Working in Bolivia 249These obstacles, in combination with the vestiges of
dependence on a non-value-added export model, continue
to restrict Bolivia’s economic enfranchisement. The
economic awareness of social protesters should be seen
as positive in progressive business sectors, for even the
poorest of Bolivians are aware
of the difference between the
moribund neo-colonial model
and more dynamic forms
of economy.
Areas of business where foreign
visitors of goodwill can be of help
are: managerial skills in the logistics of international cargo,
trade information systems, marketing tools, quality control,
international packaging requirements, product design and
support in all these areas from institutions of higher education
and non-governmental organisations that specialise in trade
and commerce.
Internal Economy Business Climate:
The government elected in December of 2005 might be
described as ‘socialist realist’. The middle word of Movement
Towards Socialism points to what is referred to as ‘Andean
capitalism’. Vice-president Alvaro García Linera points out
that you can’t move toward socialism without an organised
proletariat and established capitalism, neither of which exist
in Bolivia.
In the theoretical terms of the administration that took
power in 2006, ‘Andean capitalism’ is a necessity in a
country where 70 per cent of workers belong to a ‘family
economy’. Andean capitalism may end up as a simple
electoral slogan or may develop into a viable alternative
model. In theory, it is ‘a capitalist regime where family,
indigenous and peasant potentials are balanced and
articulated around a national development project and
productive modernization.’
The prerequisite is a strong state, contrary to the previous
Goni and Bánzer regimes, in which the state, drained and
sapped from massive privatisation of the most strategic
Ultimately, as experience from
rising countries such as South
Korea illustrates, the nurturing
of internal markets creates a
vital safety pad for launching the
export sector.