Sida's work in Bolivia
Bolivia has made social and economic progress in the last 15 years, but many people still live in poverty and women are discriminated against in several areas. Bolivia has major environmental problems, mainly due to deforestation. The development cooperation leads to a more sustainable use of natural resources and reduces the country's climate impact. It improves people's living conditions and strengthens respect for human rights and gender equality.
Sida’s support in Bolivia 2021 2024
Why do Sida work in Bolivia?
Deforestation affects the climate
Climate change is contributing to recurrent droughts and forest fires, affecting people and biodiversity. Bolivia is one of the fastest deforesting countries in the world, partly due to the rapid expansion of agricultural land for increased beef and soya exports. As deforestation is directly linked to increased CO2 emissions, Bolivia is one of the countries with the highest per capita greenhouse gas emissions in the world.1
Uncertain democratic development
Politics is characterised by conflicts and strong contradictions. Democratic development in the country is uncertain and human rights are not fully respected. Civil society has lost ground in recent years and leading opposition politicians have been detained or imprisoned on dubious grounds.
Inequality in politics and the economy
More than half of women in Bolivia have experienced violence by a partner.2 Access to sexual and reproductive rights (SRHR) is limited and maternal mortality is high due to complications related to unsafe abortions. Although many women work, it is often under poor and unequal conditions. And even though the country has one of the highest proportions of women in parliament in the world, discrimination and attacks on politically active women occur.3
Examples of what Sida contributes to:
Limiting climate impact and deforestation
Sida supports the country’s environmental movements and contributes, for example, to sustainable solutions in production and consumption, reducing the country’s climate impact and increasing people’s ability to withstand climate crises. Indigenous peoples are given greater opportunities to protect their territories, which helps to preserve valuable ecosystems with great biodiversity.
Strengthening respect for human rights
Sida supports civil society and organisations that work to increase respect for human rights. Examples include support to organisations that work for a free press and strengthen respect for human rights, including for LGBTI people and indigenous peoples.
Increasing gender equality
Sida supports organisations that contribute to increased gender equality and combat violence against women, for example by drawing attention to gender roles and strengthening women’s economic power through loans to female small businesses. Sida contributes to the work against digital violence and strengthens gender equality work in parliament.
Development cooperation in Bolivia
Sida contributes to improving the lives of people living in poverty. The development cooperation strengthens the country’s ability to reduce its climate impact and contributes to more sustainable use of natural resources. Sida supports efforts to increase respect for human rights, greater gender equality and an economy that benefits all people.
Bolivia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, but it is threatened by climate change, widespread forest fires and the ruthless exploitation of its natural resources. Bolivia is one of the fastest deforesting countries in the world and is most affected by the negative impacts of climate change.7
Air and water pollution and environmental toxins degrade human health and reduce access to water. Agriculture is often inefficient and vulnerable to extreme weather. Every year parts of the country are affected by droughts and floods.
Sida’s work in the climate and environment area is carried out through Swedish development cooperation and within the EU environmental aid. Sida helps people to grow crops more sustainably, which reduces deforestation and the risk of forest fires. Sida contributes, for example, to building monitoring and fire-fighting systems. Here are some examples of programmes and projects that Sida supports:
Based on the Paris Agreement’s decision that high-income countries should financially support the environmental efforts of low-income countries to achieve climate goals, Sida is supporting Bolivia in building a system for monitoring and distributing climate finance, which is a prerequisite for accessing international climate finance. The system has allowed Bolivia to apply for funding in exchange for protecting over 12 million hectares of endangered forest in the Amazon.
The recurring forest fires and drought are taking a heavy toll on rural people and their livelihoods. Sida is supporting the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to work with Bolivia’s rural population to develop sustainable farming methods and practices to reduce the risk of forest fires.
Climate change has made uncontrolled forest fires an annual phenomenon in Bolivia. In cooperation with several local environmental organisations, Sida is supporting the training and equipping of local fire brigades, as well as monitoring systems that provide quick and updated information on burning fires.
FAN real-time monitoring of forest fires on Satrifo’s website
Large parts of the population lack access to water, sanitation and functional waste management. Through cooperation with the organisations Agua Tuya, UNICEF, Helvetas, and SwissContact, Sida contributes to improved and more sustainable water, sewage and waste systems.
