Bolivia

Bolivia: strong, sustained growth, 1980–2025

Landlocked and resource-dependent (natural gas, minerals, and more recently lithium), Bolivia's economy has cycled between market-oriented and state-led development models along with its politics. Between 1980 and 2025, Bolivia's GDP per capita grew from $788 to $5,148 (current US$), a compound annual growth rate of 4.3% — strong, sustained growth. Annual GDP growth averaged 2.6% with a year-to-year standard deviation of 3.6 points, reflecting relatively stable macroeconomic conditions. Structurally, agriculture's share of the economy moved from 16.9% to 8.8% of GDP (a classic decline as the economy industrialized/modernized), while services rose from 44.7% to 53.4% of GDP, underscoring a shift toward a services-driven economy. On human development, life expectancy rose from 51.8 to 68.7 years, while the urban population share grew from 44.1% to 71.6%.

What this growth cost: Growth was not without cost: per-capita CO2 emissions rose from 0.86 to 2.29 tonnes CO2e per person; income inequality (Gini index) narrowed from 42.0 to 40.9; the poverty headcount ratio fell from 5.8% to 2.1%.