Bolivia has 9 departments, its top-level administrative divisions.
The departments are Beni, Chuquisaca, Cochabamba, La Paz, Oruro, Pando, Potosí, Santa Cruz, and Tarija. Each has a departmental government and representation in Bolivia’s national legislature. They are further divided into provinces and municipalities.
Bolivia’s departments span very different landscapes. La Paz, Oruro, Potosí, and parts of Cochabamba lie in the Andes and high plateau, while Beni, Pando, and Santa Cruz include extensive lowland and Amazonian environments. Tarija occupies a warmer southeastern region, and Chuquisaca includes the constitutional capital, Sucre.
A frequent source of confusion is counting Bolivia’s provinces or municipalities instead of departments. The country has many more lower-level administrative units, but the first-level division remains nine departments. Another constitutional distinction is that Sucre is the constitutional capital, while La Paz is the seat of the national government.