Bolivia - Useful information for your trip

Bolivia is situated in South America; its constitutional capital is Sucre, but the administrative capital is La Paz. Since it does not have direct access to the sea, in 2010 an agreement was signed with Peru to obtain the use of the Port of Ilo. Its territory is separated into two geographic areas: the eastern tropical area and, in the western part, the Andes. In the region of Chaco, to the east, the largest tropical rainforest in the world is located.

Because of its morphology, Bolivia is one of the most biodiverse countries on Earth: on the Andean plateau the climate is cooler, while in the Southern part the climate is similar to that of the desert. Finally, the tropical land is characterized by two climatic areas: one to the north, with the typical Amazon temperatures and rainfalls, and one to the south, milder and drier.

Bolivian natural environment has been abundantly altered by human intervention over the last few years, but the country still boasts a huge biodiversity, with around 25 thousand species of plants and 1,400 species of birds. This ecosystem is constantly threatened though: it is estimated that every year around 700 thousand hectares of rainforest are destroyed, due to the expansion of cropland, agro-industry, timber industry and hunting.

The economic system has been changing considerably over the last few decades: in the '80s it was based on free market, a system which increased taxes and aggravated workers' conditions. In 2005, with the election of Evo Morales, the economy became mixed, causing a rapid Gdp growth and the nationalization of industries and companies. The most profitable agricultural product is still coca. Bolivia is in fact the third world producer. An important role is also played by soybean, cotton, coffee and sugar exports.

Industry is mainly based on the textile sector, food- processing, beverages and tobacco. Services remain deeply underdeveloped; nevertheless, tourism has been considerably growing over the last 15 years. Bolivia exhibits a great variety of natural and artificial attractions, such as the Andes, the longest mountain range in the world, La Paz , the highest seat of government in the wolrd, Titicaca lake, where the Uros population lives, Kalasasaya Temple, heritage of the Inca civilization and Yungas Road, which attracts milions of cyclists every year.

And then again, the city of Potosi, Unesco World heritage, the highest in the world, famous for its several silver mines and Madidi National park, containig the Amazonas river basin.