Quaker Bolivia Link was founded by Quakers returning from a tour of Bolivia and concerned about the tremendous poverty they saw there.
QBL has 2 full time and 3 part time staff in Bolivia, and a number of volunteers. QBL has 2 part time staff in the USA, and one in the UK. The 2003 budget was $186,000.
The mission of QBL is to reduce poverty among the indigenous peoples of Bolivia. It funds, supervises and evaluates community-initiated projects primarily in agriculture, education and health. By empowering rural women, families and communities, QBL promotes the preservation of indigenous cultures and languages.
QBL listens to the needs and concerns of marginalized people. It funds projects that address the root causes of their poverty.
QBL seeks partners at all levels, often co-funding projects with Bolivian non governmental organizations.
QBL does not fund projects with a religious purpose or that excludes anyone on the basis of their religious beliefs.
Why Bolivia? Bolivia is the least developed country in South America. 97% of the rural population lives below the poverty line. The international community often overlooks Bolivia because its problems are not the result of natural disasters, violent conflict or terrorism. 65% of Bolivians are indigenous Andean people, poor and marginalized in their own country. There is widespread malnutrition. 42% of Bolivians live on family farms, and the solutions to their core problems can be addressed effectively on a small scale. This is where Quaker Bolivia Link has been bringing real change over the last ten years.
QBL only funds projects that derive from the communities themselves. It does not impose our ideas. Instead, it helps each community by providing skilled planning, supervised construction and long-term evaluation.
Dozens of QBL-funded projects are running across the Altiplano. They fall under three major headings: water systems, agriculture and other projects.