A herd of [[llama]]s in the Bolivian Andes]]
[[File:Inia geoffrensis boliviensis 9274062.jpg|thumb|The [[Bolivian river dolphin]], the largest freshwater dolphin in the world]]
Bolivia, with an enormous variety of [[organism]]s and [[ecosystem]]s, is part of the "[[Like-Minded Megadiverse Countries]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pe.biosafetyclearinghouse.net/actividades/2009/grouplmmc.pdf|title=Like Minded Megadiverse Countries|access-date=6 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106190738/http://pe.biosafetyclearinghouse.net/actividades/2009/grouplmmc.pdf|archive-date=6 January 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

Bolivia's variable altitudes, ranging from {{convert|90|-|6542|m|ft|sp=us}} above sea level, allow for a vast biologic diversity. The territory of Bolivia comprises four types of [[biome]]s, 32 ecological regions, and 199 ecosystems. Within this geographic area there are several natural parks and reserves such as the [[Noel Kempff Mercado National Park]], the [[Madidi National Park]], the [[Tunari National Park]], the [[Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve]], and the [[Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park and Integrated Management Natural Area]], among others.

Bolivia boasts over 17,000 species of seed plants, including over 1,200 species of [[fern]], 1,500 species of ''[[marchantiophyta]]'' and [[moss]], and at least 800 species of fungus. In addition, there are more than 3,000 species of [[medicinal plant]]s. Bolivia is considered the place of origin for such species as [[Capsicum pubescens|peppers]] and [[Capsicum|chili peppers]], peanuts, the [[Phaseolus vulgaris|common bean]]s, [[Cassava|yucca]], and several species of palm. Bolivia also naturally produces over 4,000 kinds of potatoes. The country had a 2018 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 8.47/10, ranking it 21st globally out of 172 countries.<ref name="FLII-Supplementary">{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M.|title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|issn=2041-1723|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Bolivia has more than 2,900 animal species, including 398 mammals, over 1,400 birds (about 14% of birds known in the world, being the sixth most diverse country in terms of bird species)<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.bolivia.com/noticias/Autonoticias/DetalleNoticia40938.asp | title=Bolivia es el Sexto País con la Mayor Cantidad de Especies de Aves en el Mundo | trans-title=Bolivia is the Sixth Country with the Highest Number of Bird Species in the World | language=es | publisher=Bolivia.com | date=10 June 2009 | access-date=21 February 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140225080900/http://www.bolivia.com/noticias/AutoNoticias/DetalleNoticia40938.asp | archive-date=25 February 2014 | url-status=live}}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=February 2014}}, 204 [[amphibian]]s, 277 reptiles, and 635 fish, all [[fresh water]] fish as Bolivia is a [[landlocked country]]. In addition, there are more than 3,000 types of [[Lepidoptera|butterfly]], and more than 60 [[Domestication|domestic animals]].

In 2020 a new species of snake, the [[mountain fer-de-lance viper]], was discovered in Bolivia.<ref>{{Cite web|author=Aaliyah Harris|title=20 new species found, and lost wildlife rediscovered, in the Bolivian Andes|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/13/americas/new-species-bolivian-andes-spc-intl-scn/index.html|access-date=3 January 2021|website=CNN|date=14 December 2020|archive-date=2 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102172335/https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/13/americas/new-species-bolivian-andes-spc-intl-scn/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Environmental policy ===
[[File:Esto es BOlIVIA.jpg|thumb|[[El Palmar Integrated Management Natural Area|El Palmar Nature Preserve]], in northern Chuquisaca]]
A [[Ministry of Environment and Water (Bolivia)|Ministry of Environment and Water]] was created in 2006 after the election of [[Evo Morales]], who reversed the [[privatization]] of the water distribution sector in the 1990s by President [[Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada]]. The new [[Bolivian constitution|Constitution]], approved by [[2009 Bolivian constitutional referendum|referendum in 2009]], makes access to water a fundamental right. In July 2010, at the initiative of Bolivia, the United Nations passed a resolution recognizing as "fundamental" the "right to safe and clean drinking water".<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=1 August 2020 |title=Bolivia's melting glaciers |url=https://mondediplo.com/2020/08/06bolivia |access-date= |website= |archive-date=26 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230126012504/https://mondediplo.com/2020/08/06bolivia |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Law of the Rights of Mother Earth]] was passed, which accords nature the same rights as humans.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Solon |first=Olivia |date=11 April 2011 |title=Bolivia Grants Nature Same Rights as Humans |newspaper=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-04/11/bolivia-law-of-mother-nature |url-status=dead |access-date=12 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131212174326/http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-04/11/bolivia-law-of-mother-nature |archive-date=12 December 2013}}</ref> The law defines [[Mother Nature|Mother Earth]] as "a collective subject of public interest," declaring both Mother Earth and life-systems (which combine human communities and ecosystems) as titleholders of inherent rights specified in the law.<ref>''[http://www.ftierra.org/ft/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4288:rair&catid=152:cc&Itemid=210 Ley (Corta) de Derechos de Madre Tierra] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704100025/http://www.ftierra.org/ft/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4288:rair&catid=152:cc&Itemid=210 |date=4 July 2015 }}'', December 2010, article 5.</ref> The short law proclaims the creation of the ''Defensoría de la Madre Tierra'' a counterpart to the human rights ombudsman office known as the [[Defensoría del Pueblo del Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia|Defensoría del Pueblo]], but leaves its structuring and creation to future legislation.<ref>''[http://www.ftierra.org/ft/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4288:rair&catid=152:cc&Itemid=210 Ley (Corta) de Derechos de Madre Tierra] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704100025/http://www.ftierra.org/ft/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4288:rair&catid=152:cc&Itemid=210 |date=4 July 2015 }}'', December 2010, article 10.</ref>

==Government and politics==
{{Main|Politics of Bolivia}}
{{Multiple image
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| image1            = Rodrigo Paz, presidente de Bolivia.jpg
| caption1          = [[Rodrigo Paz]]<br />[[President of Bolivia|President]]
| image2            = Edmand Lara 2025 (cropped).jpg
| caption2          = [[Edmand Lara]]<br />[[Vice President of Bolivia|Vice President]]
}}
[[File:New addition to the Plurinational Legislative Assembly.jpg|thumb|Building of the [[Plurinational Legislative Assembly]] in central [[La Paz]]]]
Bolivia has been governed by democratically elected governments since 1982; prior to that, it was governed by various dictatorships. Presidents [[Hernán Siles Zuazo]] (1982–1985) and [[Víctor Paz Estenssoro]] (1985–1989) began a tradition of ceding power peacefully which has continued, although three presidents have stepped down in the face of extraordinary circumstances: [[Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada]] in 2003, [[Carlos Mesa]] in 2005, and [[Evo Morales]] in 2019.

Bolivia's multiparty democracy has seen a wide variety of parties in the presidency and parliament, although the [[Revolutionary Nationalist Movement]], [[Nationalist Democratic Action]], and the [[Revolutionary Left Movement (Bolivia)|Revolutionary Left Movement]] predominated from 1985 to 2005. On 11 November 2019, all senior governmental positions were vacated following [[2019 Bolivian political crisis|the resignation of Evo Morales and his government]]. On 13 November 2019, [[Jeanine Áñez]], a former senator representing Beni, declared herself acting [[President of Bolivia]]. [[Luis Arce]] was president from 2020 to 2025. [[Rodrigo Paz]] was elected on 19 October 2025; he took office as president on 8 November 2025.
[[File:Interior del Palacio de Gobierno.jpg|thumb|Interior of the [[Palacio Quemado]], the former residence and main office for the [[President of Bolivia]]]]
The [[Constitution of Bolivia|constitution]], drafted in 2006–07 and approved in 2009, provides for balanced executive, legislative, judicial, and electoral powers, as well as several levels of autonomy. The traditionally strong executive branch tends to overshadow the [[National Congress of Bolivia|Congress]], whose role is generally limited to debating and approving legislation initiated by the executive. The judiciary, consisting of the [[Supreme Court of Bolivia|Supreme Court]] and departmental and lower courts, has long been riddled with corruption and inefficiency. Through revisions to the constitution in 1994, and subsequent laws, the government has initiated potentially far-reaching reforms in the judicial system as well as increasing decentralizing powers to departments, municipalities, and indigenous territories.

The executive branch is headed by a president and vice president, and consists of a variable number (currently, 20) of government [[Ministry (government department)|ministries]]. The president is elected to a five-year term by [[Direct election|popular vote]], and governs from the Presidential Palace (popularly called the Burnt Palace, {{lang|es|Palacio Quemado}}) in La Paz. In the case that no candidate receives an [[Majority|absolute majority]] of the popular vote or more than 40% of the vote with an advantage of more than 10% over the second-place finisher, a run-off is to be held among the two candidates most voted.<ref name="presidencia.gob.bo"/>

The ''Asamblea Legislativa Plurinacional'' ([[Plurinational Legislative Assembly]] or National Congress) has [[Bicameralism|two chambers]]. The {{Lang|es|Cámara de Diputados}} ([[Chamber of Deputies (Bolivia)|Chamber of Deputies]]) has 130 members elected to five-year terms, 63 from single-member districts (''circunscripciones''), 60 by proportional representation, and seven by the minority indigenous peoples of seven departments. The ''Cámara de Senadores'' ([[Chamber of Senators (Bolivia)|Chamber of Senators]]) has 36 members (four per department). Members of the Assembly are elected to five-year terms. The body has its headquarters on the [[Plaza Murillo]] in La Paz, but also holds honorary sessions elsewhere in Bolivia. The Vice President serves as titular head of the combined Assembly.

The judiciary consists of the [[Supreme Court of Justice (Bolivia)|Supreme Court of Justice]], the [[Plurinational Constitutional Court]], the Judiciary Council, Agrarian and Environmental Court, and District (departmental) and lower courts. In October 2011, Bolivia held its first judicial elections to choose members of the national courts by popular vote, a reform brought about by Evo Morales.

