Location: Central South America, between Brazil and Chile

Map references: South America, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area: 1,098,580 sq km
land area: 1,084,390 sq km
comparative area: slightly less than three times the size of Montana

Land boundaries: total 6,743 km, Argentina 832 km, Brazil 3,400 km, Chile 861 km, Paraguay 750 km, Peru 900 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none; landlocked

International disputes: 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

Climate: varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid

Terrain: rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin

Natural resources: tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron ore, lead, gold, timber

Land use:
arable land: 3%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 25%
forest and woodland: 52%
other: 20%

Irrigated land: 1,650 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: deforestation contributing to loss of biodiversity; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; industrial pollution of water supplies used for drinking and irrigation
natural hazards: flooding in the northeast (March to April)
international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Tropical Timber

Note: landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru; cold, thin air of high plateau is obstacle to efficient fuel combustion, as well as to physical activity by those unaccustomed to it from birth

NOTE: The information regarding Bolivia on this page is re-published from the 1995 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Bolivia Geography 1995 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Bolivia Geography 1995 should be addressed to the CIA.