Bolivia — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Bolivia: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
Bolivia is in Central South America, southwest of Brazil. It covers 1,098,581 sq km. Terrain: rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin. Climate: varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid.
| Capital | La Paz (administrative capital); Sucre (constitutional [legislative and judicial] capital) |
|---|---|
| Population | 12,436,103 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $122.2 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $9,800 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 1.4% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 5.1% (2024 est.) |
| Unemployment | 3.1% (2024 est.) |
| Public debt | 49% of GDP (2017 est.) |
| Exports | $11.905 billion (2023 est.) |
| Imports | $12.988 billion (2023 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 72.5 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 27 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 71.2% of total population (2023) |
| Government | presidential republic |
| Independence | 6 August 1825 (from Spain) |
| Languages | Spanish (official) 68.1%, Quechua (official) 17.2%, Aymara (official) 10.5%, Guarani (official) 0.6%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2.1%; note - Spanish and all Indigenous languages are official (2012 est.) |
Bolivia’s GDP is $122.2 billion (2024 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $49.668 billion (2024 est.). Real GDP grew 1.4% (2024 est.). See where Bolivia ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
Nothing in Jul–Sep 2026 moved the needle. The institutions functioned, the economy ran its course, and the world looked elsewhere.
That is the honest note: a quarter of normalcy, scored as such.
- What our model rewards: unemployment near 3.1% — work for whoever wants it; public debt under 49% of GDP — room to maneuver
- What drags it down: graded on patchy data (93% complete) — read the score as an order of magnitude
Lithium, Tin, Natural gas, Oil, Zinc, Tungsten, Antimony, Silver, Iron ore, Lead, Gold, Timber, Hydropower.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 99.9% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 65% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 2.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); wind: 3.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 24.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 29.34 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Electricity generation (OWID) | 12.3 TWh (2024) |
| Electricity generation mix (OWID) | Gas 60.3%, Hydro 28.3%, Wind 3.6%, Solar 2.8%, Oil 1.7% (2024) |
| Low-carbon share of electricity (OWID) | 38.0% (2024) |
| Carbon intensity of electricity (OWID) | 468.0 gCO2/kWh (2024) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2024.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Exports | $11.905 billion (2023 est.) |
|---|---|
| Imports | $12.988 billion (2023 est.) |
| Trade balance (calculated) | Deficit of $1.1 billion (2023), calculated from the CIA export and import figures above. |
| Key industries | mining, smelting, electricity, petroleum, food and beverages, handicrafts, clothing, jewelry |
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Rodrigo Paz — President. President Rodrigo PAZ Pereira (since 8 November 2025)
Bolivia maintains 33 embassies and 45 consulates abroad, hosts 33 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, OAS Washington. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 33 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 45 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 33 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, OAS Washington |
Source: Consular Affairs Center, diplomatic & consular networks database, Mar 2026 report (of-country) https://zenodo.org/records/18917562 ; Jan 2026 report (in-city ranking) https://zenodo.org/records/18109976
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Landlocked — no seacoast; exports move through transit corridors across neighbouring countries. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 201 + 3 heliports (registration prefix CP) |
| Railways | 3960 km |
| Pipelines | 5,457 km gas, 51 km liquid petroleum gas, 2,511 km oil, 1,627 km refined products (2013) |
Major airports
Alcantarí International Airport (SRE) — Sucre; El Alto International Airport (LPB) — La Paz / El Alto; Jorge Wilsterman International Airport (CBB) — Cochabamba; Joya Andina International Airport (UYU) — Quijarro; Juan Mendoza International Airport (ORU) — Oruro; Viru Viru International Airport (VVI) — Santa Cruz; Capitan Oriel Lea Plaza Airport (TJA) — Tarija; Capitán Aníbal Arab Airport (CIJ) — Cobija; Capitán Av. Salvador Ogaya G. airport (PSZ) — Puerto Suárez; Capitán Av. Selin Zeitun Lopez Airport (RIB) — Riberalta.
Showing 10 of 13 major airports.
Terminals
| River ports | Puerto Aguirre (Paraguay/Parana) |
|---|
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | presidential republic |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Bolivia.
Historical timeline of Bolivia
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of Bolivia — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is Bolivia's power score?
Bolivia has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.