The [[Plurinational Electoral Organ]] is an independent branch of government which replaced the [[National Electoral Court of Bolivia|National Electoral Court]] in 2010. The branch consists of the Supreme Electoral Courts, the nine Departmental Electoral Court, Electoral Judges, the anonymously selected Juries at Election Tables, and Electoral Notaries.<ref>{{Cite news | title = Posesionan a cuatro Vocales del Tribunal Supremo Electoral | work = La Jornada | access-date = 28 April 2011 | date = 16 August 2010 | url = http://www.jornadanet.com/n.php?a=51574-1 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110713121138/http://www.jornadanet.com/n.php?a=51574-1 | archive-date = 13 July 2011 | url-status = dead}}</ref> Wilfredo Ovando presides over the seven-member Supreme Electoral Court. Its operations are mandated by the Constitution and regulated by the Electoral Regime Law (Law 026, passed 2010). The Organ's first elections were the country's first [[Bolivian judicial election, 2011|judicial election]] in October 2011, and five municipal special elections held in 2011.

According to [[International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance|International IDEA]]’s Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Indices and Democracy Tracker, Bolivia performs in the mid-range on overall democratic measures, with particular strengths in civic engagement and electoral participation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bolivia {{!}} The Global State of Democracy |url=https://www.idea.int/democracytracker/country/bolivia |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=www.idea.int |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Global State of Democracy Indices {{!}} The Global State of Democracy |url=https://www.idea.int/democracytracker/gsod-indices |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=www.idea.int}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Home {{!}} The Global State of Democracy |url=https://www.idea.int/democracytracker/ |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=www.idea.int}}</ref>

=== Capital ===
{{multiple image
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| image2            = Plaza Murillo en La Paz - Bolivia.jpg
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| footer            = [[Sucre]] is Bolivia’s constitutional capital and seat of the [[judiciary]], while [[La Paz]] serves as the seat of government and holds the [[Executive (government)|executive]] and [[Legislature|legislative]] branches.
}}
Bolivia has its constitutionally recognized capital in [[Sucre]], while [[La Paz]] is the seat of government. La Plata (now Sucre) was proclaimed the provisional capital of the newly independent Alto Peru (later, Bolivia) on 1 July 1826.<ref name=DicGeo>{{Cite book | publisher = Impr. "Bolívar" de M. Pizarro | author = Sociedad Geográfica Sucre | title = Diccionario geográfico del Departamento de Chuquisaca: contiene datos geográficos, históricos y estadisticos | year = 1903 | pages = 296–97}}</ref> On 12 July 1839, President [[José Miguel de Velasco]] proclaimed a law naming the city as the capital of Bolivia, and renaming it in honor of the revolutionary leader [[Antonio José de Sucre]].<ref name=DicGeo /> The Bolivian seat of government moved to La Paz at the start of the twentieth century as a consequence of Sucre's relative remoteness from economic activity after the decline of [[Potosí]] and its silver industry and of the Liberal Party in the War of 1899.

The [[Constitution of Bolivia|2009 Constitution]] assigns the role of national capital to Sucre, not referring to La Paz in the text.<ref name="presidencia.gob.bo">{{cite web|url=http://www.presidencia.gob.bo/download/constitucion.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090619201729/http://www.presidencia.gob.bo/download/constitucion.pdf |archive-date=19 June 2009 |work=Nueva Constitución Política del Estado |page=4 |quote=I. Sucre is the Capital of Bolivia." |title=Political Constitution of the State, First Part, Title I, Chapter One: Model of State |access-date=14 July 2013}}</ref> In addition to being the constitutional capital, the Supreme Court of Bolivia is located in Sucre, making it the judicial capital. Nonetheless, the [[Palacio Quemado]] (the Presidential Palace and seat of Bolivian [[Executive (government)|executive power]]) is located in La Paz, as are the National Congress and Plurinational Electoral Organ. La Paz thus continues to be the seat of government.

=== Administrative divisions ===
{{Main|Departments of Bolivia|Provinces of Bolivia|Municipalities of Bolivia|Native Community Lands}}
Bolivia has nine departments—[[Pando Department|Pando]], [[La Paz Department (Bolivia)|La Paz]], [[Beni Department|Beni]], [[Oruro Department|Oruro]], [[Cochabamba Department|Cochabamba]], [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]], [[Potosí Department|Potosí]], [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]], [[Tarija Department|Tarija]].

According to what is established by the Bolivian Political Constitution, the Law of Autonomies and Decentralization regulates the procedure for the elaboration of Statutes of Autonomy, the transfer and distribution of direct competences between the central government and the autonomous entities.<ref>Political Constitution of Bolivia, Article 271</ref>

There are four levels of decentralization: 1) Departmental government is constituted by the ''Departmental Assembly'', with rights over the legislation of the department. The department governor is chosen by universal suffrage. 2) Municipal government is constituted by a ''Municipal Council'' which is responsible for legislation of the municipality. The municipality's mayor is chosen by universal suffrage. 3) Regional government is formed by several provinces or municipalities of geographical continuity within a department. It is constituted by a ''Regional Assembly''. 4) Original indigenous government is constituted by [[self-governance]] of original indigenous people on the ancient territories where they live.

{| border="0" cellpadding="3"
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! No. || Department || Capital ||
|-
| 1 || [[Pando Department|Pando]] || [[Cobija]] || rowspan="9" |[[File:Bolivia, administrative divisions - Nmbrs - colored.svg|thumb|upright=1.15|Territorial division of Bolivia]]
|-
| 2 || [[La Paz Department, Bolivia|La Paz]] || [[La Paz]]
|-
| 3 || [[Beni Department|Beni]] || [[Trinidad, Bolivia|Trinidad]]
|-
| 4 || [[Oruro Department|Oruro]] || [[Oruro, Bolivia|Oruro]]
|-
| 5 || [[Cochabamba Department|Cochabamba]] || [[Cochabamba]]
|-
| 6 || [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]] || [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra]]
|-
| 7 || [[Potosí Department|Potosí]] || [[Potosí]]
|-
| 8 || [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]] || [[Sucre]]
|-
| 9 || [[Tarija Department|Tarija]] || [[Tarija, Bolivia|Tarija]]
|}
While Bolivia's administrative divisions have similar status under governmental jurisprudence, each department varies in quantitative and qualitative factors. Generally speaking, Departments can be grouped either by geography or by political-cultural orientation. For example, Santa Cruz, Beni and Pando make up the low-lying "Camba" heartlands of the Amazon, Moxos and Chiquitanía. When considering political orientation, Beni, Pando, Santa Cruz, Tarija are generally grouped for regionalist autonomy movements; this region is known as the "Media Luna". Conversely, La Paz, Oruro, Potosí, Cochabamba have been traditionally associated with Andean politics and culture. Today, Chuquisaca vacillates between the Andean cultural bloc and the Camba bloc.{{citation needed|reason=political-cultural orientations require a reliable source|date=September 2023}}

=== Foreign relations ===
{{Main|Foreign relations of Bolivia}}
[[Foreign relations of Bolivia|Bolivia's foreign relations]] have historically fluctuated since the end of World War II, often aligning with the dominant ideologies of global superpowers—alternating between [[Neoliberalism|neoliberal approaches]] and [[Socialism|socialist]] agendas presented as nationalism.<ref>{{Cite book |year=2023 |editor-last=Dev Bhatta |editor-first=Chandra |editor2-last=Menge |editor2-first=Jonathan |title=Walking Among Giants: Foreign policy and development strategies of small and landlocked countries |url=https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/nepal/20712.pdf#page=169 |access-date=2 August 2025 |publisher=[[Friedrich Ebert Foundation]] |pages=169–174 |format=PDF |publication-place=Kathmandu, Nepal |isbn=978-9937-1-4842-9}}</ref> Over the recent decades, Bolivia has been an active member of [[Trade bloc|regional trade blocs]] such as [[Mercosur]] and has been a founding members of the [[Andean Community|Andean Community of Nations]]. It is also a member of several international organizations such as the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS) and the [[United Nations]].<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2009-08-01 |title=Member State: Bolivia |url=https://www.oas.org/en/member_states/member_state.asp?sCode=BOL |access-date=2025-08-03 |website=www.oas.org |publisher=[[Organization of American States]] |language=en}}</ref>[[File:El Salvador President at Maduro inauguration 2019 02.jpg|thumb|The presidents of Cuba, Bolivia, and El Salvador (from l. to r.) greet [[Nicolás Maduro]] at his second inauguration as Venezuela's president, in [[Caracas]], on 10 January 2019.]]
Bolivia has historically experienced [[Bolivia–Chile relations|stressed relations with Chile]], including the [[Obligation to Negotiate Access to the Pacific Ocean]] (Bolivia v. Chile) international court resolution, but the two countries have agreed to work on improving relations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wehner |first=Leslie E. |date=2011-01-01 |title=Developing Mutual Trust: The Othering Process Between Bolivia and Chile |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/08263663.2011.10817002 |journal=Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies / Revue canadienne des études latino-américaines et caraïbes |volume=36 |issue=71 |pages=109–138 |doi=10.1080/08263663.2011.10817002 |issn=0826-3663|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Although Bolivia lost its [[Litoral Department]], and thus access to its maritime coast, following the [[War of the Pacific]] in 1883, it has historically upheld a state policy asserting a maritime claim over that territory now held by Chile, seeking sovereign access to the [[Pacific Ocean]] and its [[Maritime law|maritime space]]. The issue has also been presented before the [[Organization of American States]]; in 1979, the OAS passed the ''426 Resolution'',<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oas.org/columbus/Bolivia.asp |title=Bolivia |publisher=Oas.org |access-date=14 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130605114445/http://www.oas.org/columbus/Bolivia.asp |archive-date=5 June 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> which declared that the Bolivian problem is a hemispheric problem. On 4 April 1884, a truce was signed with Chile, whereby Chile gave facilities of access to Bolivian products through [[Antofagasta]], and freed the payment of export rights in the port of [[Arica]]. In October 1904, the [[Treaty of Peace and Friendship (1904)|Treaty of Peace and Friendship]] was signed, and Chile agreed to build a [[Arica–La Paz railway|railway between Arica and La Paz]], to improve access of Bolivian products to the ports. In 2018, the maritime dispute with Chile was taken to the [[International Court of Justice]]. The court ruled in support of the Chilean position, and declared that although Chile may have held talks about a Bolivian corridor to the sea, the country was not required to negotiate one or to surrender its territory.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Stephanie van den Berg |author2=Aislinn Laing |date=1 October 2018 |title=World Court: Chile not forced to negotiate over Bolivia sea access |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bolivia-chile-worldcourt/world-court-chile-not-forced-to-negotiate-over-bolivia-sea-access-idUSKCN1MB2YR |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181001200644/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bolivia-chile-worldcourt/world-court-chile-not-forced-to-negotiate-over-bolivia-sea-access-idUSKCN1MB2YR |archive-date=1 October 2018 |access-date=1 October 2018 |work=Reuters}}</ref>

The ''Special Economical Zone for Bolivia in Ilo'' (ZEEBI) is a special economic area of {{convert|5|km|abbr=off|sp=us}} of maritime coast, and a total extension of {{convert|358|ha|abbr=out}}, called Mar Bolivia ("Sea Bolivia"), where Bolivia may maintain a free port near [[Ilo, Peru|Ilo]], Peru under its administration and operation for a period of 99 years starting in 1992; once that time has passed, all the construction and territory revert to the Peruvian government. Since 1964, Bolivia has had its own port facilities in the ''Bolivian Free Port'' in [[Rosario]], Argentina. This port is located on the [[Paraná River]], which is directly connected to the Atlantic Ocean.

