Bolivia

boliviaBolivia is a landlocked, sparsely populated country located in the central part of South America. Besides Spanish, which is the main language, several other officially recognized native languages are also spoken. Bolivia’s population is about 10.5 million (2012). Economically, Bolivia has been rated as the poorest country in the region as about 60 per cent of its urban and about 80 per cent of its rural population live below the national poverty line. Sucre is Bolivia’s constitutional capital, while La Paz is the administrative capital. The altitude of La Paz, which is located on the Andes Mountains, ranges from 3,100 m (10,170 ft.) to 4,058 m (13,313 ft.), making it the highest capital city in the world. For administrative purposes, Bolivia is divided into nine departments, which are subdivided into 112 provinces. The provinces are further subdivided into a total of 339 municipalities and native community lands.

Acknowledgements

  • Authored by M. Kalim Qamar (December 2013)
  • Edited by Burton E. Swanson