USAID staff in Bolivia are making preparations to leave the country after the office was formally notified of the expulsion order issued by President Evo Morales.
“We sent [the U.S. embassy] the official diplomatic communication regarding the definitive withdrawal of USAID,” Bolivian Presidency Minister Juan Ramon Quintana said on Monday. Quintana explained that during the next few days the Americans will be coordinating with the Bolivian authorities to determine the “rules and procedures” for the U.S. development agency’s exit from the country.
A joint team of Bolivian and U.S. officials will thus identify all ongoing projects, funding and resources allocated to each program, implementing partners and contractors, participating NGOs and beneficiary communities, the minister added.
Evo Morales announced on May 1 his decision to terminate USAID operations in the country, after accusing the agency of meddling in Bolivia’s domestic affairs by inciting indigenous leaders to oppose the construction of a highway in a protected natural area. The order affects programs worth $27.6 million a year.
USAID has spent nearly $2 billion on education, health, agriculture, food security, alternative development, economic development and environment programs in Bolivia since 1964, according to the agency’s fact sheet on the country.
For fiscal year 2014, the Obama administration has requested a preliminary estimate of $13.5 million for development aid programs in Bolivia, down 36 percent from 2013. Of the total, $7.5 million is earmarked for health-related projects.
It is not yet clear how the withdrawal will affect USAID implementing partners in Bolivia, who have complained of ”horrible timing,” but the agency hopes the Bolivian government will continue funding for its programs.
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About the author
Carlos Santamaria
Carlos is a former associate editor for breaking news in Devex's Manila-based news team. He joined Devex after a decade working for international wire services Reuters, AP, Xinhua, EFE ,and Philippine social news network Rappler in Madrid, Beijing, Manila, New York, and Bangkok. During that time, he also covered natural disasters on the ground in Myanmar and Japan.