In 2018, Bolivia signed the UN [[treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |title=Chapter XXVI: Disarmament&nbsp;– No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons |publisher=United Nations Treaty Collection |date=7 July 2017 |access-date=13 August 2019 |archive-date=6 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806220546/https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=UN nuclear weapon ban treaty now halfway towards entry into force |url=https://www.pressenza.com/2019/08/un-nuclear-weapon-ban-treaty-now-halfway-towards-entry-into-force/ |publisher=Pressenza – International Press Agency |date=6 August 2019 |access-date=13 August 2019 |archive-date=13 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190813073303/https://www.pressenza.com/2019/08/un-nuclear-weapon-ban-treaty-now-halfway-towards-entry-into-force/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Bolivia is the 68th most peaceful country in the world, according to the 2024 [[Global Peace Index]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=2024 Global Peace Index |url=https://www.economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GPI-2024-web.pdf}}</ref>

=== Military ===
[[File:0033FSDF.JPG|thumb|An [[SK-105 Kürassier]] [[tank destroyer]] of the [[Bolivian Army]]]]
The [[Military of Bolivia|Bolivian military]] comprises three branches: [[Bolivian Army|Ejército (Army)]], [[Bolivian Naval Force|Naval (Navy)]] and [[Bolivian Air Force|Fuerza Aérea (Air Force)]].

The Bolivian army has around 31,500 men. There are six military regions (''regiones militares''—RMs) in the army. The army is organized into ten divisions. Although it is landlocked, Bolivia keeps a navy. The [[Bolivian Naval Force]] (''Fuerza Naval Boliviana'' in Spanish) is a naval force about 5,000 strong in 2008.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/aug/28/bolivia | work=The Guardian | location=London | title=Bolivia's landlocked sailors pine for the high seas | first=Rory | last=Carroll | date=28 August 2008 | access-date=26 April 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130902165715/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/aug/28/bolivia | archive-date=2 September 2013 | url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Bolivian Air Force]] ('Fuerza Aérea Boliviana' or "FAB") has nine air bases, located at La Paz, Cochabamba, [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra|Santa Cruz]], [[Puerto Suárez]], [[Tarija, Bolivia|Tarija]], [[Villamontes]], [[Cobija]], [[Riberalta]], and [[Roboré]].

=== Law and crime ===
{{Main|Law enforcement in Bolivia|Crime in Bolivia}}
There are 54 [[prisons in Bolivia]], which incarcerate around 8,700 people {{As of|2010|lc=y}}. The prisons are managed by the Penitentiary Regime Directorate ({{langx|es|Dirección de Régimen Penitenciario|links=no}}). There are 17 prisons in [[Departments of Bolivia|departmental]] capital cities and 36 provincial prisons.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/legacy/advocacy/prisons/americas2.htm|title=Human Rights Watch – Prison Conditions in Latin America and the Caribbean|website=www.hrw.org|access-date=4 September 2018|archive-date=12 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312030744/https://www.hrw.org/legacy/advocacy/prisons/americas2.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Economy ==
{{Main|Economy of Bolivia}}
[[File:Edificios en Cochabamba.jpg|thumb| [[Cochabamba]], is one of the three main economic centers]]

Driven largely by its natural resources Bolivia has become a regional leader in measures of economic growth, fiscal stability and foreign reserves,<ref name="auto3"/> although it remains a historically poor country. Bolivia's estimated 2012 gross domestic product (GDP) totaled $27.43&nbsp;billion at official exchange rate and $56.14&nbsp;billion at purchasing power parity. Despite a series of mostly political setbacks, between 2006 and 2009 the Morales administration spurred growth higher than at any point in the preceding 30 years. The growth was accompanied by a moderate decrease in inequality.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cepr.net/index.php/publications/reports/bolivian-economy-during-morales-administration/|title=Bolivia: The Economy During the Morales Administration|date=December 2009|last1=Weisbrot |first1= Mark|last2=Ray |first2= Rebecca|last3=Johnston |first3= Jake|name-list-style=amp|publisher=CEPR – Center for Economic and Policy Research|access-date=18 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112060441/http://www.cepr.net/index.php/publications/reports/bolivian-economy-during-morales-administration|archive-date=12 November 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> Under Morales, per capita GDP doubled from US$1,182 in 2006 to US$2,238 in 2012. GDP growth under Morales averaged 5 percent a year, and in 2014 only Panama and the Dominican Republic performed better in all of Latin America.<ref name=":1" /> Bolivia's nominal GDP increased from 11.5&nbsp;billion in 2006 to 41&nbsp;billion in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bolivia {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/country/BO|access-date=19 December 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=1 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101002556/https://data.worldbank.org/country/BO|url-status=live}}</ref>

Bolivia in 2014, before a strong decline, boasted the highest proportional rate of financial reserves of any nation in the world, with Bolivia's rainy day fund totaling some US$15&nbsp;billion or nearly two-thirds of total annual GDP, up from a fifth of GDP in 2005.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Progress in Bolivia: Declining the United States Influence and the Victories of Evo Morales|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312406225|access-date=17 December 2020|website=ResearchGate}}</ref>

=== Agriculture ===
{{main|Agriculture in Bolivia}}
{{see also|Bolivian wine}}
[[File:Ivirgarzama, Bolívia´s Puerto Villarroel county.jpg|thumb|[[Ivirgarzama]], an important agricultural region for the cultivation of bananas, citrus fruits, pineapples and rice]]
Agriculture is less relevant in the country's GDP compared to the rest of Latin America. The country produces close to 10 million tons of [[sugarcane]] per year and is the 10th largest producer of [[soybean]] in the world. It also has considerable yields of maize, potato, [[sorghum]], banana, rice, and wheat. The country's largest exports are based on soy (soybean meal and [[soybean oil]]).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/|title=FAOSTAT|website=www.fao.org|access-date=22 July 2022|archive-date=12 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112130804/https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/|url-status=live}}</ref> The culture of [[soy]] was brought by Brazilians to the country: in 2006, almost 50% of soy producers in Bolivia were people from Brazil, or descendants of Brazilians. The first Brazilian producers began to arrive in the country in the 1990s. Before that, there was a lot of land in the country that was not used, or where only subsistence agriculture was practiced.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gazetadopovo.com.br/agronegocio/agricultura/o-brasil-que-planta-na-bolivia-2no8img13bb4xydb3u981ahky/|title=O brasil que planta na Bolívia|first=Giovani|last=Ferreira|website=Gazeta do Povo|access-date=14 July 2022|archive-date=26 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526171314/https://www.gazetadopovo.com.br/agronegocio/agricultura/o-brasil-que-planta-na-bolivia-2no8img13bb4xydb3u981ahky/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Bolivia's most lucrative agricultural product continues to be [[coca]], of which Bolivia is the world's third largest cultivator.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.unodc.org/pdf/andean/Andean_report_Part3.pdf |title=Bolivia Coca Cultivation Survey |access-date=29 July 2022 |archive-date=29 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729011427/https://www.unodc.org/pdf/andean/Andean_report_Part3.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{citation-attribution|1={{Cite web|date=January 2006|title=Country Profile: Bolivia|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/cs/profiles/Bolivia.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/cs/profiles/Bolivia.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live|access-date=5 November 2020|publisher=[[Federal Research Division]], [[Library of Congress]]}}}}</ref>

[[File:Chenopodium quinoa in Cachilaya, Bolivia, Lake Titicaca.JPG|thumb|[[Quinoa]] field near [[Lake Titicaca]]. Bolivia is the world's second largest producer of the crop.]]
The agrarian reform promised by Evo Morales – and approved in a referendum by nearly 80% of the population – has never been implemented. Intended to abolish [[Latifundium|latifundism]] by reducing the maximum size of properties that do not have an "economic and social function" to 5,000 hectares, with the remainder to be distributed among small agricultural workers and landless indigenous people, it was strongly opposed by the Bolivian oligarchy. In 2009, the government gave in to the agribusiness sector, which in return committed to end the pressure it was exerting and jeopardizing until the new constitution was in place.<ref name="auto2">{{cite web |date=2 September 2019 |title=Mérites et limites d'une " révolution " pragmatique |url=https://www.ccef-bolivie.org/post/m%C3%A9rites-et-limites-d-une-r%C3%A9volution-pragmatique |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220629004315/https://www.ccef-bolivie.org/post/m%C3%A9rites-et-limites-d-une-r%C3%A9volution-pragmatique |archive-date=29 June 2022 |access-date=26 March 2022}}</ref>

However, a series of economic reforms and projects have improved the condition of modest peasant families. They received farm machinery, tractors, fertilizers, seeds and breeding stock, while the state built irrigation systems, roads and bridges to make it easier for them to sell their produce in the markets. The situation of many indigenous people and small farmers was regularized through the granting of land titles for the land they were using.<ref name="auto2"/>

In 2007, the government created a "Bank for Productive Development" through which small workers and agricultural producers can borrow easily, at low rates and with repayment terms adapted to agricultural cycles. As a result of improved banking supervision, borrowing rates have been reduced by a factor of three between 2014 and 2019 across all banking institutions for small and medium-sized agricultural producers. In addition, the law now requires banks to devote at least 60% of their resources to productive credits or to the construction of social housing.<ref name="auto2"/>

With the creation of the Food Production Support Enterprise (Emapa), the government sought to stabilize the domestic market for agricultural products by buying the best prices for the production of small and medium-sized farmers, thus forcing agribusinesses to offer them fairer remuneration. According to Vice President [[Álvaro García Linera|Àlvaro García Linera]], "by setting the rules of the game, the State establishes a new balance of power that gives more power to small producers. Wealth is better redistributed to balance the power of the agribusiness sector. This generates stability, which allows the economy to flourish and benefits everyone.<ref name="auto2"/>

=== Mineral resources ===
[[File:Cerro ricco.jpg|thumb|[[Cerro Rico]] in [[Potosí]], an important [[mining]] site since the [[Real Audiencia of Charcas|Spanish colonial]] times, continues to hold economic significance today.]]
Bolivia, while historically renowned for its vast mineral wealth, is relatively under-explored in geological and mineralogical terms. The country is rich in various mineral and natural resources, sitting at the heart of South America in the Central Andes.