Many people do not know how they could reduce their impact on the climate and environment. Sida supports the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and a programme for environmental education and local environmental action. The project helps organisations develop their cities so that they can better withstand climate change. It also protects urban green spaces.
Pest attacks and other climate impacts are affecting Bolivian agriculture – in some areas harvests have been reduced by over 40 per cent. The organisation SwissContact is increasing agricultural production and resilience through new varieties of traditional crops such as potatoes and quinoa. As a result, crop resilience has increased by 50 per cent and productivity by 20 per cent. The use of organic pesticides and strengthened cooperation between private and public actors in the agricultural sector is contributing to more sustainable food production and has enabled exports to Sweden and Europe.
Democratic development in the country is uncertain and human rights are not fully respected. Civil society has been marginalised in recent years and leading opposition politicians have been detained or imprisoned on dubious grounds.
The state lacks control over parts of the country and illegal mining, drug production and deforestation are widespread. Corruption is rife and the judicial system is ineffective. Women are discriminated against, often subjected to violence and have significantly lower incomes than men.
Sida supports organisations in civil society and within the UN that work for the rights and freedoms of vulnerable groups, including for law enforcement authorities to take gender-based violence seriously and offer protection and support to vulnerable women. Sida strengthens democracy, the rule of law, gender equality and human rights.
Here are some examples of programmes and projects that Sida supports:
Sida supports local groups such as Colectivo Rebeldía that strengthen the organisation of LGBTQI people. They also fight gender-based violence.
About the work on Colectivo Rebeldía’s website (in Spanish)
Despite significant female presence in the labour market and in politics, women are treated worse than men in several areas. Gender-based violence is widespread. Sida supports several projects that prevent violence against women and children, including through smallholder farmers discussing issues related to masculinity and behavioural change as they receive information on new agricultural methods and products.
Teenage pregnancies are common and many young women are victims of violence. Sida supports The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), which strengthen women’s rights and provide support to women who have been subjected to violence.
More than a third of Bolivia’s population lives below the national poverty line and there are large economic gaps in society.9
Bolivia has rich natural resources in the form of natural gas, oil and minerals. As the Bolivian economy is dependent on the export of raw materials, the country has been severely affected by falling prices on the world market in recent years.
Sida contributes to the economic empowerment of people, especially women living in poverty, improving smallholder farmers’ farming practices and adaptation to a changing climate, which also increases their income. It also contributes to a more sustainable use of natural resources. Here are some examples of programmes and projects that Sida supports:
The Mercados Inclusivos project enables small farmers to use better farming methods and seeds. They also gain access to infrastructure that increases their income and helps them adapt to a changing climate. Working with Open Trade Gate Sweden (OTGS), smallholders can sell products such as quinoa, organic coffee and chocolate in Sweden and Scandinavia.
Climate change is hitting Bolivia hard. The Bolivian foundation Fautapo works with small farmers to use natural resources in a way that does not harm the environment, including in the Bolivian Amazon. They also work with women to increase their power over their own economy, especially in areas affected by climate change.
Bolivia needs more research on climate and the environment to solve the major challenges facing the country. These include water and soil management and the use of natural resources. Increased research should contribute to economic and social welfare for all people.
Sida supports the large state universities to conduct their own research and development work in areas such as medicine, healthcare, food industry and energy research, in order to contribute to the country’s development and export opportunities in general.
Sida supports research cooperation between Bolivian state universities and Swedish universities, for example in the following ways:
Sida supports a collaboration between Swedish universities and the two Bolivian state universities UMSA and UMSS that enables Bolivian students to complete part of their postgraduate studies in Sweden. When they return to Bolivia, they contribute to strengthening research in chemistry, food management, and several other areas.
- Greenhouse gas emissions per capita in Bolivia on the Conservation Strategy Fund website
- Statistics on the proportion of women who have suffered intimate partner violence on the Human Rights Watch website.
- Proportion of women in world parliaments (2023) on the UN Women website
- Social and economic progress in Bolivia on the World Bank website
- Life expectancy in Bolivia on the World Bank website
- Proportion of Bolivia’s population living in poverty on the World Bank website
- Deforestation in Bolivia on the Conservation Strategy Fund website
- Proportion of Bolivia’s population living in poverty on the World Bank website
Updated: September 18, 2023