Santa Cruz, Bolivia | What challenges does NPH Bolivia face in providing opportunities for social integration, productive life, and independence to young men and women?
Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos Bolivia has a clear vision: A world without poverty, where all children develop their unique potential, becoming productive members of society serving their community. But what are the challenges to achieving an independent life and becoming productive members?
Education
In Bolivia, according to the Minister of Education, the dropout and school desertion rate has decreased to 1.16% in 2022. The graduation rate (from secondary school) is 97.15%.
In 2024, approximately two million students enrolled in initial, primary, and secondary levels. 49% are female, and 51% are male. About 170,000 students enrolled in the sixth year of secondary school (the final academic year) according to daily reports from the Ministry of Education.
On the other hand, 53,879 students were registered as “withdrawn due to abandonment” during 2022. The Single Student Registry (RUDE) of 2016 indicates that 34,000 children out of a population of 2.6 million students work and study in the country.
What is the outlook for higher education?
According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), in 2016, 26.9% of people aged 19 or older reached higher education; that is, 27 out of 100 attended a training or professional center. In terms of gender, according to these statistics, 28.1% of men have more opportunities to access this level of education, compared to 25% of women. In the same year, 25,792 new professionals graduated from public universities in the Bolivian system, including two universities from the private sector.
Employment
Bolivia has one of the most favorable unemployment rates in the region, at 4.1%, according to the Continuous Employment Survey (ECE) of the INE, which is conducted quarterly.
It is important to consider the quality of employment and living well. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), Bolivia is the country with the highest informal work in the world, with 85% of its workforce.
In a note for the newspaper El Deber (2024), analyst Fernando Romero, president of the College of Economists of Tarija, states that, according to the Continuous Employment Survey, in the fourth quarter of 2023, Bolivia’s Economically Active Population was 6.9 million people, and it is estimated that only 1,053,470 of these people have formal employment.
“The figure could be much lower,” says Romero, “if we only considered formal employment as those jobs that have a certain quality measured by a contract registered with the Ministry of Labor, social benefits, medical coverage, job stability, satisfied labor rights, and others. It is estimated that the population with formal and quality employment would only be around 5% of the entire workforce in the country”.
Given these figures, what is the general outlook for an independent life?
In May 2024, the Bolivian government increased the minimum wage to Bs. 2500 ($359 at the official exchange rate) in formal jobs. However, according to data collected by the Fide News Agency, the average salary of a Bolivian worker is Bs. 1501 per month. In the informal sector, it is Bs. 705, and in the domestic sector, it is Bs. 373.3.
Faced with this reality, NPH Bolivia responds with its Youth and Economic Empowerment component, with community care homes that operate under the Transition to Independent Living methodology and a professionalization project that supports young high school graduates to continue with higher education.
Through our services, we provide access to vocational training for young men and women in transition, with psychosocial skills workshops, psychometric aptitude and interest tests, and experiential experiences with professionals for a better perception of the areas. We facilitate the first work experience, with our network of local contacts, promoting progressive autonomy and responsible management of their earnings.
Regarding social and labor insertion, NPH Bolivia promotes and encourages leadership, encouraging young men and women in transition and professionalization to explore entrepreneurship, maintain stable work, participate in social activities, and perform community service.
With this component, NPH Bolivia provides the necessary tools for young men and women to develop their skills to the fullest, to compete in their societies under fair conditions so that they can contribute to their own economic sustainability and that of their families.