Mining is a major sector of the economy, with most of the country's exports being dependent on it.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://oec.world/en/profile/country/bol |title=Bolivia exports by OEC |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=24 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220724113835/https://oec.world/en/profile/country/bol |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2023, the country was the seventh largest world producer of silver;<ref>{{Cite web |title=USGS Silver Production Statistics |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2024/mcs2024.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241220035538/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2024/mcs2024.pdf |archive-date=December 20, 2024 |access-date=December 23, 2024}}</ref> fifth largest world producer of [[tin]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-tin.pdf |title=USGS Tin Production Statistics |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=13 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813153917/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-tin.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[antimony]];<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-antimony.pdf |title=USGS Antimony Production Statistics |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=9 October 2022 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-antimony.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> seventh largest producer of [[zinc]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-zinc.pdf |title=USGS ZincProduction Statistics |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=9 October 2022 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-zinc.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> eighth largest producer of lead,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-lead.pdf |title=USGS Lead Production Statistics |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=15 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515091715/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-lead.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> fourth largest world producer of [[boron]];<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-boron.pdf |title=USGS Boron Production Statistics |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=18 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210718104325/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-boron.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> and the sixth largest world producer of [[tungsten]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-tungsten.pdf |title=USGS Tungsten Production Statistics |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=5 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210705141418/https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021-tungsten.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> The country also has considerable gold production, which varies close to 25 tons/year, and also has [[amethyst]] extraction.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/bolivia/gold-production |title=Bolivia Gold Production |access-date=24 July 2022 |archive-date=19 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221019082941/https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/bolivia/gold-production |url-status=live}}</ref> The country's gold production in 2015 is 12 metric tons.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gold production |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/gold-production?tab=table |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129233804/https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/gold-production?tab=table |archive-date=29 November 2023 |access-date=2024-12-19 |website=Our World in Data |url-status=live }}</ref> [[File:Lithium mine at Bolivia´s Uyuni Salt Flat, on a CBERS4 MUX yesterday´s image.jpg|thumb|[[Lithium]] mine in the [[Salar de Uyuni]]]]Bolivia has the world's largest lithium reserves, second largest antimony reserves, third largest iron ore reserves, sixth largest tin reserves, ninth largest lead, silver, and copper reserves, tenth largest zinc reserves, and undisclosed but productive reserves of gold and tungsten. Additionally, there is believed to be considerable reserves of uranium and nickel present in the country's largely under-explored eastern regions. Diamond reserves may also be present in some formations of the Serranías Chiquitanas in [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz Department]].

Bolivia has the second largest natural gas reserves in South America.<ref>{{cite news |date=10 September 2008 |title=Anti-Morales protests hit Bolivia |work=BBC News |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7607158.stm |url-status=live |access-date=30 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327011113/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7607158.stm |archive-date=27 March 2010}}</ref> Its natural gas exports bring in millions of dollars per day, in royalties, rents, and taxes.<ref name="auto3">{{Cite book |last=Gustafson |first=Bret |title=Bolivia in the Age of Gas |publisher=Duke University Press |year=2020 |isbn=978-1-4780-1099-9 |pages=10}}</ref> From 2007 to 2017, what is referred to as the "government take" on gas totaled approximately $22&nbsp;billion.<ref name="auto3" />

The government held a binding referendum in 2005 on the Hydrocarbon Law. Among other provisions, the law requires that companies sell their production to the state hydrocarbons company [[YPFB|Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos]] (YPFB) and for domestic demand to be met before exporting hydrocarbons and increased the state's royalties from natural gas.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bolivia – Hydrocarbons {{!}} export.gov |url=https://legacy.export.gov/article?id=Bolivia-Hydrocarbons |access-date=28 June 2022 |website=legacy.export.gov |archive-date=8 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220808230209/https://legacy.export.gov/article?id=Bolivia-Hydrocarbons |url-status=live}}</ref> The passage of the Hydrocarbon law in opposition to then-President [[Carlos Mesa]] can be understood as part of the [[Bolivian gas conflict]] which ultimately resulted in election of [[Evo Morales]], Bolivia's first indigenous president.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gustafson |first=Bret |title=Bolivia in the Age of Gas |publisher=Duke University Press |year=2020 |isbn=978-1-4780-1099-9 |pages=2}}</ref>
The [[United States Geological Survey|US Geological Service]] estimates that Bolivia has 21 million tonnes of [[lithium]], which represent at least 25% of world reserves – the largest in the world. However, to mine for it would involve disturbing the country's salt flats (called [[Salar de Uyuni]]), an important natural feature which boosts tourism in the region. The government does not want to destroy this unique natural landscape to meet the rising world demand for lithium.<ref>{{cite news |date=10 September 2008 |title=Bolivia's lithium mining dilemma |work=BBC News |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7607624.stm |url-status=live |access-date=26 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414021531/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7607624.stm |archive-date=14 April 2009}}</ref> On the other hand, sustainable extraction of lithium is attempted by the government. This project is carried out by the public company "Recursos Evaporíticos" subsidiary of [[Corporación Minera de Bolivia|COMIBOL]].

===Tourism===
[[File:Salar de Uyuni-5 (53641294827).jpg|thumb|The [[Salar de Uyuni]] is the world's largest salt flat. Known for its vast white landscape, it becomes specially stunning during the rainy season.]]{{Main|Tourism in Bolivia}}
Tourism in Bolivia is one of the key [[Economy of Bolivia|economic sectors of the country]]. According to data from the [[National Institute of Statistics of Bolivia]] (INE), there were over 1.24 million [[Tourism|tourists]] that visited the country in 2020, making Bolivia the ninth most visited country in [[South America]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=International tourism, number of arrivals - Bolivia |url=https://data.worldbank.org/ |access-date=2023-07-17 |website=World Bank Open Data}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-07-10 |title=The 11 Most Visited Countries in South America |url=https://worldlyadventurer.com/most-visited-countries-south-america/ |access-date=2023-07-17 |website=Worldly Adventurer}}</ref> The income from tourism has become increasingly important. [[Tourism in Bolivia|Bolivia's tourist industry]] has placed an emphasis on attracting ethnic diversity.<ref name="Xie2011">{{cite book|author=Philip Feifan Xie|title=Authenticating Ethnic Tourism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vi7XBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1|year=2011|publisher=Channel View Publications|isbn=978-1-84541-157-2|page=1|access-date=10 October 2020|archive-date=29 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129011551/https://books.google.com/books?id=vi7XBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> According to data from the [[National Institute of Statistics of Bolivia]], the country received around two million tourists in 2023, approximately one million were foreign nationals, while the remaining were domestic ones:<ref name=":0">{{cite web |date=2024 |title=Bolivia - Llegada de visitantes internacionales, según nacionalidad, por año y mes 2008 - 2024 |trans-title=International arrivals according to nationality, by year and month 2008-2024 |url=https://www.ine.gob.bo/index.php/estadisticas-economicas/turismo/estadisticas-de-flujo-de-visitantes-cuadros-estadisticos/ |access-date=2024-08-13 |website=[[National Institute of Statistics of Bolivia]] |publisher=Ministerio de Planificación del Desarrollo |language=es |format=XLS}}</ref> The most visited places include [[Nevado Sajama]], [[Torotoro National Park]], [[Madidi National Park]], [[Tiwanaku]] and the city of [[La Paz]].

The best known of the various festivals found in the country is the "[[Carnaval de Oruro]]", which was among the first 19 "[[Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity]]", as proclaimed by UNESCO in May 2001.<ref name="protection">{{cite web|title=UNESCO to Protect Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity|url=http://www.unesco.org/bpi/eng/unescopress/2000/00-48e.shtml|publisher=UNESCO Press|date=10 May 2000|access-date=5 September 2009|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304094951/http://www.unesco.org/bpi/eng/unescopress/2000/00-48e.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Transport ===
{{Main|Transport in Bolivia}}

