JOB DESCRIPTION

DOCUMENT
Partner Organisation: Ricerca e
Cooperazione
Location: El Alto, Bolivia
Post: Capacity Builder in field of
Intellectual
Disabilities
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CONTENTS

Page

Introduction to Bolivia 3

Current Situation 4

The Problem 6

The Project 7

Partner Organisation 7

Job Description 9

Development Worker Profile 10

Living and working conditions 11

Conditions of Service 12

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1. INTRODUCTION TO BOLIVIA

Bolivia is a country of great contrasts. Geographically, Bolivia has three main regions - the
Altiplano or high plateau, the Valleys and the Lowlands. In terms of altitude, the Altiplano
ranges approximately between 3700 to 4500 metres, valleys descend from these higher areas
to altitudes between 1500 to 3000 metres above sea level. Lower Valleys descend towards the
tropical lowlands to about 400 to 500 metres.

In cultural terms, most inhabitants in Bolivia today can trace their ancestry to the Tiahuanaco
and Inca Empires. Traditionally, these cultures mostly inhabited the Highland and Valleys in
what is now Bolivia. Today, the migration to the main cities and to the lowlands has meant a
spread of the different ethnic groups. These are smaller in number and many have been
subject to heavy influence from migrants from the Highlands and Valleys of Bolivia and from
abroad. Nevertheless, of all the Latin American countries, Bolivia has the highest proportion of
an indigenous population. Within this indigenous population are various ethnic groups with their
own language, beliefs system, customs and so forth, with Quechua and Aymara cultures being
the principal two. More than 50% of the population is bilingual, Spanish being the official
language. According to the latest census, 23% speak Quechua, 16% speak Aymara and 3%
other languages which includes Guarani.

One of the main challenges facing Bolivia today is the need to re-value these indigenous
cultures, respecting their traditions, beliefs and what is referred to as the “cosmovision andina”,
which basically refers to the way these people see life and live accordingly which is focused on
maintaining an equilibrium within the environment of which of course man and woman are part.
But also, last but not least, open the exclusive social, economic and political structures to the
indigenous people therefore ending discrimination and exclusion.

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2. CURRENT SITUATION

Since 1985, the government has followed policies imposed by the IMF. Measures have included
the freeing of price controls, of restrictions on exports and imports, and the labour market.
Moves to reduce public expenditure and towards greater privatisation have led to a
transformation of the State's role. In the first five years after introducing these policies, more
than 20,000 miners from the State Mining Corporation were dismissed, and public sector
salaries were kept at very low levels. Wages fell in real terms during this period, which
coincided with runaway inflation and the collapse of the tin industry (one of Bolivia's main
exports) due to falling prices on the world markets.

Bolivia is the poorest country in South America. Seven of every ten Bolivians are considered to
be poor, (taking poor to signify a lack of money or material possessions such that a person is
unable to meet the basic needs necessary for survival).

- Life expectancy: urban areas – 62 years, rural: 57 years

- Infant mortality rate: (0 to 5 years old) 55.6 per thousand births alive.
- Access to sanitary services: 29% of population
- Children under 3 suffering from chronic malnutrition: 24%

In 1950 the rural population represented 73,8 % of the total population and until the mid
eighties this area had the highest population percentages. However, in recent years this trend
has been reversed by the high migration to urban areas. According to recent data:

- 62.4% of the population now live in urban areas.

- 37.6% of the population now live in rural areas.

This rapid rise in urban population has meant that there are increasing marginal shanty towns
developing particularly in the main cities (La Paz, El Alto, Santa Cruz and Cochabamba). Like
the majority of rural areas, these marginal city areas lack basic services such as water,
sewerage, health posts and adequate schools.

The current economic model introduced in Bolivia in l985 has brought about reasonable
financial stability, in that inflation has remained between around 4%. Since 2000 Bolivia’s growth
rate has ranged from 0 to 4%, however, it has not been able to reduce the ever increasing levels
of poverty among the majority of the population. Some analysts argue that in fact these levels of
poverty have risen, and the gap between the small elite (politically and economically) and the
majority of the population has widened.

