Bolivia (2001) | Gibraltar (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
38.46% (male 1,626,698; female 1,565,748) 15-64 years: 57.07% (male 2,315,098; female 2,421,987) 65 years and over: 4.47% (male 166,986; female 203,946) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 2,593; female 2,482)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 9,458; female 8,946) 65 years and over: 15.4% (male 1,873; female 2,424) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber | none |
Airports | 1,093 (2000 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
13 over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1,080 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 65 914 to 1,523 m: 212 under 914 m: 800 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
1,098,580 sq km land: 1,084,390 sq km water: 14,190 sq km |
total: 6.5 sq km
land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Montana | about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | Bolivia, named after independence fighter Simon BOLIVAR, broke away from Spanish rule in 1825; much of its subsequent history has consisted of a series of nearly 200 coups and counter-coups. Comparatively democratic civilian rule was established in the 1980s, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and drug production. Current goals include attracting foreign investment, strengthening the educational system, continuing the privatization program, and waging an anti-corruption campaign. | Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In referendums held in 1967 and 2002, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency. |
Birth rate | 27.27 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 11.09 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.7 billion expenditures: $2.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998) |
revenues: $307 million
expenditures: $284 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 00/01 est.) |
Capital | La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary) | Gibraltar |
Climate | varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 12 km |
Constitution | 2 February 1967; revised in August 1994 | 30 May 1969 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Bolivia conventional short form: Bolivia local long form: Republica de Bolivia local short form: Bolivia |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gibraltar |
Currency | boliviano (BOB) | Gibraltar pound (GIP) |
Death rate | 8.2 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 8.93 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $6.6 billion (2000) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador V. Manuel ROCHA embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032 telephone: [591] (2) 432254 FAX: [591] (2) 433854 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Marlene FERNANDEZ del Granado chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410 FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | has wanted a sovereign corridor to the South Pacific Ocean since the Atacama area was lost to Chile in 1884; dispute with Chile over Rio Lauca water rights | Gibraltar residents vote overwhelmingly in referendum against "total shared sovereignty" arrangement worked out between Spain and UK to change 300-year rule over colony |
Economic aid - recipient | $588 million (1997) | $NA; note - if an agreement between Spain and the UK is reached, could receive 50 million euros from the EU |
Economy - overview | Bolivia, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, has made considerable progress toward the development of a market-oriented economy. Successes under President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA (1993-97) included the signing of a free trade agreement with Mexico and joining the Southern Cone Common Market (Mercosur), as well as the privatization of the state airline, telephone company, railroad, electric power company, and oil company. His successor, Hugo BANZER Suarez has tried to further improve the country's investment climate with an anticorruption campaign. Growth slowed in 1999, in part due to tight government budget policies, which limited needed appropriations for anti-poverty programs, and the fallout from the Asian financial crisis. In 2000, major civil disturbances in April, and again in September and October, held down overall growth to 2.5%. | Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 7% to the local economy, compared with 60% in 1984. The financial sector, tourism (almost 5 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. The financial sector, the shipping sector, and tourism each contribute 25%-30% of GDP. Telecommunications accounts for another 10%. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.377 billion kWh (1999) | 93 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 4 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 10 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 3.625 billion kWh (1999) | 100 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
56.61% hydro: 41.6% nuclear: 0% other: 1.79% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Rio Paraguay 90 m highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m |
Environment - current issues | the clearing of land for agricultural purposes and the international demand for tropical timber are contributing to deforestation; soil erosion from overgrazing and poor cultivation methods (including slash-and-burn agriculture); desertification; loss of biodiversity; industrial pollution of water supplies used for drinking and irrigation | limited natural freshwater resources: large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rainwater (no longer used for drinking water) and adequate desalination plant |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection |
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Ethnic groups | Quechua 30%, Aymara 25%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, white 15% | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese |
Exchange rates | bolivianos per US dollar - 6.4071 (January 2001), 6.1835 (2000), 5.8124 (1999), 5.5101 (1998), 5.2543 (1997), 5.0746 (1996) | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Hugo BANZER Suarez (since 6 August 1997); Vice President Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez (since 6 August 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Hugo BANZER Suarez (since 6 August 1997); Vice President Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez (since 6 August 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held May or June 2002) election results: Hugo BANZER Suarez elected president; percent of vote - Hugo BANZER Suarez (ADN) 22%; Jaime PAZ Zamora (MIR) 17%, Juan Carlos DURAN (MNR) 18%, Ivo KULJIS (UCS) 16%, Remedios LOZA (CONDEPA) 17%; no candidate received a majority of the popular vote; Hugo BANZER Suarez won a congressional runoff election on 5 August 1997 after forming a "megacoalition" with MIR, UCS, CONDEPA, NFR, and PDC |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor and Commander-in-Chief Sir Francis RICHARDS (since 27 May 2003)
head of government: Chief Minister Peter CARUANA (since 17 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed from among the 15 elected members of the House of Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
Exports | $1.26 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | soybeans, natural gas, zinc, gold, wood | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% |
Exports - partners | UK 16%, US 12%, Peru 11%, Argentina 10%, Colombia 7% (1998) | UK 27.7%, Switzerland 14.3%, Germany 12%, France 6.9%, Spain 6.1%, Turkmenistan 5%, Ukraine 4.6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band; similar to the flag of Ghana, which has a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band | two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $20.9 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
16% industry: 31% services: 53% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $17,500 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 S, 65 00 W | 36 8 N, 5 21 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea |
Highways | total:
49,400 km paved: 2,500 km (including 30 km of expressways) unpaved: 46,900 km (1996) |
total: 29 km