====Roads====
Bolivia's [[Yungas Road]] was called the "world's most dangerous road" by the [[Inter-American Development Bank]], called ({{lang|es|El Camino de la Muerte}}) in Spanish.<ref>{{cite news |title=At least 14 people killed in Bolivia landslides |work=Al Jazeera |access-date=5 August 2019 |date=6 February 2019 |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/02/14-people-killed-bolivia-landslides-190206084033483.html |archive-date=5 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805180814/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/02/14-people-killed-bolivia-landslides-190206084033483.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The northern portion of the road, much of it unpaved and without guardrails, was cut into the [[Cordillera Oriental (Bolivia)|Cordillera Oriental Mountain]] in the 1930s. The fall from the narrow {{convert|12|ft|m}} path is as much as {{convert|2000|ft|m}} in some places and due to the humid weather from the [[Amazon rainforest|Amazon]] there are often poor conditions like mudslides and falling rocks.<ref>{{cite web | title=A Terrifying Tour of the World's Most Dangerous Road, North Yungas | work=Slate | access-date=5 August 2019 | date=24 October 2013 | url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/atlas_obscura/2013/10/24/a_terrifying_tour_of_the_world_s_most_dangerous_road_north_yungas_in_bolivia.html | archive-date=5 August 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805171417/http://www.slate.com/blogs/atlas_obscura/2013/10/24/a_terrifying_tour_of_the_world_s_most_dangerous_road_north_yungas_in_bolivia.html | url-status=live}}</ref> Each year over 25,000 bikers cycle along the {{convert|40|mi|km}} road. In 2018, an Israeli woman was killed by a falling rock while cycling on the road.<ref>{{cite news|title=Falling rock kills Israeli cyclist on Bolivia's 'Death Road'|work=Jewish Telegraphic Agency|date=15 November 2018|access-date=5 August 2019|url=https://www.jta.org/2018/11/15/global/falling-rock-kills-israeli-cyclist-riding-bolivias-death-road|archive-date=5 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805171415/https://www.jta.org/2018/11/15/global/falling-rock-kills-israeli-cyclist-riding-bolivias-death-road|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Apolo, La Paz|Apolo]] road goes deep into [[La Paz]]. Roads in this area were originally built to allow access to mines located near [[Charazani]]. Other noteworthy roads run to [[Coroico]], [[Sorata]], the [[Zongo Valley]] ([[Illimani]] mountain), and along the [[Cochabamba Department|Cochabamba]] highway ({{lang|es|carretera}}).<ref>{{cite book | last=Bradt | first=Hilary | title=Peru and Bolivia | date=2002 | publisher=Bradt Travel Guides | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2RQuxpT2y-MC&pg=PA395 | isbn=978-1-84162-033-6 | access-date=10 October 2020 | archive-date=29 November 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129011449/https://books.google.com/books?id=2RQuxpT2y-MC&pg=PA395#v=onepage&q&f=false | url-status=live}}</ref> According to researchers with the [[Center for International Forestry Research]] (CIFOR), Bolivia's road network was still underdeveloped as of 2014. In lowland areas of Bolivia there is less than {{convert|2000|km|m|sp=us}} of paved road. There have been some recent investments; [[animal husbandry]] has expanded in [[Guayaramerín]], which might be due to a new road connecting Guayaramerín with [[Trinidad, Bolivia|Trinidad]].<ref>{{cite book|title = The context of deforestation and forest degradation in Bolivia|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=FRIbBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA19|page = 19|access-date = 5 August 2019|date = 2014|isbn = 978-602-1504-39-0|last1 = Müller|first1 = Robert|last2 = Pacheco|first2 = Pablo|last3 = Montero|first3 = Juan Carlos|publisher = CIFOR|archive-date = 29 November 2023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231129011450/https://books.google.com/books?id=FRIbBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA19#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status = live}}</ref> The country only opened its first [[Dual carriageway|duplicated highway]] in 2015: a 203&nbsp;km stretch between the capital La Paz and Oruro.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://economia.estadao.com.br/blogs/retratos-da-economia/bolivia-ganha-sua-primeira-rodovia-duplicada/|title=Bolívia ganha sua primeira rodovia duplicada|access-date=14 July 2022|archive-date=1 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701013459/https://economia.estadao.com.br/blogs/retratos-da-economia/bolivia-ganha-sua-primeira-rodovia-duplicada/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Air ====
{{See also|List of airlines of Bolivia|List of airports in Bolivia}}
[[File:Aviones de BoA en Cochabamba.jpg|thumb|[[Boliviana de Aviación]] (BoA) is a state-owned company and the country's largest airline. Two BoA Boeing 737-300s parked at [[Jorge Wilstermann International Airport]].]]
The General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics (Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil—DGAC), formerly part of the FAB, administers a civil aeronautics school called the National Institute of Civil Aeronautics (Instituto Nacional de Aeronáutica Civil—INAC), and two commercial air transport services, TAM and TAB.

[[TAM – Transporte Aéreo Militar]] (the Bolivian Military Airline) was an airline based in La Paz, Bolivia. It was the civilian wing of the 'Fuerza Aérea Boliviana' (the Bolivian Air Force), operating passenger services to remote towns and communities in the North and Northeast of Bolivia. TAM (a.k.a. TAM Group 71) has been a part of the FAB since 1945. The airline suspended its operations since September 2019.<ref name="TAM">{{cite web |author1=Helen Coffey |title=The airlines that have stopped flying in 2019 |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/airlines-bankrupt-stop-flying-flight-thomas-cook-flybe-adria-a9242741.html |website=independent.co.uk |publisher=[[The Independent]] |access-date=13 May 2024 |date=12 December 2019 |archive-date=13 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240513155218/https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/airlines-bankrupt-stop-flying-flight-thomas-cook-flybe-adria-a9242741.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Boliviana de Aviación]], often referred to as simply BoA, is the flag carrier airline of Bolivia and is wholly owned by the country's government.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.boa.bo/ |title=Boliviana de Aviación |publisher=Boliviana de Aviación |access-date=18 December 2019 |archive-date=5 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205082025/https://www.boa.bo/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

A private airline serving regional destinations is [[Línea Aérea Amaszonas]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.amaszonas.com |title=Amaszonas |publisher=Amaszonas |access-date=30 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100804030849/http://www.amaszonas.com/ |archive-date=4 August 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref> with services including some international destinations.

Although a civil transport airline, [[TAB – Transportes Aéreos Bolivianos]], was created as a subsidiary company of the FAB in 1977. It is subordinate to the Air Transport Management (Gerencia de Transportes Aéreos) and is headed by an FAB general. TAB, a charter heavy cargo airline, links Bolivia with most countries of the [[Western Hemisphere]]; its inventory includes a fleet of Hercules C130 aircraft. TAB is headquartered adjacent to [[El Alto International Airport]]. TAB flies to Miami and [[Houston]], with a stop in Panama.

The three largest and main international airports in Bolivia are [[El Alto International Airport]] in La Paz, [[Viru Viru International Airport]] in Santa Cruz, and [[Jorge Wilstermann International Airport]] in Cochabamba. There are regional airports in other cities that connect to these three hubs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://boliviamia.net/bolivia-aeropuertos |title=Aeropuertos en Bolivia |publisher=Aeropuertos en Bolivia |access-date=18 December 2019 |archive-date=15 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215173718/https://boliviamia.net/bolivia-aeropuertos |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Technology ===
Bolivia owns a [[communications satellite]] which was [[Offshore company|offshored/outsourced]] and launched by China, named [[Túpac Katari 1]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://berc.berkeley.edu/nearly-forgotten-nuclear-power-in-latin-america/ |title=Nearly Forgotten – Nuclear Power in Latin America |website=BERC |author=Santiago Miret |date=5 November 2014|access-date=5 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220095142/http://berc.berkeley.edu/nearly-forgotten-nuclear-power-in-latin-america/|archive-date=20 December 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2015, it was announced that electrical power advancements include a planned $300&nbsp;million nuclear reactor developed by the Russian nuclear company [[Rosatom]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/29/bolivia-nuclear-complex-reactor-russia-environment|title=Bolivia plans to build $300m nuclear complex with research reactor|agency=AFP |date=29 October 2015|website=The Guardian|access-date=5 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221052549/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/29/bolivia-nuclear-complex-reactor-russia-environment|archive-date=21 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Bolivia was ranked 100th in the [[Global Innovation Index]] in 2024,<ref>{{Cite book |author=[[World Intellectual Property Organization]] |year=2024 |title=Global Innovation Index 2024: Unlocking the Promise of Social Entrepreneurship |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2024/en/ |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=www.wipo.int |page=18 |publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization |doi=10.34667/tind.50062 |isbn=978-92-805-3681-2}}</ref> but dropped to rank 111 in the index of 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bolivia ranking in the Global Innovation Index 2025|url=https://www.wipo.int/gii-ranking/en/bolivia-plurinational-state-of-|access-date=2025-10-22 |website=www.wipo.int|language=en}}</ref>

==== Water supply and sanitation ====
{{Main|Water supply and sanitation in Bolivia}}
Bolivia's drinking water and [[sanitation]] coverage has greatly improved since 1990 due to a considerable increase in sectoral investment. However, the country has the continent's lowest coverage levels and services are of low quality. Political and institutional instability have contributed to the weakening of the sector's institutions at the national and local levels.

Two concessions to foreign private companies in two of the three largest cities – [[Cochabamba]] and [[La Paz]]/[[El Alto]] – were prematurely ended in 2000 and 2006 respectively. The country's second largest city, [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra]], manages its own water and sanitation system relatively successfully by way of cooperatives. The government of [[Evo Morales]] intends to strengthen citizen participation within the sector. Increasing coverage requires a substantial increase of investment financing.

According to the government, the main issues in the sector are low access to sanitation throughout the country, low access to water in rural areas, insufficient and ineffective investments, low visibility of community service providers, a lack of respect of indigenous customs, "technical and institutional difficulties in the design and implementation of projects," a lack of capacity to operate and maintain infrastructure, an institutional framework that is "not consistent with the political change in the country," "ambiguities in the social participation schemes," a reduction in the quantity and quality of water due to climate change, pollution and a lack of integrated water resources management, and the lack of policies and programs for the reuse of wastewater.<ref name="PNSB">Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia:[http://www.mmaya.gob.bo/documentos/pnsb_final.pdf Plan Nacional de Saneamiento Basico 2008–2015] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130228092846/http://www.mmaya.gob.bo/documentos/pnsb_final.pdf |date=28 February 2013}}, retrieved on 30 September 2010</ref>

Only 27% of the population has access to [[improved sanitation]], 80 to 88% has access to [[improved water source]]s. Coverage in urban areas is bigger than in rural ones.<ref name="JMP">[http://www.wssinfo.org/about-the-jmp/introduction/ JMP 2010 Estimates for Bolivia] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110110338/http://www.wssinfo.org/about-the-jmp/introduction/ |date=10 November 2010}}. The estimates are based on the Household Survey (2005), the Bolivia Democratic and Health Survey (2008) and other surveys.</ref>

== Demographics ==
{{main|Demographics of Bolivia}}
[[File:Bolivia Population Density, 2000 (5457617916).jpg|thumb|Population density (2000)]]
According to the last two censuses carried out by the Bolivian National Statistics Institute ''(Instituto Nacional de Estadística'', INE), the population increased from 8,274,325 (from which 4,123,850 were men and 4,150,475 were women) in 2001 to 10,059,856 in 2012.<ref name="Cen2012">{{cite web | url=http://www.ine.gob.bo:8081/censo2012/PDF/resultadosCPV2012.pdf | title=Principales resultados del censo nacional de población y vivienda 2012 (CNPV 2012) – Estado plurinacional de Bolivia | publisher=Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) | date=July 2013 | access-date=8 August 2013 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140209134921/http://www.ine.gob.bo:8081/censo2012/PDF/resultadosCPV2012.pdf | archive-date=9 February 2014}}</ref>

In the last fifty years the Bolivian population has tripled, reaching a population growth rate of 2.25%. The growth of the population in the inter-census periods (1950–1976 and 1976–1992) was approximately 2.05%, while between the last period, 1992–2001, it reached 2.74% annually.

