Bolivia (2005) | Macau (2007) | |
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Administrative divisions | 9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija | none (special administrative region of China) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.7% (male 1,613,049/female 1,551,023)
15-64 years: 59.8% (male 2,591,328/female 2,701,892) 65 years and over: 4.5% (male 178,486/female 222,092) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.4% (male 36,413/female 33,981)
15-64 years: 76.6% (male 166,797/female 183,088) 65 years and over: 8% (male 15,541/female 21,169) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber | only 2% of land area is cultivated, mainly by vegetable growers; fishing, mostly for crustaceans, is important; some of the catch is exported to Hong Kong |
Airports | 1,065 (2004 est.) | 1 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 16
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1,049
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 60 914 to 1,523 m: 207 under 914 m: 778 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 1,098,580 sq km
land: 1,084,390 sq km water: 14,190 sq km |
total: 28.2 sq km
land: 28.2 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than three times the size of Montana | less than one-sixth the size of 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 1982, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and illegal drug production. Current goals include attracting foreign investment, strengthening the educational system, resolving disputes with coca growers over Bolivia's counterdrug efforts, and waging an anticorruption campaign. | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau, and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. |
Birth rate | 23.76 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.57 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.264 billion
expenditures: $2.769 billion, including capital expenditures of $741 million (2004 est.) |
revenues: $3.16 billion
expenditures: $3.16 billion (FY05/06) |
Capital | La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary) | - |
Climate | varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 41 km |
Constitution | 2 February 1967; revised in August 1994 | Basic Law, approved on 31 March 1993 by China's National People's Congress, is Macau's "mini-constitution" |
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: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese) local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
Death rate | 7.64 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $5.439 billion (June 2004 est.) | $3.1 billion (2004) |
Dependency status | - | special administrative region of China |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador David N. GREENLEE
embassy: Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz mailing address: P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032 telephone: [591] (2) 2430120, 2430251 FAX: [591] (2) 2433900 |
the US has no offices in Macau; US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jaime APARICIO Otero
chancery: 3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4410 FAX: [1] (202) 328-3712 consulate(s) general: Miami, New York, and San Francisco |
none (special administrative region of China) |
Disputes - international | Chile rebuffs Bolivia's reactivated claim to restore the Atacama corridor, ceded to Chile in 1884, offering instead unrestricted but not sovereign maritime access through Chile for Bolivian natural gas and other commodities | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $681 million (2002) | $NA (2004) |
Economy - overview | Bolivia, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, reformed its economy after suffering a disastrous economic crisis in the early 1980s. The reforms spurred real GDP growth, which averaged 4 percent in the 1990s, and poverty rates fell. Economic growth, however, lagged again beginning in 1999 because of a global slowdown and homegrown factors such as political turmoil, civil unrest, and soaring fiscal deficits, all of which hurt investor confidence. In 2003, violent protests against the pro-foreign investment economic policies of President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA led to his resignation and the cancellation of plans to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large northern hemisphere markets. Foreign investment dried up as companies adopted a wait-and-see attitude regarding new President Carlos MESA's willingness to protect investor rights in the face of increased demands by radical groups that the government expropriate foreign-owned assets. Real GDP growth in 2003 and 2004 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia remains dependent on foreign aid from multilateral lenders and foreign governments. | Macau's well-to-do economy has remained one of the most open in the world since its reversion to China in 1999. Apparel exports and tourism are mainstays of the economy. Although the territory was hit hard by the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis and the global downturn in 2001, its economy grew 10.1% in 2002, 14.2% in 2003, and 28.6% in 2004 before slowing to 6.7% in 2005. The economic boom was powered by gambling, tourism, and the construction necessary to support such endeavors. China's decision to ease travel restrictions led to a rapid rise in the number of mainland visitors. The opening of Macau's gaming industry to foreign access in 2001 spurred an increase in public works expenditures. The budget also returned to surplus in 2002 because of the surge in visitors from China and a hike in taxes on gambling profits, which generated about 70% of government revenue. Much of Macau's textile industry may move to the mainland due to the termination in 2005 of the Multi-Fiber Agreement, which provided a near guarantee of export markets, leaving the territory more dependent on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. The Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Macau and mainland China that came into effect on 1 January 2004 offers many Macau-made products tariff-free access to the mainland. The range of products covered by CEPA was expanded on 1 January 2005. |
