Bolivia

BOLIVIA, named after independence fighter Simón Bolívar, broke away from Spanish rule in 1825.

1,100,000 SQ KM

11,800,000

  • Language

    • Spanish 60.7%
    • Quechua 21.2%
    • Aymara 14.6%
    • Other native languages 1.0%

  • Public Education:

    With the construction of rural schools, indigenous and rural children get more opportunity to be literate and to complete primary school.

  • Poverty

    Population below the poverty line: 30%, based on percent of population living on less than the international standard of $2/day.

By 2027 we will enroll more than one thousand students, and over 250 boys and girls will be graduating annually with a high school diploma. Annual budget USD 760,000 / CAD 951,000. No more poverty!

  Download our Detailed Plan

Our board members

We have ZERO management fees!

We are all volunteers, we pay our own expenses.

All disbursements, and travel costs to Bolivia are paid privately.

Other than banking fees, every penny that is donated is sent to Bolivia.

Our board members

  • Willem Langelaan

  • Jim Higgins

  • Ieva Martin

  • Tal Akermanis

  • Hans Juergensen

  • Cheryl van Leeuwen

  • Lydia Panart

  • Diane Léonard

  • John van Leeuwen

  • Cathy McNabb

  • Honorata Pienkowska

  • María del Pilar Quiroga

Support team in Bolivia

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Norka, Zulma, Sandra, German, Virginia and Magda are some of the members that make work in Bolivia possible. Their work as teachers and collaborators allows our foundation to help many children with limited resources.

Willem Langelaan

Willem Langelaan

Founder and President of the Bolivia Education Foundation

How 20 years of charity work led to Casas de Educación

Project developments

  • 2000 Retired as architect-engineer & 3D CAD software developer and started volunteering at Hospital Cuschieri
  • 2001-2013 Consulted AGRUCO and Universidad Mayor de San Simón in a project that benefitted the lives of indigenous smallholding potato farming families, a total of 6,000 people.
  • 2009 Sponsored a program for young Quechua and Aymara women at the Instituto de Educación Rural, IER, in Quillacollo.
  • 2010 Elected Vice President of the Society of the Human Family in Christ, a Canadian charity supporting health care and education in Bolivia.
  • 2014-2015 Procured a new Siemens digital X-ray machine for SHFiC’s Hospital in Cuschieri. He renovated the X-ray room and installed the new digital X-ray machine.
  • 2016 Architectural consultant for a new support building for SHFiC’s Programa Sagrada Familia, in Colcapirhua.
  • 2017 Developed a 10m high, 20,000 liter water tower to irrigate 0.5 acre of arid land at the IER for an orchard.
  • 2018 Developed the McNabb Family Orchard. The first crop from the 144 fruit trees is expected in 2022. The young indigenous students gain the skills to introduce professional modern organic crop management to their remote communities.
  • 2019 Founded the Bolivia Education Foundation, to give an opportunity for secondary education to teenagers from poor families through our Casas de Educación program.
  • 2021 The first 2 Casas de Educación open in 2021.