Santa Cruz (Spanish pronunciation: [ˌsanta ˈkɾus]) is the largest of the nine constituent departments of Bolivia, occupying about one-third (33.74%) of the country's territory.

The department covers a vast expanse of territory in eastern Bolivia, much of it rainforests, extending from the Andes to the border with Brazil.

The amount of land cultivated by modern farming techniques is increasing rapidly in the Santa Cruz area, where weather allows for two crops a year.

Bolivia's energy minister said two proposed liquefied petroleum gas plants may allow the country to boost supplies to Brazil and Argentina by 2010, easing a shortage of the fuel after a lack of investment reduced output.

The processing plants would be built in Santa Cruz and each would produce about 200 tons of liquefied petroleum gas a day.

Located in the Germán Busch Province in the Santa Cruz Department of Bolivia, near Puerto Suárez, El Mutún extends across the border into Brazil, where it is called the Serrania de Jacadigo.

The first settlers of Santa Cruz were mainly Spaniards that accompanied Ñuflo de Chávez, as well as Guarani, and some Flemings, Portuguese, Germans and Italians working for the Spanish crown.

Santa Cruz has a multicultural population: 57% are Mestizos with both Indigenous Amazonian and European ascendants, 30% are Natives (Chiquitano, Chane, Ayoreo, as well as Quechua and Aymara internal migrants from other departments.)

Here the climate varies by geographical zone: temperate to cold in the western sierras and warm to hot and humid as one descends into the extensive plains.

Bolivian president Evo Morales was planning to introduce legislation to tackle the poverty in the country using tax revenues from richer departments like Santa Cruz.