The Educational Service in the Mining Corporation of Bolivia (1952-1987)

Abstract

In 1952 Bolivia had a largely illiterate, and predominantly rural, population. In this context, the revolutionary process gave way to the Nationalization of the Mines, and the creation of the Bolivian Mining Corporation, in charge of managing the nationalized mines. It is intended to demonstrate, through the review and comparative analysis of unpublished historical documents that were never reviewed, that the participation of the representatives of the mining workers in the General Directory, an achievement of the mining labor movement, was decisive in achieving the development of a avant-garde educational model in Bolivia, managing to drastically reduce illiteracy rates. However, in 1985, the educational services at COMIBOL were closed, and were transferred to the General Treasury of the Nation. With this fact, Bolivia enters a new political and economic model known as “Neoliberalism”, which causes high rates of extreme poverty, with a negative impact on Bolivian education.