Latin America Germany is intensifying cooperation with Bolivia on forest protection and climate action
In this connection Minister Schulze said: “Half the remaining rainforests on our planet are in the Amazon region. Protecting them is a task for all of humanity, because if the rainforests are not protected we have no way of protecting the climate either. It is our responsibility to support our partners in the riparian countries of the Amazon. I am therefore pleased that we have been able today to further expand our cooperation with Bolivia on protecting the Amazon. Apart from that, we want to boost the support we are offering Bolivia for its energy transition, and make a contribution towards expanding the use of renewable energies and increased energy efficiency.”
In order to reach these goals, a further 20 million euros is being provided under German development cooperation. In addition, activities aimed at fostering gender equality are also to be expanded. In this context, the Minister is visiting projects in La Paz for the prevention of violence against women and children. The German development cooperation portfolio in Bolivia comprises projects with a current total value of just under 300 million euros.
Tomorrow Minister Schulze will continue her trip with a visit to the Madidi National Park, which is in the Amazon. The protected land within the Park adds up to nearly 19,000 square kilometres, which is an area almost half the size of the Netherlands. Via the Legacy Landscapes Fund, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is engaged in efforts to protect this National Park.
As tasked by the Coalition Agreement, the BMZ has reviewed the list of countries with which Germany in engaged in official bilateral development cooperation. Besides adding Bolivia to the list, the German government has also offered to start bilateral development cooperation with Armenia, Laos, Nepal and Mongolia. This will take the number of partner countries on the BMZ’s list from 61 to 65. The decision to expand the list is based on various criteria, such as increasing the effectiveness and manageability of German development cooperation, addressing current global challenges and reflecting thematic priorities.
Correction: The press release originally stated that “at her meetings with President Luis Arce, Foreign Minister Rogelio Mayta and Planning Minister Sergio Cusicanqui, Minister Schulze talked about the strategic goals of the two countries’ joint cooperation.” As these meetings were not able to take place as planned, this sentence should now read “at her meetings with Vice President David Choquehuanca, Foreign Minister Rogelio Mayta and Vice Minister of Planning Huascar Ajata, Minister Schulze talked about the strategic goals of the two countries’ joint cooperation.”