ECONOMIC GROWTH PROGRAM
Forest, Water and Biodiversity Resources Managed for Sustained Economic Growth

Bolivia is rich in natural resources, with more forests than Central America and Mexico combined. Using innovative public-private partnerships, USAID seeks to achieve the following results:

• Forestry management improved;
• Targeted parks and protected areas conserved; and
• Urban and industrial pollution reduced through improved environmental management.

USAID promotes equitable and participatory governance, economic development and job creation, social inclusion, and added incentives for responsible resource stewardship. The program directly supports the Bolivia Productiva pillar of the National Development Plan (PND) of the Government of Bolivia.

Forestry Management Improved

The forestry sector is a cornerstone sector in Bolivia’s economic and social development. Conservative estimates indicate that with additional targeted and well-conceived interventions in the sector, forestry exports could more than quadruple from about $150 million annually to over $600 million annually, while employment in the sector could increase from about 50,000 jobs currently to more than 80,000.

USAID’s forestry program promotes greater opportunities for Bolivians from sustainable forest management and improving the competitiveness of Bolivian forestry exports through community forestry, better social, economic and environmental practices. The program reinforces the interdependence of community forestry initiatives with large forestry manufacturers and exporters and municipal governments to maximize the productive and sustainable use of Bolivia’s forest lands.  Finally, USAID strengthens forest regulatory systems.

Targeted Parks and Protected Areas Conserved

Bolivia’s protected areas cover roughly 16% of the country, including some of the world’s most biodiverse areas.  For example, just one area –Madidi National Park – is home to 11% of all the bird species on earth. 
Bolivia’s protected areas and their buffer zones are also home to an estimated 1.5 million people of whom 80% live in poverty. 

Social conflict coming from land pressures and the need for economic opportunities have resulted in increased incursions into the parks for illegal hunting, logging and cultivation of coca and other crops.  To mitigate conflict in these areas and protect Bolivia’s globally significant biodiversity, USAID supports alternative and sustainable livelihood opportunities, such as ecotourism for local people and strengthening governance systems. The program also promotes equitable implementation of land tenure policies; strengthens institutional capacities to develop key policies and technical tools that promote biodiversity conservation; and raises awareness on biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of natural resources through formal and informal education.

Urban and Industrial Pollution Reduced through Improved Environmental Management

The USAID-supported Bolivian non-profit organization the Center for the Promotion of Sustainable Technologies (CPTS) works with key industries to re-design their production processes, reducing pollution and increasing energy efficiency while lowering production costs.  By saving companies money, the program provides a powerful financial incentive to adopt production practices that reduce pollution.   Audits show that CPTS has been able to save the equivalent of two months of water consumption by the City of La Paz each year.  Improving environmental performance assists industries to meet the international production standards required to access more lucrative markets, such as the U.S. and the European Union.

PUMA Foundation

The Enterprise for the Americas Initiative Fund in Bolivia was created through a bilateral debt reduction agreement of more than $370 million with the United States in August 1991. The account, now known as the Foundation for the Protection and Sustainable Use of the Environment (PUMA, in its Spanish acronym), has a $17 million endowment, with about $2 million provided annually for grants to non-governmental and community organizations to carry out natural resource management, biodiversity and other environmental activities.   

Program Impact

• With USAID support, Bolivia remains the global leader in the management of natural tropical forests with over nine million of its 32 million hectares of designated forest lands now under approved management plans. Working closely with key stakeholders, USAID helped Bolivia to become the world’s leader in forest certification, with more than 2.2 million hectares of forest voluntarily certified.

• Under a public-private alliance with the Tahuamanu Group (a private Bolivian company), CADEFOR, and the PUMA Foundation, a wood collection and drying hub is being developed in the department of Pando to increase wood exports. This activity will serve as a model to create additional hubs required to meet the demand for quality processed wood exports.

• USAID assisted in the creation of the Pampas del Yacuma protected area, the largest municipal protected area in Bolivia with an area of 616,643 hectares.

• USAID assistance has resulted in the completion of land titling for the Tacana indigenous group and generation of income for rural communities through the creation of community-based tourism initiatives.

• 25 Bolivian professionals were trained in the use of economic environmental valuation tools that will help them to promote the conservation and sustainable use of Bolivia’s rich biological resources.

• With USAID assistance, more than 67 firms in Bolivia are now applying clean production technologies that reduce pollution, improve efficiencies and increase the bottom line.  For example, USAID assistance to introduce clean production processes with quinoa increased production capacity five-fold in the pilot factory resulting in increased product exports to the U.S. and Europe.