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Description Bolivia by rbd.me
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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 countercoups. Democratic civilian rule was established in 1982, but leaders have faced difficult problems of deep-seated poverty, social unrest, and illegal drug production. In December 2005, Bolivians elected Movement Toward Socialism leader Evo MORALES president - by the widest margin of any leader since the restoration of civilian rule in 1982 - after he ran on a promise to change the country's traditional political class and empower the nation's poor, indigenous majority. However, since taking office, his controversial strategies have exacerbated racial and economic tensions between the Amerindian populations of the Andean west and the non-indigenous communities of the eastern lowlands. In December 2009, President MORALES easily won reelection, and his party took control of the legislative branch of the government, which will allow him to continue his process of change.
WebCam
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Location
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Central South America, southwest of Brazil
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Area - comparative
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slightly less than three times the size of Montana
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Natural resources Bolivia
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rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin
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Population Bolivia
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landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru
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Religions Bolivia
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Quechua 30%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry) 30%, Aymara 25%, white 15%
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Languages
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Roman Catholic 95%, Protestant (Evangelical Methodist) 5%
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Education Bolivia expenditures
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Spanish 60.7% (official), Quechua 21.2% (official), Aymara 14.6% (official), foreign languages 2.4%, other 1.2% (2001 census)
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Government Bolivia type
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6.4% of GDP (2003)
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Independence
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9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Beni, Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija
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Bolivia Economy - overview
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three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the coat of arms centered on the yellow band
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Investment Bolivia
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59.2 (2006)
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Industries Bolivia
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$NA (31 December 2008)
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Airports Bolivia
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48 (1997)
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