An investigation by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, based in Amsterdam, in coordination with the Center for Documentation and Information Bolivia (CEDIB), reports that Bolivia imported in the last four years, between 647 and 1,366 tons of mercury (there are no current, reliable figures from the Government, the source is suppliers from Mexico that handle the two numbers above). Imports of this mineral until 2014 were at a rate of 15 tons per year. Bolivia signed the Minamata Convention in Japan in 2013, committing countries to gradually reduce the import and use of mercury in their respective territories.
Day: Apr 22, 2020
Budgets coming from the HDT will be reduced by approximately 45%
The 2020 budget for the central government, governorates, mayors' offices and universities, which receive resources from the Direct Tax on Hydrocarbons (IDH), will be reduced by 45%, with the impact being more significant in governorates since they depend solely on the IDH. Projects will have to be prioritized and enter a period of austerity.
Soybean producers will stop receiving $100 million in the summer campaign
The soybean producers will stop receiving $100 million because they will stop producing 400,000 tons projected in the summer season. The droughts affected more than 200,000 hectares in the eastern part of the department of Santa Cruz, with yields of less than 1,200 kilos per hectare (they expected 2,900 kilos per hectare).
The savings from importing liquid derivatives will be $550 mn.
The fall in oil affected the sale of gas to the external market, but also reached the import of liquids that the country promotes for the domestic market. The savings from the import of hydrocarbons liquids, including gasoline, will be approximately $550 million. Therefore, the prices of fuels, such as gasoline and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), will maintain their prices.
ECLAC lowers GDP projection for Bolivia to -3%
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) projects a drop in Bolivia's economic growth from 3% to -3%, due to the economic and social effects of the coronavirus in the country and the world. Latin America and the Caribbean will suffer a recession of 5.3%. Source: La Razón
Until February 2020 Bolivia received $180 mn in family remittances from abroad
Between 2006 and 2019, remittances received exceeded $15 billion. In 2019 Bolivia received $52 million less compared to 2018. By February 2020, more than $86 million came from Spain, followed by the United States and neighbouring countries such as Chile, Brazil and Argentina. Workers' remittances were mainly sent to the country's backbone, $180 million.
