It has been almost three years since Evo Morales was elected president
of Bolivia with a historically unprecedented mandate and began to
implement political and economic changes long demanded by a majority of
Bolivians. As a result of the 2005 hydrocarbons law and
re-nationalization of the hydrocarbons sector in 2006, the government
has gained $1.3 billion dollars, or about 10 percent of GDP, from
2004-2007. The government has begun to use these revenues to increase
public investment and spending on social needs. It has also initiated a
number of political changes, perhaps the most important being a new
constitution that voters will consider in a referendum in the coming
months.
This event, with Luis Arce, Minister of Finance and Carlos Villegas,
Minister of Development and Planning examined Bolivia’s economic and
political changes, as well as the conflicts resulting from opposition
to these changes. Mark Weisbrot, Co-Director at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, made the introductory remarks.
Video
Presentations by Minister Luis Arce and Mark Weisbrot
Presentation by Minister Carlos Villegas (in Spanish)
