Key challenges

President Evo Morales addresses a packed press conference accompanied by Vice-President Alvaro Garcia Linera [Nick Buxton]

Although the Morales government does bring hope, Bolivia still faces huge challenges, and large foreign debts reduce its capacity to provide for its people

Poverty

Highland areas have suffered from a lack of investment in infrastructure, and rural livelihoods are suffering from droughts and loss of livestock.

Inequality

A rich business class imports luxury goods from the US while poor indigenous families struggle to earn an income. There is unequal access to education, water and electricity.

Natural resources

Some argue that large foreign multinationals take profits out of the country, others say their investment and expertise are needed.

Participation

The challenge is to equip communities with the skills and confidence to hold their representatives to account.

Many hope this situation will now improve and these groups become more integrated because the country has elected its first indigenous president, Evo Morales, who has promised to integrate the excluded and marginalised.

So far he has:

• Negotiated fairer contracts with foreign oil and gas companies, and nationalised mining, creating more money for education and social projects
• Established an elected constituent assembly to write a constitution ensuring fairer representation for all
• Begun redistributing idle land to reduce extreme inequalities in land ownership

CAFOD partners mainly support rural communities’ livelihoods through improving methods of agriculture and livestock rearing.

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