paved: 29 km unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.3% highest 10%: 31.7% (1990) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Colombia and Peru, a distant second) with an estimated 14,600 hectares under cultivation in 2000, a 33% decrease in overall cultivation of coca from 1999 levels; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported to or through Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, and Chile to the US and other international drug markets; eradication and alternative crop programs have slashed illicit coca cultivation during the BANZER administration beginning in 1997 | - |
Imports | $1.86 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, raw materials and semi-manufactures, chemicals, petroleum, food | fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US 32%, Japan 24%, Brazil 12%, Argentina 12%, Chile 7%, Peru 4%, Germany 3%, other 6% (1998) | Germany 27.3%, Spain 21.8%, UK 12.1%, Italy 8% (2002) |
Independence | 6 August 1825 (from Spain) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1995 est.) | NA% |
Industries | mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing | tourism, banking and finance, ship repairing, tobacco |
Infant mortality rate | 58.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 5.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.92 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.67 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.4% (2000 est.) | 1.5% (1998) |
International organization participation | CAN, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MONUC, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Interpol (subbureau) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 9 (2000) | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,750 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges appointed for 10-year terms by National Congress); District Courts (one in each department); provincial and local courts (to try minor cases) | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 2.5 million | 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | services 60%, industry 40%, agriculture NEGL% |
Land boundaries | total:
6,743 km border countries: Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km |
total: 1.2 km
border countries: Spain 1.2 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 53% other: 21% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official) | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese |
Legal system | based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English law |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (27 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - some members are drawn from party lists, thus not directly elected)
elections: Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA June 2002) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ADN 11, MIR 7, MNR 4, CONDEPA 3, UCS 2; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ADN 32, MNR 26, MIR 23, UCS 21, CONDEPA 19, MBL 5, IU 4 |
unicameral House of Assembly (18 seats - 15 elected by popular vote, one appointed for the Speaker, and two ex officio members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 November 2003 (next to be held not later than NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - GSD 58%, GSLP 41%; seats by party - GSD 8, GSLP 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
64.06 years male: 61.53 years female: 66.72 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 79.38 years
male: 76.51 years female: 82.4 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83.1% male: 90.5% female: 76% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: above 80% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Central South America, southwest of Brazil | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain |
Map references | South America | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 3 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
42 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 141,017 GRT/211,058 DWT ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 20, chemical tanker 3, container 1, petroleum tanker 10, roll on/roll off 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 114 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,008,140 GRT/1,435,595 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 58, chemical tanker 14, container 20, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 13, roll on/roll off 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 1, Cyprus 1, France 2, Germany 55, Greece 6, Ireland 1, Monaco 2, Norway 3, United Kingdom 13 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval Boliviana, includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana), National Police Force (Policia Nacional de Bolivia) | no regular indigenous military forces; British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $147 million (FY99) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (FY99) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,005,660 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,306,452 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
90,120 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Independence Day, 6 August (1825) | National Day, 10 September (1967); note - day of the national referendum to decide whether to remain with the UK or go with Spain |
Nationality | noun:
Bolivian(s) adjective: Bolivian |
noun: Gibraltarian(s)
adjective: Gibraltar |
Natural hazards | flooding in the northeast (March-April) | NA |
Natural resources | tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -1.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 1,800 km; petroleum products 580 km; natural gas 1,495 km | 0 km |
Political parties and leaders | Christian Democratic Party or PDC [leader NA]; Civic Solidarity Union or UCS [Johnny FERNANDEZ]; Conscience of the Fatherland or CONDEPA [Remedios LOZA Alvarado]; Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Antonio ARANIBAR]; Movement of the Revolutionary Left or MIR [Jaime PAZ Zamora]; Nationalist Democratic Action or ADN [Hugo BANZER Suarez]; Nationalist Revolutionary Movement or MNR [Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA]; New Republican Force or NFR [leader NA]; Pachacuti Indigenous Movement [Filipe QUISPE]; United Left or IU [Marcos DOMIC]
note: the ADN, MIR, and UCS comprise the ruling coalition |
Gibraltar Liberal Party [Joseph GARCIA]; Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Cocalero Groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Women's Association |
Population | 8,300,463 (July 2001 est.) | 27,776 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.76% (2001 est.) | 0.22% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; however, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay | Gibraltar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 5.25 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
3,691 km (single track) narrow gauge: 3,652 km 1.000-m gauge; 39 km 0.760-m gauge (13 km electrified) (1995) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) | Roman Catholic 76.9%, Church of England 6.9%, Muslim 6.9%, Jewish 2.3%, none or other 7% (1991) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age, universal and compulsory (single) | 18 years of age; universal, plus other UK subjects who have been residents six months or more |
Telephone system | general assessment:
new subscribers face bureaucratic difficulties; most telephones are concentrated in La Paz and other cities; mobile cellular telephone use expanding rapidly domestic: primary trunk system, which is being expanded, employs digital microwave radio relay; some areas are served by fiber-optic cable; mobile cellular systems are being expanded international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: adequate, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities
domestic: automatic exchange facilities international: radiotelephone; microwave radio relay; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 327,600 (1996) | 19,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 116,000 (1997) | 1,620 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 48 (1997) | 1 (plus three low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar |
Total fertility rate | 3.51 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.65 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.4% (1997)
note: widespread underemployment |
2% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | 10,000 km (commercially navigable) | none |