Electricity - consumption | 3.848 billion kWh (2002) | 2.16 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 3 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 9 million kWh (2002) | 341 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 4.132 billion kWh (2002) | 1.947 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 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 | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection |
party to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member) |
Ethnic groups | Quechua 30%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, Aymara 25%, white 15% | Chinese 95.7%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry) 1%, other 3.3% (2001 census) |
Exchange rates | bolivianos per US dollar - 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002), 6.6069 (2001), 6.1835 (2000) | patacas per US dollar - 8.0015 (2006), 8.011 (2005), 8.022 (2004), 8.021 (2003), 8.033 (2002) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze (since 9 June 2005); Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze (since 9 June 2005); Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both 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 30 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007) election results: as a result of no candidate winning a majority in the 30 June 2002 election, Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamante was chosen president by Congress; congressional votes - Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA Bustamante 84, Evo MORALES 43; note - following the resignation of the elected president on 17 October 2003 and Vice President Carlos Diego MESA Gisbert on 9 June 2005, Eduardo RODRIGUEZ Veltze, President of the Supreme Court and constitutional successor, became president. |
chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of one government secretary, three legislators, four businessmen, one pro-Beijing unionist, and one pro-Beijing educator elections: chief executive chosen by a 300-member Election Committee for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 29 August 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Edmund HO Hau-wah reelected received 296 votes; three members submitted blank ballots; one member was absent |
Exports | NA | 21 bbl/day (2005) |
Exports - commodities | natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin | clothing, textiles, footwear, toys, electronics, machinery and parts |
Exports - partners | Brazil 40%, US 13.9%, Colombia 8.7%, Peru 6.3%, Japan 4.5% (2004) | US 44.1%, China 14.8%, Hong Kong 11.3%, Germany 7.3%, UK 4.1% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 13%
industry: 28% services: 59% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 7.2% services: 92.7% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.7% (2004 est.) | 6.7% (2005) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 S, 65 00 W | 22 10 N, 113 33 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru | essentially urban; an area of land reclaimed from the sea measuring 5.2 sq km and known as Cotai now connects the islands of Coloane and Taipa; the island area is connected to the mainland peninsula by three bridges |
Heliports | - | 1 (2007) |
Highways | total: 60,282 km
paved: 3,979 km unpaved: 56,303 km (2002) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.3%
highest 10%: 32% (1999) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | world's third-largest cultivator of coca (after Colombia and Peru) with an estimated 28,450 hectares under cultivation in June 2003, a 23% increase from June 2002; intermediate coca products and cocaine exported mostly to or through Brazil, Argentina, and Chile to European and US drug markets; eradication and alternative crop programs under the MESA administration have been unable to keep pace with farmers' attempts to increase cultivation; money-laundering activity related to narcotics trade, especially along the borders with Brazil and Paraguay | transshipment point for drugs going into mainland China; consumer of opiates and amphetamines |
Imports | NA | 12,840 bbl/day (2005) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans | raw materials and semi-manufactured goods, consumer goods (foodstuffs, beverages, tobacco), capital goods, mineral fuels and oils |
Imports - partners | Brazil 29.7%, Argentina 17.6%, US 10.8%, Chile 7.7%, Peru 7.3% (2004) | China 45.2%, Hong Kong 10.2%, Japan 8.4%, US 5.5%, Singapore 4.1%, France 4% (2006) |
Independence | 6 August 1825 (from Spain) | none (special administrative region of China) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.7% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys |
Infant mortality rate | total: 53.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 56.7 deaths/1,000 live births female: 49.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 4.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.51 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.9% (2004 est.) | 4.4% (2005) |
International organization participation | CAN, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS, ONUB, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 1,280 sq km (1998 est.) | NA |
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) | Court of Final Appeal in Macau Special Administrative Region |
Labor force | 3.8 million (2004 est.) | 248,000 (2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | manufacturing 13.7%, construction 10.5%, transport and communications 5.9%, wholesale and retail trade 14.6%, restaurants and hotels 10.3%, gambling 17.9%, public sector 7.8%, other services and agriculture 19.3% (2005 est.) |
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: 0.34 km
regional border: China 0.34 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.67%
permanent crops: 0.19% other: 97.14% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara (official) | Cantonese 87.9%, Hokkien 4.4%, Mandarin 1.6%, other Chinese dialects 3.1%, other 3% (2001 census) |
