What share of people in Potosi live in homes built with inadequate materials?

In 2024, 35.9% of people in Potosi live in homes built with inadequate materials, down from 47.3% in 2012 and above the national figure of 21.2% (2nd highest of 9 departments).

What share of people in Potosi have inadequate water and sanitation services?

In 2024, 46.4% of people in Potosi have inadequate water and sanitation services, down from 60.9% in 2012 and above the national figure of 28.8% (3rd highest of 9 departments).

What share of people in Potosi lack adequate energy for lighting or cooking?

In 2024, 37.5% of people in Potosi lack adequate energy for lighting or cooking, down from 49.4% in 2012 and above the national figure of 17.9% (the highest of 9 departments).

What share of people in Potosi are in households with insufficient education (NBI education component)?

In 2024, 43.1% of people in Potosi are in households with insufficient education (NBI education component), down from 57.6% in 2012 and above the national figure of 31.0% (2nd highest of 9 departments).

Poverty and living standards in Potosi, Bolivia: official figures

45.1% of the population of Potosi was poor by the unmet basic needs (NBI) measure in the 2024 census, down from 59.8% in 2012 and above the national figure of 29.8% (the highest of 9 departments).

Population with unmet basic needs (NBI)

45.1%

2024

Is poverty falling in Potosi?

The 2024 census counted 367,858 people with unmet basic needs in Potosi; the NBI poverty rate moved by -14.7 percentage points since 2012, against -15.1 points for Bolivia (5th highest of 9 departments, where a higher figure means a smaller fall).

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

How many people in Potosi live in extreme poverty?

9.2% of people in Potosi were in the two most severe NBI categories (indigent or marginal) in 2024, down from 18.9% in 2012 and above the national figure of 3.8% (the highest of 9 departments).

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

Is poverty higher in rural areas of Potosi?

Poverty by the NBI measure was 70.0% in rural Potosi and 14.5% in urban Potosi in 2024, against 61.8% and 15.8% for rural and urban Bolivia.

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

How Potosi compares with other departments

Population with unmet basic needs (NBI poverty) (2024)

Potosi ranks 1 of 9, highest first. Share of the population measured by the census

Rank	Region	Population with unmet basic needs (NBI poverty)
1	Potosi	45.1%
2	Beni	43.7%
3	Pando	40.8%
4	Chuquisaca	37.6%
5	Oruro	33.1%
6	La Paz	31.8%
7	Cochabamba	29.9%

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

Population in indigent or marginal NBI categories (2024)

Potosi ranks 1 of 9, highest first.

Rank	Region	Population in indigent or marginal NBI categories
1	Potosi	9.2%
2	Chuquisaca	6.4%
3	Beni	4.9%
4	Oruro	4.5%
5	Cochabamba	4.2%
6	La Paz	4.0%
7	Pando	2.6%

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

NBI poverty in rural areas (2024)

Potosi ranks 2 of 9, highest first.

Rank	Region	NBI poverty in rural areas
1	Beni	72.1%
2	Potosi	70.0%
3	Chuquisaca	67.8%
4	Oruro	66.9%
5	Pando	64.9%
6	La Paz	62.7%
7	Cochabamba	60.8%

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

Change in NBI poverty rate since 2012 (percentage points) (2012-2024)

Potosi ranks 5 of 9, highest first.

Rank	Region	Change in NBI poverty rate since 2012 (percentage points)
2	Tarija	-13.2 pts
3	Oruro	-13.9 pts
4	La Paz	-14.5 pts
5	Potosi	-14.7 pts
6	Santa Cruz	-15.0 pts
7	Cochabamba	-15.6 pts
8	Chuquisaca	-16.8 pts

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia · saved copy

More on Potosi: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · Bolivia

Sources

Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Bolivia: Censo 2024, tabulados de Necesidades Basicas Insatisfechas (NBI): population by poverty condition and NBI components, censuses 2012 and 2024 (cuadros 1 and 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 01b9098442d8…)

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