Some 67.49% of Bolivians live in urban areas, while the remaining 32.51% live in rural areas. The most part of the population (70%) is concentrated in the departments of [[La Paz Department (Bolivia)|La Paz]], [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]] and [[Cochabamba Department|Cochabamba]]. In the [[Andes|Andean]] [[Altiplano]] region the departments of La Paz and [[Oruro Department|Oruro]] hold the largest percentage of population, in the valley region the largest percentage is held by the departments of Cochabamba and [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]], while in the Llanos region by Santa Cruz and [[Beni Department|Beni]]. At national level, the population density is 8.49, with variations marked between 0.8 ([[Pando Department]]) and 26.2 (Cochabamba Department).

The largest population center is located in the so-called "central axis" and in the Llanos region. Bolivia has a young population. According to the 2011 census, 59% of the population is between 15 and 59 years old, 39% is less than 15 years old. Almost 60% of the population is younger than 25 years of age.

=== Largest cities and towns ===

{{See also|List of cities and largest towns in Bolivia}}

Approximately 69% of Bolivians live in urban areas,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Población |url=https://cpv2024.ine.gob.bo/index.php/resultados/resultados-demografia-demografia/resultados-demografia-poblacion/ |access-date=28 December 2025 |website=Censo 2024 |language=es}}</ref><ref name="factbook">{{cite web |title=Country Comparison :: Life Expectancy at Birth |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html?countryname=Bolivia&countrycode=bl&regionCode=soa&rank=161#bl |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221172631/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html?countryname=Bolivia&countrycode=bl&regionCode=soa&rank=161#bl |archive-date=21 February 2014 |access-date=11 February 2014 |work=[[The World Factbook]] |publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]}}</ref> among the lowest proportion in South America. Nevertheless, the rate of urbanization is growing steadily, at around 2.5% annually. According to the 2024 census, there are total of 4,125,627 households in Bolivia.<ref name="Cen2012" /> In 2024, 84.7% of homes were classified as a house, hut, or [[Pahuichi]]; 6.1% were apartments; 8.2% were a single room or detached room; 0.6% were in an improvised dwellings and 0.1% were a non-residential structure not originally intended for housing.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vivienda y Hogar |url=https://cpv2024.ine.gob.bo/index.php/resultados/vivienda-hogar-y-servicios/resultados-vivienda-hogar-y-servicios-vivienda-hogar/ |access-date=28 December 2025 |website=Censo 2024 |language=es}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Bolivia: Hogares por Tipo y Tenencia de la Vivienda, Según Área Geográfica, 2000 – 2009 |trans-title=Bolivia: Households by Type and Tenure, According to Geographic Area, 2000 – 2009 |url=http://www.ine.gob.bo/indicadoresddhh/vivi4.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113183010/http://www.ine.gob.bo/indicadoresddhh/vivi4.asp |archive-date=13 November 2013 |access-date=28 January 2014 |publisher=[[National Institute of Statistics of Bolivia]]}}</ref> Most of the country's largest cities are located in the highlands of the west and central regions.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120607143527/http://esa.un.org/unpd/wup/CD-ROM/Urban-Rural-Population.htm World Urbanization Prospects, the 2011 Revision]. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs</ref>

{{Largest cities of Bolivia}}

=== Ethnic groups ===
{{Pie chart
| thumb = right
| caption = Racial groups in Bolivia (2012 census)<ref name="Censo 2012 Bolivia">{{cite web |url=https://bolivia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Caracteristicas_de_Poblacion_2012.pdf#page=105 |title=Características de la Población – Censo 2012 |trans-title=Population Characteristics – 2012 Census |page=103 |access-date=30 April 2021 |publisher=Instituto Nacional de Estadística |language=es |archive-date=30 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210430223857/https://bolivia.unfpa.org/sites/default/files/pub-pdf/Caracteristicas_de_Poblacion_2012.pdf#page=105 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| label1 = Undeclared
| value1 = 59.19
| color1 = White
| label2 = [[Indigenous peoples in Bolivia|Indigenous]]
| value2 = 40.58
| color2 = #BE7343
| label3 = [[Afro-Bolivians|Blacks]]
| value3 = 0.23
| color3 = #62402F
}}

The vast majority of Bolivians are [[mestizo]] (with the indigenous component higher than the European one{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}), although the government has not included the cultural self-identification "mestizo" in the November 2012 census.<ref>{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=Bolivia|access-date=8 October 2018|year=2018}}</ref> There are approximately three dozen native groups totaling approximately half of the Bolivian population – the largest proportion of indigenous people in the Americas. A 2009 estimate of racial classification put mestizo (mixed White and Amerindian) at 68%, indigenous at 20%, white at 5%, [[cholo#Bolivia|cholo]] at 2%, black at 1%, other at 4%, while 2% were unspecified; 44% attributed themselves to some indigenous group, predominantly the linguistic categories of [[Quechuas]] or [[Aymara people|Aymaras]].<ref name="cia">{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=Bolivia| access-date=25 March 2017 |year=2017}}</ref> [[White Latin Americans|White Bolivians]] comprised about 14% of the population in 2006, and are usually concentrated in the largest cities: [[La Paz]], [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra]] and [[Cochabamba]], but as well as in some minor cities like [[Tarija]] and [[Sucre]]. The ancestry of whites and the white ancestry of mestizos lies within Europe and the Middle East, most notably Spain, Italy, Germany, Croatia, Lebanon and Syria. In the [[Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia|Santa Cruz Department]], there are several dozen colonies of German-speaking [[Russian Mennonite|Mennonites from Russia]] totaling around 40,000 inhabitants ({{As of|2012|lc=y}}).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/21/world/americas/21bolivia.html |title=Bolivian Reforms Raise Anxiety on Mennonite Frontier |newspaper=The New York Times|date=21 December 2006 |access-date=14 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130622233205/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/21/world/americas/21bolivia.html |archive-date=22 June 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Afro-Bolivian]]s, descendants of [[Atlantic slave trade|African slaves]] who arrived in the time of the [[Spanish Empire]], inhabit the [[La Paz Department, Bolivia|department of La Paz]], and are located mainly in the provinces of [[Nor Yungas Province|Nor Yungas]] and [[Sud Yungas Province|Sud Yungas]]. Slavery was abolished in Bolivia in 1831.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Fogel|first1=Robert William|last2=Engerman|first2=Stanley L.|title=Time on the Cross: The Economics of American Negro Slavery|year=1995|publisher=W W Norton & Company Incorporated|isbn=978-0-393-31218-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/timeoncross00robe/page/33 33–34] |url=https://archive.org/details/timeoncross00robe/page/33}}</ref> There are also important communities of [[Japanese Bolivians|Japanese]] (14,000<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/area/bolivia/data.html|title=ボリビア多民族国（The Plurinational State of Bolivia）|website=外務省|access-date=8 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161215233037/http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/area/bolivia/data.html|archive-date=15 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>) and Lebanese (12,900<ref>{{cite web |url=http://theidentitychef.com/2009/09/06/lebanese-diaspora-worldwide-geographical-distribution/ |title=Geographical Distribution of the Lebanese Diaspora |work=The Identity Chef |access-date=8 January 2017 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630102504/http://theidentitychef.com/2009/09/06/lebanese-diaspora-worldwide-geographical-distribution/ |archive-date=30 June 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>).

[[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Indigenous peoples]], also called ''"originarios"'' ("native" or "original") and less frequently, ''Amerindians'', could be categorized by geographic area, such as [[Andes|Andean]], like the [[Aymara people|Aymaras]] and [[Quechua people|Quechuas]] (who formed the ancient [[Inca Empire]]), who are concentrated in the western departments of [[La Paz Department, Bolivia|La Paz]], [[Potosí Department|Potosí]], [[Oruro Department|Oruro]], [[Cochabamba Department|Cochabamba]] and [[Chuquisaca Department|Chuquisaca]]. There also are ethnic populations in the east, composed of the [[Chiquitano]], [[Chané]], [[Guaraní people|Guaraní]] and [[Moxo people|Moxo]]s, among others, who inhabit the departments of [[Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia|Santa Cruz]], [[Beni Department|Beni]], [[Tarija Department|Tarija]] and [[Pando Department|Pando]].

There are small numbers of European citizens from Germany, France, Italy and Portugal, as well as from other countries of the Americas, as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, the United States, Paraguay, Peru, Mexico and Venezuela, among others. There are important Peruvian colonies in [[La Paz]], [[El Alto]] and [[Santa Cruz de la Sierra]].

There are around 140,000 [[Mennonites in Bolivia]] of [[Frisians|Frisian]], Flemish and German ethnic origins.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/pdt|title=Plautdietsch|access-date=20 May 2019|archive-date=2 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402192648/https://www.ethnologue.com/language/pdt|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bolivia&oldid=103617|title=Bolivia|access-date=20 May 2019|archive-date=21 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021153847/https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bolivia&oldid=103617|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Language ===
{{main|Languages of Bolivia}}

Bolivia has great linguistic diversity as a result of its [[multiculturalism]]. The [[Constitution of Bolivia]] recognizes 36 official languages besides Spanish: [[Aymara language|Aymara]], [[Araona language|Araona]], [[Baure language|Baure]], [[Bésiro language|Bésiro]], [[Canichana language|Canichana]], [[Cavineño language|Cavineño]], [[Cayubaba language|Cayubaba]], [[Chácobo language|Chácobo]], [[Chimán language|Chimán]], [[Ese Ejja language|Ese Ejja]], [[Guaraní language|Guaraní]], [[Guarasuawe language|Guarasu'we]], [[Guarayu language|Guarayu]], [[Itonama language|Itonama]], [[Leco language|Leco]], [[Machajuyai-Kallawaya]], [[Machineri language|Machineri]], [[Maropa language|Maropa]], [[Mojeño-Ignaciano]], [[Mojeño-Trinitario]], [[Moré language (Bolivia)|Moré]], [[Mosetén language|Mosetén]], [[Movima language|Movima]], [[Pacawara language|Pacawara]], [[Puquina language|Puquina]], [[Quechua language|Quechua]], [[Sirionó language|Sirionó]], [[Tacana language|Tacana]], [[Tapieté language|Tapieté]], [[Toromona language|Toromona]], [[Uru-Chipaya]], [[Weenhayek language|Weenhayek]], [[Yaminawa language|Yaminawa]], [[Yuki language (Bolivia)|Yuki]], [[Yuracaré language|Yuracaré]], and [[Zamuco language|Zamuco]].<ref name="languages">{{cite web|url=http://bolivia.justia.com/nacionales/nueva-constitucion-politica-del-estado/primera-parte/titulo-i/capitulo-primero/|title=Nueva Constitución Política Del Estado > PRIMERA PARTE > TÍTULO I > CAPÍTULO PRIMERO > Modelo De Estado: Ley de Bolivia |language=es-ES |website=JUSTIA Bolivia |access-date=24 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170225051614/http://bolivia.justia.com/nacionales/nueva-constitucion-politica-del-estado/primera-parte/titulo-i/capitulo-primero/|archive-date=25 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

Spanish is the most spoken official language in the country, according to the 2001 census; as it is spoken by two-thirds of the population. All legal and official documents issued by the State, including the Constitution, the main private and public institutions, the media, and commercial activities, are in Spanish.

