Bolivian Armed Forces: Bolivian Army (Ejercito de Boliviano, EB), Bolivian Naval Force (Fuerza Naval Boliviana, FNB, includes Marines), Bolivian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Boliviana, FAB); Ministry of Interior: National Police (PolicĂa Nacional de Bolivia, PNB; includes Anti-Narcotics Special Forces (Fuerza Especial de Lucha Contra el Narcotráfico, FELCN) and other paramilitary units (2021)
Armed Forces Command (Commando de las Fuerzas Militares): Army (Ejercito), Navy (Armada, includes marines), Air Force (Fuerza Aerea) (2021)
Military service age and obligation
compulsory for all men between the ages of 18 and 22; men can volunteer from the age of 16, women from 18; service is for one year; Search and Rescue service can be substituted for citizens who have reached the age of compulsory military service; duration of this service is 2 years (2019)
18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation is 12 months for Army, 24 months for Navy; volunteers for the Air Force must be younger than 22 years of age with a secondary school diploma (2016)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
1.4% of GDP (2019)
1.5% of GDP (2018)
1.5% of GDP (2017)
1.6% of GDP (2016)
1.6% of GDP (2015)
1% of GDP (2019)
0.9% of GDP (2018)
0.9% of GDP (2017)
1% of GDP (2016)
1.1% of GDP (2015)
Military and security service personnel strengths
information varies; approximately 40,000 active troops (27,000 Army; 5,000 Navy; 8,000 Air Force); note - a considerable portion of the Navy personnel are marines and naval police (2021)
the Armed Forces of Paraguay have approximately 14,000 active personnel (9,000 Army; 3,000 Navy; 2,000 Air Force) (2021)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
the Bolivian Armed Forces are equipped with a mix of mostly older Brazilian, Chinese, European, and US equipment; since 2010, China and France are the leading suppliers of military hardware to Bolivia (2020)
the Paraguayan military forces inventory is comprised of mostly older equipment from a variety of foreign suppliers, particularly Brazil and the US; since 2010, Paraguay has acquired small quantities of mostly second-hand military equipment from Argentina, Brazil, Israel, Taiwan, and the US (2020)
