Economy Overview
Bolivia, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, reformed its economy after suffering a disastrous economic crisis in the early 1980s. The reforms spurred real GDP growth, which averaged 4 percent in the 1990s, and poverty rates fell. Economic growth, however, lagged again beginning in 1999 because of a global slowdown and homegrown factors such as political turmoil, civil unrest, and soaring fiscal deficits, all of which hurt investor confidence. In 2003, violent protests against the pro-foreign investment economic policies of President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA led to his resignation and the cancellation of plans to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large northern hemisphere markets. Foreign investment dried up as companies adopted a wait-and-see attitude regarding new President Carlos MESA's willingness to protect investor rights in the face of increased demands by radical groups that the government expropriate foreign-owned assets. Real GDP growth in 2003 and 2004 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia remains dependent on foreign aid from multilateral lenders and foreign governments.
Agriculture Products
soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber
Industries
mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing
Industrial Production Growth Rate
5.7% (2004 est.)
Labor Force
3.8 million (2004 est.)
Electricity production
4.132 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity Consumption
3.848 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity Exports
3 million kWh (2002)
Electricity Imports
9 million kWh (2002)
Unemployment Rate
Unemployment rate: 9.2% in urban areas
Note: widespread underemployment (2003 est.)
Population Below Poverty Line
64% (2004 est.)
Household Income or Consumption by Percentage Share
Lowest 10%: 1.3%
Highest 10%: 32% (1999)
Distribution of Family Income Gini Index
44.7 (1999)
Budget
Revenues: $2.264 billion
Expenditures: $2.769 billion, including capital expenditures of $741 million (2004 est.)
Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate
Market Value of Publicly Traded Shares
Reserves of Foreign Exchange and Gold
$1.214 billion (2004 est.)
Debt External
$5.439 billion (June 2004 est.)
Stock of Direct Foreign Investment at Home
Stock of Direct Foreign Investment Abroad
Exchange Rates
bolivianos per US dollar - 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002), 6.6069 (2001), 6.1835 (2000)
