# Bolivia and Paraguay compared Bolivia and Paraguay side by side: 41 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 2 events their chronicles record of each other. Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/bol-vs-pry Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates) Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation. ## Formation - Bolivia: 6 August 1825 — Bolivia declares its independence from Spain - Paraguay: 15 May 1811 — Paraguay declares its independence from Spain ## Economy | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | GDP | $55 B | 2024 | $44 B | 2024 | | GDP per capita | $4,421 | 2024 | $6,416 | 2024 | | GDP growth | -1.1% | 2024 | 4.2% | 2024 | | Inflation | 5.1% | 2024 | 3.8% | 2024 | | Trade openness | 47.0% | 2024 | 76.8% | 2024 | ## Society | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population | 12 m | 2024 | 6.9 m | 2024 | | Life expectancy | 68.7 yrs | 2024 | 74.0 yrs | 2024 | | Urban population | 71.2% | 2024 | 69.9% | 2024 | | Fertility rate | 2.5 | 2024 | 2.4 | 2024 | ## Governance | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Voice & accountability | 49.2 | 2024 | 54.2 | 2024 | | Political stability | 56.6 | 2024 | 64.6 | 2024 | | Government effectiveness | 39.5 | 2024 | 44.4 | 2024 | | Regulatory quality | 35.1 | 2024 | 52.6 | 2024 | | Rule of law | 35.1 | 2024 | 46.9 | 2024 | | Control of corruption | 27.7 | 2024 | 27.1 | 2024 | ## Health | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Health spending | 6.9% | 2023 | 8.4% | 2023 | | Physicians | 1.28 | 2021 | 3.89 | 2022 | | Under-5 mortality | 15.7 | 2024 | 16.3 | 2024 | | Measles immunisation | 67.0% | 2024 | 90.0% | 2024 | | Safe drinking water | — | — | 64.4% | 2024 | ## Education | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Adult literacy | 96.7% | 2024 | 94.9% | 2024 | | Education spending | 7.5% | 2024 | 3.5% | 2024 | | Primary enrolment | 93.7% | 2024 | 89.4% | 2024 | | Secondary enrolment | 90.5% | 2024 | 79.1% | 2024 | | Tertiary enrolment | — | — | 37.6% | 2010 | ## Technology | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | R&D spending | 0.1% | 2021 | 0.1% | 2023 | | Researchers (per million) | 63 | 2021 | 139 | 2023 | | Internet users | 79.7% | 2024 | 81.6% | 2024 | | Mobile subscriptions | 98 | 2024 | 127 | 2023 | | High-tech exports | 8.8% | 2024 | 10.5% | 2024 | ## Geography | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Land area | 1,083,300 km² | 2023 | 396,012 km² | 2023 | | Forest area | 46.3% | 2023 | 38.5% | 2023 | | Agricultural land | 35.8% | 2023 | 54.1% | 2023 | | CO₂ per capita (t) | 2.3 | 2024 | 1.2 | 2024 | | Renewable energy | 12.8% | 2021 | 58.8% | 2021 | ## Resources | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Resource rents | 9.5% | 2021 | 1.3% | 2021 | | Oil rents | 1.3% | 2021 | 0.1% | 2021 | | Mineral rents | 5.9% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 | | Forest rents | 0.4% | 2021 | 1.3% | 2021 | | Electricity access | 99.8% | 2023 | 99.8% | 2023 | | Zinc (mined) | 500 kt | 2025 | — | — | ## Military | Metric | Bolivia | Observed | Paraguay | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Military burden | 1.4% | 2024 | 0.9% | 2024 | | Defense spending | $655 M | 2024 | $414 M | 2024 | | Armed forces | 71,000 | 2020 | 29,000 | 2020 | Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/BOL.md and https://terralore.co/country/PRY.md. ## Entangled histories (2 events) Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources. - 1932-1935: **The Chaco War** — Paraguay and Bolivia fight a costly war over the Gran Chaco; about 100,000 men die before a 1935 truce, with most of the region awarded to Paraguay by the 1938 treaty. (from the Paraguay chronicle; sources: Chaco War; History of Paraguay) - 1932-1935: **The Chaco War with Paraguay** — Bolivia is defeated by Paraguay in a brutal war over the Gran Chaco, losing most of the disputed land and discrediting the old governing order. (from the Bolivia chronicle; sources: Chaco War; Bolivia: A Country Study) ## Sources - World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org - Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators - Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho - Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org - R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org - ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics - Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center - Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/BOL/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/PRY/chronicle.md. Citation template: Terralore, "Bolivia and Paraguay compared", terralore.co/compare/bol-vs-pry, retrieved .