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Attempts to reduce this ever increasing gap, such as the “Participacion Popular” (Popular
Participation) Law (l994) have not had the desired effect. This law which attempts to redistribute
previously centralized resources to provincial areas has had wide ranging results. In theory the
law is potentially positive, however, in some areas lack of sufficient training, provision of
information on the law and in-fighting amongst different political tendencies in rural areas have
hindered and delayed positive impact. In other areas successes have been achieved in terms of
developing processes of participative planning with different organisations at provincial levels.
There are also examples of increasing the effective use of natural resources and positive
attempts at developing what are known as “productive municipalities”.

As part of the IMF and World Bank HIPC II Initiative (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries), Bolivia
was obliged in 1997 to produce a Poverty Reduction Strategic Plan. An important point decided
in relation to the PRSP was the decision to strengthen
programmes resulting from the Popular Participation Law between the Bolivian Government and
International Cooperation. This law is seen as having the potential to not only improve
conditions in provincial areas but also as a mechanism for strengthening and empowering
regional and provincial organisations. The Government proposed concerted action plans in
relation to the reduction of poverty with the following main actors: Government, the international
community, civil society and the private sector. However, the actions so far seem to be removed
from the plans, leaving the road to effective poverty reduction still very much unpaved.

Bolivia holds the record as the country with the most frequent changes of presidency, with some
decades averaging one a year. The previous few years have been no exception, with a
succession of changes since Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada (‘Goni’) took presidency in 2002. As
a businessman and wealthy miner, his politics were very much right wing. This brought a wave
of strong social, largely indigenous movements expressing strong dissatisfaction with the
government ideologies and economic model, which, with neo-liberal policies has opened
Bolivian markets to unfair competition. This has led to high levels of unemployment, much black
market trading and an estimated 70% of the workforce in the informal sector, thus not paying
taxes, but also not having any job security, and basically in an extremely vulnerable economic
situation.

Miners in demonstration

October 2003 has since been named ‘Black October’ due to the violent clashes between the
military and the civilians during their protests against the government. The events succeeded in
ousting the President, but tragically cost the lives of over 100 men, women and children and left
many more permanently injured. Since then, Bolivia has seen two ‘interim’ presidents before the
general elections took place in December 2005.

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The elections resulted in the former Coca leader and strong Union fighter Evo Morales – from
the MAS party (Movimiento al Socialismo) being elected by an overwhelming majority of 54% of
the votes –a first in Bolivian history. The next few years will be very significant for Bolivia as we
watch eagerly this new President, representative of the indigenous population, majority and
poorer sectors of the population, a man with humble roots, preside over the country. He has
already declared nationalisation of the hydrocarbons (natural gas) although it remains to be
seen if it is economically and legally viable, in relation to the multinationals that have been
running the industry for years. In January 2009, the newly written State Constitution was
approved via a referendum. There now follows a lengthly process of adapting current laws to
reflect the new policies.

3. THE PROBLEM

The importance placed on disability issues in Bolivia is extremely low and society as a whole is
barely neither aware nor interested in the plight of this marginalised group. There is currently
very little opportunity to incorporate disabled children into mainstream education. Both State and
private schools are generally unaware, unwilling or unable to accommodate those children that,
with sufficient guidance could actually integrate into regular classrooms. The longer these
children are excluded from education, the higher is their risk of economic dependence on the
State and social dependence on families or institutions. When these are not adequate services,
(as is the case in most of Bolivia), the disabled child often grows up in a situation of extreme
poverty.

The provision of education for disabled children in El Alto is extremely limited. Where it does
exist – it is largely in specialized schools or institutions which group together many disabilities.
The regular state schools have both architectural barriers (lack of ramps, disabled toilets etc)
and attitudinal barriers (ignorance and discrimination from teachers and fellow students) that
discourage or often prevent the disabled children from attending.

There is a lack of teacher training with regards to inclusive education as part of the mainstream
education system. The courses that teachers follow cover no aspect of disability at present,
hence they are ill prepared to accept and incorporate any disabled children into the classroom.

Parents are ill advised about opportunities that could be available to their disabled children,
which mostly results in them not sending their children to mainstream school, believing they will
not be accepted or accommodated. Due to the strong stigma attached to families in Bolivia with
disabled children, some parents do not even believe their child will be able to study, nor gain
anything worthwhile from being at school. Many look upon their disabled child as a ‘lost cause’
for which they must endure until they die.

