Country name
conventional long form:
Republic of Bolivia
conventional short form:
Bolivia
local long form:
Republica de Bolivia
local short form:
Bolivia
Data code
BL
Government type
republic
National capital
La Paz (seat of government); Sucre (legal capital and seat of judiciary)
Administrative divisions
9 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Chuquisaca,
Cochabamba, Beni, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosi, Santa Cruz, Tarija
Independence
6 August 1825 (from Spain)
National holiday
Independence Day, 6 August (1825)
Constitution
2 February 1967; revised in August 1994
Legal system
based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage
18 years of age, universal and compulsory (married); 21 years of age,
universal and compulsory (single)
Executive branch
chief of state:
President Hugo BANZER Suarez (since 6 August 1997); Vice President Jorge
Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez (since 6 August 1997); note - the president is both
the chief of state and head of government
head of government:
President Hugo BANZER Suarez (since 6 August 1997); Vice President Jorge
Fernando QUIROGA Ramirez (since 6 August 1997); note - the president is both
the chief of state and head of government
cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the president from a panel of candidates proposed
by the Senate
elections:
president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote
for five-year terms; election last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held June
2002)
election results:
Hugo BANZER Suarez elected president; percent of vote - Hugo BANZER
Suarez (ADN) 22%; Jaime PAZ Zamora (MIR) 17%, Juan Carlos DURAN (MNR) 18%,
Ivo KULJIS (UCS) 16%, Remedios LOZA (CONDEPA) 17%; no candidate received a
majority of the popular vote; Hugo BANZER Suarez won a congressional runoff
election on 5 August 1997 after forming a "megacoalition" with MIR, UCS, CONDEPA,
NFR and PCD
Legislative branch
bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of Chamber
of Senators or Camara de Senadores (27 seats; members are directly elected
by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies or Camara
de Diputados (130 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve
five-year terms)
elections:
Chamber of Senators and Chamber of Deputies - last held 1 June 1997
(next to be held June 2002)
election results:
Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party
- ADN 11, MIR 7, MNR 4, CONDEPA 3, UCS 2; Chamber of Deputies - percent of
vote by party - NA; seats by party - ADN 32, MNR 26, MIR 23, UCS 21, CONDEPA
19, MBL 5, IU 4
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (Corte Suprema), judges appointed for a 10-year term by
National Congress
Political parties and leaders
Left Parties:
Free Bolivia Movement or MBL [Antonio ARANIBAR]; Patriotic Axis of Convergence
or EJE-P [Ramiro BARRANECHEA]; April 9 Revolutionary Vanguard or VR-9 [Carlos
SERRATE]; Alternative of Democratic Socialism or ASD [Jerjes JUSTINIANO];
Revolutionary Front of the Left or FRI [Oscar ZAMORA]; Bolivian Communist
Party or PCB [Marcos DOMIC]; United Left or IU [Marcos DOMIC]; Front of National
Salvation or FSN [Manual MORALES Davila]; Socialist Party One or PS-1; Bolivian
Socialist Falange or FSB; Socialist Unzaguista Movement or MAS
Center-Left Parties:
Movement of the Revolutionary Left or MIR [Oscar EID]; Christian Democrat
or PDC [Benjamin MIGUEL]; New Youth Force [Alfonso SAAVEDRA Bruno]
Center Party:
Nationalist Revolutionary Movement or MNR [Gonzalo SANCHEZ DE LOZADA]
Center-Right Parties:
Nationalist Democratic Action or ADN [Enrique TORO]; New Republican
Force or NFR [Manfred REYES VILLA]
Populist Parties:
Civic Solidarity Union or UCS [Johnny FERNANDEZ]; Conscience of the
Fatherland or CONDEPA [Remedios LOZA Alvarado]; Solidarity and Democracy or
SYD; Unity and Progress Movement or MUP [Ivo KULJIS]; Popular Patriotic Movement
or MPP [Julio MANTILLA]
Evangelical Party:
Bolivian Renovating Alliance or ARBOL [Marcelo FERNANDEZ, Hugo VILLEGAS]
Indigenous Parties:
Tupac Katari Revolutionary Liberation Movement or MRTK-L [Victor Hugo
CARDENAS Conde]; Nationalist Katarista Movement or MKN [Fernando UNTOJA];
Front of Katarista Unity or FULKA [Genaro FLORES]; Katarismo National Unity
or KND [Filepe KITTELSON]
International organization participation
AG, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD,
IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber),
ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU,
WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission:
Ambassador Marcelo PEREZ Monasterios
chancery:
3014 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 483-4410 through 4412
FAX:
[1] (202) 328-3712
consulate(s) general:
Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission:
Ambassador Donna Jean HRINAK
embassy:
Avenida Arce 2780, San Jorge, La Paz
mailing address:
P. O. Box 425, La Paz; APO AA 34032
telephone:
[591] (2) 430251
FAX:
[591] (2) 433900
Flag description
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with the
coat of arms centered on the yellow band; similar to the flag of Ghana, which
has a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band
NOTE: The information regarding Bolivia on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Bolivia Government 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Bolivia Government 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.