The main indigenous languages of the population above 4 years old are: [[Quechua language|Quechua]] (13.1% of the population in the 2024 census), [[Aymara language|Aymara]] (7.3%), [[Guarani language|Guarani]] (0.4%) and others (0.4%) including the [[Moxos language|Moxos]] in the department of Beni.<ref name="cia"/>

[[Plautdietsch]], a [[German dialects|German dialect]], is spoken by about 70,000 [[Mennonites in Bolivia|Mennonite]]s in [[Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)|Santa Cruz]]. Portuguese is spoken mainly in the areas close to Brazil.

=== Religion ===
{{Main|Religion in Bolivia}}

[[File:Basilica de San Francisco La Paz.jpg|thumb|[[Basilica of San Francisco, La Paz|Basilica of San Francisco]] in La Paz|left]]
Bolivia is a constitutionally [[secular state]] that guarantees the [[freedom of religion]] and the independence of government from religion.{{sfn|Constitute Assembly of Bolivia|2007|p=2}}

According to the 2001 census conducted by the [[National Institute of Statistics of Bolivia]], 78% of the population is [[Catholicism|Roman Catholic]], followed by 19% that are [[Protestant]], as well as a small number of Bolivians that are [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]], and 3% non-religious.<ref>{{cite web | url= https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90243.htm | title= Bolivia religion | publisher= Department of State | location= US | date= 14 September 2007 | access-date= 30 August 2010 | archive-date= 8 March 2020 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200308123543/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90243.htm | url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://institutointerglobal.org/ateismo/1545-ateos-en-numeros|title=Ateos en números|publisher=InterGlobal|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205041006/http://institutointerglobal.org/ateismo/1545-ateos-en-numeros|archive-date=5 December 2014}}</ref>

The [[Association of Religion Data Archives]] (relying on the World Christian Database) records that in 2010, 92.5% of Bolivians identified as Christian (of any denomination), 3.1% identified with indigenous religion, 2.2% identified as [[Baháʼí Faith|Baháʼí]], 1.9% identified as agnostic, and all other groups constituted 0.1% or less.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bolivia: Adherents|url=http://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_27_2.asp|website=The Association of Religious Data Archives|access-date=5 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015204554/http://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_27_2.asp|archive-date=15 October 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

Much of the indigenous population adheres to different traditional beliefs marked by [[inculturation]] or [[Syncretic|syncretism]] with Christianity. The cult of [[Pachamama]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.catamarcaguia.com.ar/Cultura/Pachamama.php |title=Pachamama y los Dioses Incaicos |publisher=Catamarcaguia.com.ar |access-date=14 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117013359/http://www.catamarcaguia.com.ar/Cultura/Pachamama.php |archive-date=17 January 2013}}</ref> or "Mother Earth", is notable. The veneration of the [[Virgen de Copacabana|Virgin of Copacabana]], Virgin of Urkupiña and Virgin of Socavón, is also an important feature of [[Christian pilgrimage]]. There also are important [[Aymara people|Aymaran communities]] near [[Lake Titicaca]] that have a strong devotion to [[James, son of Zebedee|James the Apostle]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bolivia.com/Noticias/AutoNoticias/DetalleNoticia32134.asp|publisher=Bolivia.com|title=El Tata Santiago, un santo en Guaqui con vena de general|access-date=7 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120206130141/http://www.bolivia.com/Noticias/AutoNoticias/DetalleNoticia32134.asp|archive-date=6 February 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Deities worshiped in Bolivia include [[Ekeko]], the Aymaran god of abundance and prosperity, whose day is celebrated every 24 January, and [[Guarani mythology|Tupá]], a god of the [[Guaraní people]].

=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in Bolivia}}

[[File:Universidad Mayor Real y Pontificia de San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisaca1.jpg|thumb|The [[University of San Francisco Xavier|Universidad Mayor Real y Pontificia San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisaca]], Bolivia's oldest higher education institution]]
In 2008, following [[UNESCO]] standards, Bolivia was declared free of [[Literacy|illiteracy]], making it the fourth country in South America to attain this status.<ref name="literacyBBC">{{Cite news | url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7794293.stm | title=Bolivia Declares Literacy Success | newspaper=[[BBC News]] | date=21 December 2008 | access-date=12 February 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011200135/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7794293.stm | archive-date=11 October 2017 | url-status=live}}</ref>

Bolivia has public and private universities. Among them: [[University of Saint Francis Xavier|Universidad Mayor, Real y Pontificia de San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisaca]] USFX – Sucre, founded in 1624; [[Universidad Mayor de San Andrés]] UMSA – La Paz, founded in 1830; [[Universidad Mayor de San Simon]] UMSS – Cochabamba, founded in 1832; [[Universidad Autónoma Gabriel René Moreno]] UAGRM – Santa Cruz de la Sierra, founded in 1880; [[Universidad Técnica de Oruro]] UTO – Oruro, founded in 1892; Universidad Evangélica Boliviana UEB – Santa Cruz de la Sierra, founded in 1980; and [[Universidad Autónoma Tomás Frías]] UATF – Potosi, founded in 1892.

=== Health ===
{{Main|Health in Bolivia}}

{{See also|Refresh Bolivia}}
According to UNICEF, Bolivia's under-five mortality rate in 2006 was 52.7 per 1000 and was reduced to 26 per 1000 by 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bolivia (Plurinational State of) (BOL) – Demographics, Health & Infant Mortality|url=https://data.unicef.org/country/bol/|access-date=17 December 2020|website=UNICEF DATA|archive-date=14 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114030330/https://data.unicef.org/country/bol/|url-status=live}}</ref> The infant mortality rate was 40.7 per 1000 in 2006 and was reduced to 21.2 per 1000 in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) – Bolivia {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=BO&start=2006|access-date=17 December 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=14 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414232742/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=BO&start=2006|url-status=live}}</ref> Before Morales took office, nearly half of all infants were not vaccinated; now nearly all are vaccinated. Morales also put into place several supplemental nutrition programs, including an effort to supply free food in public health and social security offices, and his desnutrición cero (zero malnutrition) program provides free school lunches.<ref name=":1" />

Between 2006 and 2016, extreme poverty in Bolivia fell from 38.2% to 16.8%. Chronic malnutrition in children under five years of age also went down by 14% and the child mortality rate was reduced by more than 50%, according to [[World Health Organization]].<ref>{{Cite web|publisher=World Health Organization|url=http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.country.country-BOL?lang=en|title=GHO {{pipe}} By country {{pipe}} Bolivia (Plurinational State of) – statistics summary (2002–present)|access-date=15 September 2019|archive-date=21 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200421094154/https://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.country.country-BOL?lang=en|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2019 the Bolivian government created a universal healthcare system which has been cited as a model for all by the World Health Organization.<ref>{{Cite web|date=25 May 2019|title=Bolivia's universal healthcare is model for the world, says UN|url=https://www.pressenza.com/2019/05/bolivias-universal-healthcare-is-model-for-the-world-says-un/|access-date=17 December 2020|website=Pressenza|archive-date=21 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121054706/https://www.pressenza.com/2019/05/bolivias-universal-healthcare-is-model-for-the-world-says-un/|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Women's rights ===
Bolivia has one of the highest rates of femicide and gender-based violence in Latin America.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 November 2022 |title=Honduras, República Dominicana, El Salvador, Bolivia y Brasil, los países más inseguros de América Latina para las mujeres {{!}} Noticias ONU |url=https://news.un.org/es/story/2022/11/1517112 |access-date=28 February 2024 |website=news.un.org |language=es |archive-date=28 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228222013/https://news.un.org/es/story/2022/11/1517112 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2013, the Comprehensive Law to Guarantee Women a Life Free from Violence was passed, which codified sixteen types of gender-based violence and implemented measures for prevention of violence, protection for victims, and the punishment of aggressors.

As of 2022, 46% of parliamentary seats are held by women.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Bank Open Data |url=https://data.worldbank.org/ |access-date=28 February 2024 |website=World Bank Open Data |archive-date=26 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230526025607/https://data.worldbank.org/ |url-status=live}}</ref> A 1997 law established quotas whereby candidates for public office fielded by political parties must be at least 30% women.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bolivian Elections Result in More Women in Parliament {{!}} International IDEA |url=https://www.idea.int/news/bolivian-elections-result-more-women-parliament |access-date=28 February 2024 |website=www.idea.int |archive-date=28 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228222013/https://www.idea.int/news/bolivian-elections-result-more-women-parliament |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Culture ==
{{Main|Culture of Bolivia}}

{{See also|Music of Bolivia|Public holidays in Bolivia}}
[[File:Zonnepoort tiwanaku.jpg|thumb|[[Gate of the Sun]], 500–950 CE, [[Tiwanaku]]]]
Bolivian culture has been heavily influenced by the Spanish, the Aymara, and the Quechua, as well as the popular cultures of Latin America as a whole.

