Climate change, poverty and adaptation in Bolivia

Bolivia
is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change for six basic
reasons:

1. It is
   one of the poorest countries in Latin America
   and suffers from one of the worst patterns of inequality. Low-income
   groups in developing countries are the most exposed to climate change
   impacts.

2. It is
   the country in South America with the
   highest percentage of indigenous people, where much of the poverty and
   inequality is concentrated.

3. It is
   one of the most bio-diverse countries in the world, with a wide variety of
   ecosystems that are vulnerable to different impacts from climate change.

4. More
   than half of the country is Amazonian, with high levels of the
   deforestation which adds to the vulnerability to flooding.

5. Located
   in a climatically volatile region, it is one of the countries in the world
   most affected by natural' disasters in recent years.

6. It is
   home to about twenty per cent of the world's tropical glaciers, which are
   retreating more quickly than predicted by many experts.

In July 2009 a team of Oxfam researchers travelled to three
areas of Bolivia (Trinidad in Beni, the Cochabamba valleys and Khapi under Mount
Illimani, in La Paz) to take a snapshot of how poor families are experiencing
the changing climate, and how they are adapting to it. The researchers
also interviewed key government and international officials, social movements
and NGO representatives. The main findings and recommendations of this report
are:

Main findings:

• Poor
  women and men throughout Bolivia
  are already experiencing the consequences of climate change, but in most
  cases are ill-equipped to adapt to the present and future impacts.

• The
  perception of many villagers and local farmers is that the climate is
  already changing in terms of the unpredictability of the rainfall, more
  extreme weather events and higher temperatures, with negative impacts for
  their livelihoods.

• Oxfam
  has noted that in recent years the frequency and magnitude
  of damage from the extreme weather events have increased. Women are often
  the hardest hit, as they are often the ones left to tend small farms and
  families, and have fewer alternative livelihoods when crops are lost.

• Bolivia
  can expect five main impacts as a result of climate change: less food
  security; glacial retreat affecting water availability; more frequent and
  more intense natural' disasters; an increase in mosquito-borne diseases;
  and more forest fires.

• Of
  these, Oxfam International is particularly concerned that poor women and
  men and indigenous peoples will be affected by the effect of unpredictable
  weather on agricultural production as this could lead to less food
  availability and/or higher food prices.

A full set of recommendations is found in the Conclusions of
this report.

climate-change-poverty-and-adaptation-in-bolivia.pdf