General information:
Embaixada da Bolívia
www.embolivia.org.br
embolivia@embolivia.org.br
Endereço: SES Quadra 809, Lote 34
Brasília – DFCEP: 70200-090
Tel.: (61) 3366-4448 / 2238
Fax: (61) 3366-3136
Setor Consular: embolivia@embolivia.org.br
Tel./Fax: (61) 3366-4448
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in
western-central South America. It is bordered by six other South American countries.
The seat of government and executive capital is La Paz, while the constitutional capital
is Sucre. The largest city and principal industrial center is Santa Cruz de la Sierra,
located on the Llanos Orientales (tropical lowlands), a mostly flat region in the east of the country.
The sovereign state of Bolivia is a constitutionally unitary state, divided into nine
departments. Its geography varies from the peaks of the Andes in the West, to the
Eastern Lowlands, situated within the Amazon basin. One-third of the country is within
the Andean mountain range. With 1,098,581 km2 of area, Bolivia is the fifth largest
country in South America and, alongside Paraguay, one of the only two landlocked
countries in the Americas.
The country’s population, estimated at 12 million, is multiethnic, including Amerindians,
Mestizos, Europeans, Asians, and Africans. Spanish is the official and predominant
language, although 36 indigenous languages also have official status.
Before Spanish colonization, the Andean region of Bolivia was part of the Inca Empire,
while the northern and eastern lowlands were inhabited by independent tribes. Spanish
conquistadors arriving from Cusco and Asunción took control of the region in the 16th
century. During the Spanish colonial period Bolivia was administered by the Real
Audiencia of Charcas. Spain built its empire in large part upon the silver that was
extracted from Bolivia’s mines. After the first call for independence in 1809, 16 years of
war followed before the establishment of the Republic, named for Simón Bolívar. Over
the course of the 19th and early 20th century Bolivia lost control of several peripheral
territories to neighboring countries including the seizure of its coastline by Chile in
1879. Bolivia remained relatively politically stable until 1971, when Hugo Banzer led a
CIA-supported coup dtat which replaced the socialist government of Juan José
Torres with a military dictatorship headed by Banzer. Banzer’s regime cracked down on
left-wing and socialist opposition and other forms of dissent, resulting in the torture and
deaths of a number of Bolivian citizens. Banzer was ousted in 1978 and later returned
as the democratically elected president of Bolivia from 1997 to 2001. Under the
2006–2019 presidency of Evo Morales the country saw significant economic growth
and political stability.
Modern Bolivia is a charter member of the UN, IMF, NAM, OAS, ACTO, Bank of the
South, ALBA, and USAN. Bolivia remains the second poorest country in South
America, though it has slashed poverty rates and has the fastest growing economy in
South America (in terms of GDP). It is a developing country, and its main economic
activities include agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, and manufacturing goods such as
textiles, clothing, refined metals, and refined petroleum. Bolivia is very rich in minerals,
including tin, silver, lithium, and copper.