The cultural development is divided into three distinct periods: precolumbian, colonial, and republican. Important [[archaeology|archaeological]] ruins, gold and silver ornaments, stone monuments, [[ceramic]]s, and [[weaving]]s remain from several important pre-Columbian cultures. Major ruins include [[Tiwanaku]], [[El Fuerte de Samaipata]], [[Inkallaqta]] and [[Iskanwaya]]. The country abounds in other sites that are difficult to reach and have seen little archaeological exploration.<ref name="BackgroundNote">{{cite web |title=Background Note: Bolivia |publisher=[[United States Department of State]] |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35751.htm |access-date=17 October 2006 |archive-date=4 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190604183423/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35751.htm |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:DiabladaFerroviariadeOruroBolivia.jpg|thumb|The [[Diablada of Oruro|Diablada]], dance primeval, typical and main of [[Carnival of Oruro]], a [[Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity|Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity]] since 2001]]
The Spanish brought their own tradition of religious art which, in the hands of local native, mestizo and some [[Criollo people|criollo]] builders and [[artisan]]s, developed into a rich and distinctive style of architecture, painting, and sculpture known as [[Andean Baroque]]. The colonial period produced not only the paintings of Pérez de Holguín, Flores, Bitti, and others but also the works of skilled but unknown stonecutters, woodcarvers, goldsmiths, and silversmiths. An important body of Native Baroque religious music of the colonial period was recovered and has been performed internationally to wide acclaim since 1994.<ref name="BackgroundNote"/>

Bolivian artists of stature in the 20th century include [[María Luisa Pacheco]], [[Roberto Mamani Mamani]], [[Alejandro Mario Yllanes]], [[Alfredo Da Silva]], and [[Marina Núñez del Prado]].

Bolivia has a rich [[folklore]]. Its regional [[folk music]] is distinctive and varied. The "devil dances" at the annual carnival of Oruro are one of the great folkloric events of South America, as is the lesser known carnival at [[Tarabuco]].<ref name="BackgroundNote"/>

=== Media ===
{{main|Media of Bolivia}}

=== Sports ===
[[Association football|Football]] is popular. The national team is the [[Bolivia national football team]].

[[Racquetball]] is the second most popular sport in Bolivia as for the results in the [[2018 South American Games|Odesur 2018 Games]] held in Cochabamba.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cochabamba2018.bo/item/articulo/15376|title=Dupla Boliviana de oro en ráquetbol |website=XI Juegos Suramericanos Cochabamba 2018|access-date=23 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624035912/https://www.cochabamba2018.bo/item/articulo/15376|archive-date=24 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cliffswain.com/where-could-we-take-the-future-of-u-s-racquetball-bolivia-is-a-great-place-to-start/|title=Where could we take the future of U.S. racquetball? Bolivia is a great place to start - CliffSwain.com|date=8 March 2015|access-date=23 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624060122/https://www.cliffswain.com/where-could-we-take-the-future-of-u-s-racquetball-bolivia-is-a-great-place-to-start/|archive-date=24 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Bolivia at the Pan American Games|Bolivia has won 18 medals at the Pan American Games]] and 15 of them came from racquetball events, including their only gold medals, won in the [[Racquetball at the 2019 Pan American Games – Men's team|Men's Team event in 2019]] and [[Racquetball at the 2023 Pan American Games – Men's team|2023]], plus a [[Racquetball at the 2023 Pan American Games – Men's singles|Men's Singles Gold in 2023]] by world champion [[Conrrado Moscoso]].

Basketball is especially popular and influential in the [[Potosí Department]].<ref>[https://www.lostiempos.com/deportes/multideportivo/20190922/identidad-deportiva-formula-del-exito-del-basquetbol-potosino Identidad deportiva, la fórmula del éxito del básquetbol potosino] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816170351/https://www.lostiempos.com/deportes/multideportivo/20190922/identidad-deportiva-formula-del-exito-del-basquetbol-potosino |date=16 August 2021}} Gabriel Caero Rodríguez ([[Los Tiempos]]), 22 September 2019. Accessed 12 August 2021.{{in lang|es}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Bolivia|South America}}
* [[Outline of Bolivia]]{{Clear}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
{{Further|Bolivia–United States relations#Further reading}}
{{Refbegin}}
* Crabtree, John, and Laurence Whitehead, eds. ''Unresolved tensions: Bolivia past and present'' (2008) [https://www.amazon.com/Unresolved-Tensions-Bolivia-Present-American/dp/0822943557/ excerpt] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220425044439/https://www.amazon.com/Unresolved-Tensions-Bolivia-Present-American/dp/0822943557 |date=25 April 2022}}
* Klein, Herbert S. ''A Concise History of Bolivia'' (Cambridge UP, 2021) [https://www.amazon.com/Concise-History-Bolivia-Cambridge-Histories-dp-1108844820/dp/1108844820/ excerpt] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230709173311/https://www.amazon.com/Concise-History-Bolivia-Cambridge-Histories-dp-1108844820/dp/1108844820/ |date=9 July 2023}}
* Morales, Waltraud Q. ''A brief history of Bolivia'' (Infobase Publishing, 2010).
* Rohan, Rebecca. ''Bolivia'' (Cavendish Square, 2021) 32pp; for middle schools.
* Thomson, Sinclair, et al., eds. ''The Bolivia Reader: History, Culture, Politics'' (Duke University Press, 2018).
* Young, Kevin A. ''Blood of the earth: resource nationalism, revolution, and empire in Bolivia'' (University of Texas Press, 2017).
* {{cite web | author=Constitute Assembly of Bolivia | year=2007 | publisher=[[Government of Bolivia]] | url=http://www.presidencia.gob.bo/asamblea/nueva_cpe_aprobada_en_grande_en_detalle_y_en_revision.pdf | title=Nueva Constitucion Politica del Estatdo | trans-title=New State Constitution | language=es | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090303221158/http://www.presidencia.gob.bo/asamblea/nueva_cpe_aprobada_en_grande_en_detalle_y_en_revision.pdf | archive-date=3 March 2009 | access-date=28 January 2014}}
* {{Cite book | last=Fagan | first=Brian | year=2001 | title=The Seventy Great Mysteries of the Ancient World: Unlocking the Secrets of Past Civilizations | publisher=Thames & Hudson | isbn=978-0-500-51050-6 | url=https://archive.org/details/seventygreatmyst00faga}}
* {{Cite book | last=Kolata | first=Alan | year=1993 | title=The Tiwanaku: Portrait of an Andean Civilization | publisher=Wiley | isbn=978-1-55786-183-2}}
* {{Cite book | last=Kolata | first=Alan | year=1996 | title=Valley of the Spirits: A Journey into the Lost Realm of the Aymara | publisher=Wiley | isbn=978-0-47157-507-8}}
* {{cite journal
|title=Bolivia
|first=Daniel
|last=Eisenberg
|journal=Journal of Hispanic Philology
|volume=11
|date=1987
|pages=193–198
|url=https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/52136358/The_Editors_Column_Bolivia__by_Daniel_Eisenberg-libre.pdf?1489417284=&response-content-disposition=attachment%3B+filename%3D1_Bolivia.pdf&Expires=1710720392&Signature=VV0HKvhoXExc-dK3qkQakWDer9sUj9URCF4Sn6Kcfb7ubL0S8cPWJhpPk7cM-JCbSwci-lIi5HkGiCEW3xlJHPZhXIT0MLG518N7APw975lslzjCa-q8qwll4uX701-BVvpcYL~x0j8DQ2Q5Y0Xpp6U5ijz0nEKEvp8rXBEa0iAAiSUZQ0MKQaRoH0nU30eVasPXxwsyOdTqg5EbPgGTWMlYpk1ZexgcEKHC0zfosVxFjQ65w~eqwfPpV0tQLfKYo79a7uJq9rX4Yu73P4lQw0jqhBXr2OUTm3cLCropgByuh7PQXbjjO8pxx1CzVSlRlj1LfJjmRqOYQZ6GMonOzQ__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA
|access-date=17 March 2024
|archive-date=17 March 2024
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317233125/https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/52136358/The_Editors_Column_Bolivia__by_Daniel_Eisenberg-libre.pdf?1489417284=&response-content-disposition=attachment%3B+filename%3D1_Bolivia.pdf&Expires=1710720392&Signature=VV0HKvhoXExc-dK3qkQakWDer9sUj9URCF4Sn6Kcfb7ubL0S8cPWJhpPk7cM-JCbSwci-lIi5HkGiCEW3xlJHPZhXIT0MLG518N7APw975lslzjCa-q8qwll4uX701-BVvpcYL~x0j8DQ2Q5Y0Xpp6U5ijz0nEKEvp8rXBEa0iAAiSUZQ0MKQaRoH0nU30eVasPXxwsyOdTqg5EbPgGTWMlYpk1ZexgcEKHC0zfosVxFjQ65w~eqwfPpV0tQLfKYo79a7uJq9rX4Yu73P4lQw0jqhBXr2OUTm3cLCropgByuh7PQXbjjO8pxx1CzVSlRlj1LfJjmRqOYQZ6GMonOzQ__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA
|url-status=dead
}}

'''Attribution:'''
*{{source attribution|{{cite encyclopedia |title=Bolivia: a country study |publisher=[[Federal Research Division]], [[Library of Congress]] |location=Washington, D.C. |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/90026427/ |date=1991 |editor-last=Hudson |editor-first=Rex A. |editor2-last=Hanratty |editor2-first=Dennis Michael |access-date=25 April 2022 |archive-date=25 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220425043834/https://www.loc.gov/item/90026427/ |url-status=live}}}}
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
{{Sister project links|voy=Bolivia|d=Q750}}
* {{Cite EB1911|wstitle= Bolivia | volume= 4 |last1= Hubbard |first1= Wilfranc |author1-link= |last2= Edmundson |first2= George |author2-link= George Edmundson | pages = 166–177 |short= 1}}
* [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bolivia/ Bolivia]. ''[[The World Factbook]]''. [[Central Intelligence Agency]].
* [http://countrystudies.us/bolivia/ Bolivia: A Country Study] (U.S. Library of Congress).
*BBC News: [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_profiles/1210487.stm Country Profile – Bolivia]
* {{Wikiatlas|Bolivia}}
* {{osmrelation-inline|252645}}
*Bolivian Thoughts: Bolivian newspaper bilingual news [https://www.bolivianthoughts.com]

{{Bolivia topics}}
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