Inclusive development of the green tara value chain in Bolivia

The Inclusive Development of the Green Tara Value Chain in Bolivia - SAYARIY (Quechua language word that means to stand up with strength and energy to consolidate our work and achieve our dreams) project aims to ensure economic social and environmental sustainability of producing families mainly from indigenous communities. The tara pod is extracted from the seeds of a tree high in the Andes. Tara is a high value crop used in the tanning of premium leather. Its seeds are used as stabilizing ingredients in cosmetics and food. This Andean plant improves soil quality promotes biodiversity and helps combat the impacts of climate change. The project aims to regenerate tara production by planting new trees in areas where it had disappeared and where the land is severely degraded. It also contributes to developing the entire value chain from production to marketing in order to guarantee its profitability increase the annual income of families and ultimately stimulate the local economy. Finally the project aims to increase the resilience of vulnerable indigenous populations to climate change and to the diversification of agroforestry in rural areas of Bolivia. Increasing the family income of tara producers will contribute to reduce their food insecurity and diversify their income-generating activities.

The expected outcomes of this project include: (1) increased incomes of indigenous rural families producing tara with a climate-smart agri-environmental approach promoting gender equality. This also includes adaptation to climate change and food security; (2) improved organizational environmental financial and gender equality performance of the organizations that govern the tara green value chain. It is also about the equal participation of indigenous women in the inclusive and sustainable development of the tara value chain; and (3) increased commitment of municipalities in favor of gender equality and the fight against climate change. In a context where families in rural Bolivia are hard hit by climate change and poverty the project will improve the resilience of 3 000 rural indigenous families including 1 800 women. This project must also indirectly benefit 5 000 other indigenous families and generate 10 000 jobs in the 23 municipalities of its implementation.