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Bolivia | Facts & Information

Infoplease has everything you need to know about Bolivia. Check out our country profile, full of essential information about Bolivia’s geography, history, government, economy, population, culture, religion, and languages. If that’s not enough, click over to our collection of world maps and flags.

Facts & Figures

  • Official Name: The Plurinational State of Bolivia

    President: Luis Arce Catacora (2020)

    Vice President: David Choquehuanca

    President of the Senate: Andrónico Rodríguez

    President of the Chamber of Deputies: Jerges Mercado

    Type of Government: Unitary Presidential Republic

    Land area: 418,683 sq mi (1,084,389 sq km); Water Area: 15,280 sq km; Total Area: 424,164 sq mi (1,098,580 sq km)

    Population (2022 est.): 12,054,379 (growth rate: 1.12%); birth rate: 18.61/1000; infant mortality rate: 22.28/1000; life expectancy: 72.5

    Administrative Capital: La Paz, 1.908 million

    Constitutional Capital: Sucre, 278,000

    Largest City: Santa Cruz de la Sierra, 2.4 million

    Other large cities: Santa Cruz 1.784 million; Cochabamba, 1.369 million (2022)

    Monetary unit: Boliviano

    National name: República de Bolivia

    Current Government Officials

    Languages: Spanish (official) 60.7%, Quechua (official) 21.2%, Aymara (official) 14.6%, Guarani (official), foreign languages 2.4%, other 1.2% note: Bolivia’s 2009 constitution designates Spanish and all indigenous languages as official; 36 indigenous languages are specified, including some that are extinct (2001 census)

    Ethnicity/race: Mestizo (mixed White and Amerindian ancestry) 68%, Indigenous 20%, White 5%, Cholo/Chola 2%, African descent 1%, other 1%, unspecified 3%; 44% of respondents indicated feeling part of some indigenous group, predominantly Quechua or Aymara (2009 est.)