Legal system | based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Portuguese civil law system |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (27 seats; members are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies or Camara de Diputados (130 seats; 68 are directly elected from their districts and 62 are elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 30 June 2002 (next to be held June 2007) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNR 11, MAS 8, MIR 5, NFR 2, other 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNR 36, MAS 27, MIR 26, NFR 25, others 16 |
unicameral Legislative Assembly (29 seats; 12 members elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and 7 appointed by the chief executive; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 September 2005 (next in September 2009) election results: percent of vote - New Democratic Macau Association 18.8%, Macau United Citizens' Association 16.6%, Union for Development 13.3%, Union for Promoting Progress 9.6%, Macau Development Alliance 9.3%, others 32.4%; seats by political group - New Democratic Macau Association 2, Macau United Citizens' Association 2, Union for Development 2, Union for Promoting Progress 2, Macau Development Alliance 1, others 3; 10 seats filled by professional and business groups; seven members appointed by chief executive |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 65.5 years
male: 62.89 years female: 68.25 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 82.27 years
male: 79.44 years female: 85.25 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 87.2% male: 93.1% female: 81.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.3% male: 95.3% female: 87.8% (2001 census) |
Location | Central South America, southwest of Brazil | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
Map references | South America | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | not specified |
Merchant marine | total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 413,407 GRT/699,901 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 16, chemical tanker 1, container 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 11 (Argentina 1, Egypt 2, Eritrea 1, Germany 1, Iran 1, Singapore 2, United Kingdom 1, United States 2) (2005) |
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Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of China |
Military branches | Army (Ejercito Boliviano), Navy (Fuerza Naval; includes Marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana) (2004) | no regular military forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $132.2 million (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.6% (2004) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 August (1825) | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day |
Nationality | noun: Bolivian(s)
adjective: Bolivian |
noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
Natural hazards | flooding in the northeast (March-April) | typhoons |
Natural resources | tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -1.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 4,860 km; liquid petroleum gas 47 km; oil 2,457 km; refined products 1,589 km; unknown (oil/water) 247 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Bolivian Socialist Falange or FSB [Romel PANTOJA]; Civic Solidarity Union or UCS [Johnny FERNANDEZ]; Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Franz BARRIOS]; Marshal of Ayacucho Institutional Vanguard or VIMA [Freddy ZABALA]; Movement of the Revolutionary Left or MIR [Jaime PAZ Zamora]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS [Evo MORALES]; Movement Without Fear or MSM [Juan DEL GRANADO]; Nationalist Democratic Action or ADN [Jorge Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez]; Nationalist Revolutionary Movement or MNR [leader NA]; New Republican Force or NFR [Manfred REYES-VILLA]; Pachakuti Indigenous Movement or MIP [Felipe QUISPE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jeres JUSTINIANO] | Civil Service Union [Jose Maria Pereira COUTINHO]; Development Union [KWAN Tsui-hang]; Macau Development Alliance [Angela LEONG On-kei]; Macau United Citizens' Association [CHAN Meng-kam]; New Democratic Macau Association [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong]; United Forces |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Cocalero Groups; indigenous organizations; labor unions; Sole Confederation of Campesino Workers of Bolivia or CSUTCB [Roman LOAYZA] | NA |
Population | 8,857,870 (July 2005 est.) | 456,989 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.49% (2005 est.) | 0.841% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Puerto Aguirre (on the Paraguay/Parana waterway, at the Bolivia/Brazil border); also, Bolivia has free port privileges in maritime ports in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 171, FM 73, shortwave 77 (1999) | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 3,519 km
narrow gauge: 3,519 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) 5% | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) |
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: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.072 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.734 male(s)/female total population: 0.918 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age, universal and compulsory (single) | direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies |
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: country code - 591; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: country code - 853; HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 600,100 (2003) | 176,700 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,401,500 (2003) | 636,300 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 48 (1997) | 1 (2006) |
Terrain | rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin | generally flat |
Total fertility rate | 2.94 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.03 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 9.2% in urban areas
note: widespread underemployment (2003 est.) |
4.1% (2005) |
Waterways | 10,000 km (commercially navigable) (2004) | - |