Bolivia is situated in the centre of South America.
It encompasses 424,194 square miles and has borders with Brazil to the north and east, with Argentina to the south, and with Peru to the west. On the southeast of Bolivia lies the border with Paraguay, while to the southwest lies that with Chile. Although all of Bolivia is located within the Tropic of Capricorn, the country enjoys the full spectrum of existing climates. Due to its proximity to the Equator, the four seasons are not marked with much differentiation in contrast to other continents. Until 1986 the production of minerals such as tin, gold, silver, zinc, lead and others constituted the economic basis of Bolivia.