Bolivia: Physicians (per 1,000 people)

Key figures

How it compares

In 2021, Bolivia had the 10th highest value of the 17 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Bolivia in the 2021 ranking

• Brunei Darussalam — 7th of 17: 1.89
• Syrian Arab Republic — 8th of 17: 1.52
• Tunisia — 9th of 17: 1.32
• Pakistan — 11th of 17: 1.16
• Viet Nam — 12th of 17: 1.11
• Tonga — 13th of 17: 1.01

What this measures

Physicians include generalist and specialist medical practitioners.

Limitations: The WHO compiles data from household and labor force surveys, censuses, and administrative records. Data comparability is limited by differences in definitions and training of medical personnel varies. In addition, human resources tend to be concentrated in urban areas, so that average densities do not provide a full picture of health personnel available to the entire population.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 18 values

Physicians (per 1,000 people) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 2.92 (2017)
• Argentina — 5.11 (2023)
• Bahamas, The — 1.9 (2017)
• Barbados — 2.96 (2022)
• Belize — 1.09 (2018)
• Brazil — 2.36 (2023)
• Chile — 3.33 (2023)
• Colombia — 2.54 (2023)
• Costa Rica — 2.69 (2022)
• Cuba — 9.54 (2021)
• Dominica — 1.16 (2018)
• Dominican Republic

More health data for Bolivia

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 9.82% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 10.14% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 1.82 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 28.98% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 1.88 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 29.9% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 3.7 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 29.44% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 9.63% (2025)

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Questions people ask

What is Bolivia's physicians (per 1,000 people)?

1.28 in 2021, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1960?

It is up 380.9% from 0.27 in 1960 (2.61% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 1.57 in 2016 and the lowest 0.27 in 1960.

How does Bolivia rank?

10th highest of 17 economies with data for 2021.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO); Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Country data.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO); Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Country data Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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