Opening up trade in Bolivia
Gaining international status in 2018 proved to be a game changer for three of Bolivia’s river ports, not only for domestic trade, but also on an international level. It opened up a new world of possibilities along the 3,000 km Paraguay-Paraná waterway leading to the Atlantic Ocean.
Bismark Rosales, the general manager of Port of Jennefer in Bolivia, said. “Our country had a very large supply of soybeans, urea and cement to export, but we were not competitive in international markets due to the very costly logistics required to transport the goods by land to the ports of neighbouring countries.”
Over 80% of international trade is carried by sea. Without a coastline providing access to global maritime routes, importers and exporters in Bolivia had to rely on ports in neighbouring countries, such as Chile, to trade with the world. The rugged terrain leading across the Andean mountains to Chile’s ports meant that the transit costs to reach the Pacific Ocean were often the most expensive part of total shipping costs.
Yet, in just three years since 2018, the volume of international cargo floating to and from the country along the waterway has increased by 62%, reaching 2.1 million t in 2021. Joining Unctad’s Train For Trade port management programme in 2016 was an important milestone in this development. (sh)