Plurinational State of Bolivia

While extreme poverty more than halved between 2005 and 2015, falling from 38 to 17 percent, almost one third of Bolivians living in rural areas cannot afford the cost of a basic food basket. Four out of ten women still live in poverty, and gender-based violence indicators are worryingly high.

Malnutrition remains a major public health concern. While the stunting rate for children under 5 has dropped from 33 to 16 percent in ten years, in rural areas it remains as high as 23.7 percent. Inadequate diets and low consumption of nutritious local products due to changing eating habits are at the root of overlapping nutritional problems, including alarming levels of anaemia – which affects 53.7 percent of children under 5 and 29.9 percent of women of reproductive age – and rising overweight and obesity.

Bolivia is considered the most vulnerable country to the effects of climate change in South America. The Government declared a national emergency due to drought (affecting 177,000 families) in 2016 and in 2018 due to floods. Analysts predict that vulnerability to food insecurity will increase by 22 percent by the 2050s unless measures are taken to adapt to a changing climate. Recurring droughts, floods, frosts and hail aggravate the situation of the agricultural sector, threatening the food security of the most vulnerable.

WFP has been in Bolivia since 1963, reaching those most in need across the country. With the improvement of socio-economic conditions and Bolivia reaching middle-income country status, WFP’s role is evolving from directly providing assistance to supporting the Government’s efforts to address food insecurity and malnutrition through technical assistance, advocacy and communications.

To contribute to the eradication of gender disparities, all components of WFP’s work in Bolivia have a strong focus on the empowerment of women and girls.