Location: Bolivia is located in Central South America, surrounded
by Brazil to the north and east, Argentina and Paraguay to the south,
and Peru and Chile to the west.
Size: Bolivia has a land area of 1,098,580 square kilometers—an area
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about three times the size of Montana. Bolivia ceded significant tracts of its territory through wars and negotiations. Its present size has been fixed since 1938. Bolivia is the fifth largest country in South America.
Land Boundaries: Bolivia has been landlocked since 1884. It shares borders with Argentina (832 kilometers), Brazil (3,400 kilometers), Chile (861 kilometers), Paraguay (750 kilometers), and Peru (900 kilometers).
Disputed Territory: Although treaties have officially resolved Bolivia’s nineteenth-century border disputes, Bolivia continues to fight for a sovereign corridor to the Pacific through the Atacama Desert region it lost to Chile in the War of the Pacific.
Length of Coastline: None.
Maritime Claims: None.
Topography: Dramatic elevation changes distinguish Bolivian topography. La Paz, at 3,600 meters above sea level, is the world’s highest capital city. The country is split into three topographical regions: the Andes and arid highlands of the west, the semi-tropical valleys in the middle third of the country, and the tropical lowlands of the east. Bolivia’s high plateau, or altiplano, is located between the two major Andean mountain ranges⎯the Cordillera Occidental and the Cordillera Oriental. The altiplano is arid in the south but served by Lake Titicaca in the north. The country’s highest mountain peak, Mt. Illiamani, southeast of La Paz, is more than 6,000 meters high. The lower, eastern slopes of the Cordillera Oriental, known as the Yungas, compose the semi-tropical region of the country. Rivers, plentiful in this region, drain into the Amazon Basin. By contrast, the Bolivian lowlands in the east, including the Chaco region, face semiarid conditions. Although forests cover nearly half of the country, the ample plains are used for cattle grazing and, in less inhabited regions, for coca cultivation.
Principal Rivers: Bolivia has more than 14,000 kilometers of navigable rivers. The Beni, Chapare, Desaguadero, Guaporé, Mamoré, Paraguay, and Pilcomayo form the country’s major waterways. Plans have been finalized to widen and deepen the Paraguay River in order to improve access to the Atlantic.
Climate: Bolivia’s extreme range of elevations gives the country a wide range of climates. Additionally, the El Niño weather phenomenon (occurring every three to seven years) affects Bolivia’s climate. Generally speaking, the mountains of the southwest experience the coldest and driest weather. Conditions get warmer and wetter as one travels farther east. The Amazon Basin in the northeast floods during the rainy season while the plains region experiences extended droughts. The average temperature in the altiplano in the west, extending from Lake Titicaca south to the borders with Chile and Argentina, is 8° C. Because the country is south of the equator, Bolivia’s winter falls in the middle of the calendar year.
Natural Resources: Bolivia’s large tin deposits have shaped the country’s recent economic history. Bolivia also has other mineral wealth, including large quantities of antimony, gold, iron, natural gas, petroleum, tungsten, and zinc. Bolivia’s dense forests support a burgeoning timber industry, and its rivers produce hydropower.
Land Use: According to the Ministry of Agriculture, only 15 percent of Bolivia’s land is suitable for agriculture. Of that arable land, just 12 percent is currently in use, with an additional 10 percent used for animal grazing. In the agricultural sector, Bolivia has focused on increasing yields through the use of new technology rather than on expanding agricultural acreage.
Environmental Factors: A land-use survey conducted in 2001 revealed a 6 percent loss of primary forest over the previous two decades. Even with this encroaching desertification, however, forests still cover more than 50 percent of Bolivian territory. Bolivia’s history of slash-and-burn agriculture, overgrazing, and industrial pollution has caused significant concern among environmentalists. Soil erosion, made worse by seasonal flooding, and contaminated water supplies are Bolivia’s most pressing environmental problems. The National Service for Protected Areas, established in 1998, currently manages 21 protected areas.
Time Zone: Bolivia operates four hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).