town and river port, northern Paraguay. Lying across the Paraguay River from Brazil, the town dates from 1792 when a fort called Borbón was established on the present site. Fuerte Olimpo, which lies in the thinly populated Chaco Boreal, is the area's principal port and serves as a trade centre. Livestock raising is the principal economic activity in the region; tanneries and tileworks are located in Fuerte Olimpo. The town is accessible for part of the year by a branch road running north and east from the trans-Chaco highway, but most travel south to Asunción is by river. Pop. (2002) urban area, 1,696.