Current Responses to the Problem

There is a noticeable gap in attending disabled children when it comes to national or indeed
international programmes. As mentioned, there are a few institutions in El Alto that attend this
population; CEREFE (Rehabilitation and Special Education Centre), Aula Kantuta (Special
Education), San Martin de Porres (Rehabilitation) – which are largely service providers, and are
not working in any aspects of social integration into mainstream society.

The International (Spanish) NGO Fe y Alegria has some schools in El Alto which are open to
disabled and non-disabled children, and which actively seek to include disabled children in the
classroom, providing sign language assistants or teachers with at least some training in special

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education.

Within the Municipality of El Alto, there is a department for ‘disability and old age’ – which should
attend any type of disability, at any age – in terms of distributing information, orientating them on
rights, referring them to appropriate support programmes etc. The Municipality is interested in
the area of disability, and open to expanding its service, although it currently has limited human
and economic resources to be able to develop further activities. It has shown interest in
coordinating with RC and their project of entering schools and strengthening the Integral Centre
(the infrastructure belongs to the Municipality, and they are willing to coordinate with the
proposals made in the EC project).

School playground activity

4. THE PROJECT

Whilst the partnership is with the Italian NGO Cooperazione Ricerca, the support from IS will be
directly within a project that has been approved by the EU, entitled Social Inclusion and Mutual
Respect .

Objectives

There are two general objectives of the EU Project, and one more specific:

1) Contribute to constructing a culture based on respecting the rights and

responsibilities of disabled people, in order to lead a healthy, participative and
inclusive lifestyle.
2) Contribute to achieving equal access to educational services.

3) That the children with disabilities (with particular focus on physical, sensory and minor
intellectual disabilities) of the 8 public primary schools in 2 districts of El Alto, are able to

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 participate fully or partially in the regular classroom activities, emphasising a methodology of
practical integration.

5. PARTNER ORGANISATION

Background
The partner organization is the Italian NGO ‘Ricerca y Cooperazione’ / RC. They have been in
operation since 1985, covering development issues of human rights, food, health, freedom of
movement and expression, and good governance. Their programmes reach 11 countries,
stretching over 3 continents. In Bolivia, they are focused mainly in El Alto, in the area of
education, although they also have programmes in North Potosi and Tarija on Food security.
Their youth work in El Alto includes the following;

• Strengthening Children’s Defense councils to better attend their needs

• Training in schools on sexual and reproductive health
• Raising awareness of children’s rights in schools and families.

RC Bolivia has managed a number of large projects in the past, and has a proven record of
administering budgets according to objectives and timescales.

Mission
RC promotes development programmes, believing that:

 The disappearance of what nature and human beings have been able to create in their long
history, represents an irreversible loss for each individual.
 Each one of us has the right to a decent life, a fundamental element to reduce conflicts and
level existing disparities.

Aims and objectives

At a global level, RC aims to

• Protect and promote cultural and environmental heritage under threat of disappearing.
• Act in favour and support of fundamental rights
• Sensitise civil society to the disparities between north and south

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 Activity with Ricerca and youth

Structure

RC has its head office in Italy, governed by a Board of Directors (5 members).

There are 3 permanent staff in the Bolivian office, complemented by temporary project staff
(international and national), together with occasional volunteers and students mainly from Italy.

Activities
In the area of promoting human rights, RC has the following activities:

 Working with government entities (Children’s Defence Councils) to strengthen their ability to
attend cases of child rights violations (staff training and policy reviewing)
 Pre-school attention; training teachers and parents on improving methods of play,
awareness on prevention of illnesses, importance of early stimulation.
 Schools; interactive workshops with teachers and pupils on issues such as leadership, sport,
culture, sexual reproductive health.
 Night schools; extended vocational training to child workers
 Parents; awareness raising on family violence, support systems, teenage health issues etc.

6. JOB DESCRIPTION

Role of Development Worker

The role will be as an integral member of the multi-disciplined team of 3 specialists from the
disability field, who will be the core actors implementing the project activities.

Responsibilities

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Main project activities will be focused in the following areas, which will also become the basis for
the work tasks of the dw:

 Investigation in 2 zones of El Alto to identify number and type of children with disabilities
 Design and implement series of workshops to train various beneficiaries:
-teachers on integrating disabled children into regular classes
-non disabled students how to detect and accommodate disabilities in
their environments (both at home and school)
-Parents of disabled children on how to maximize the learning of their
children.
-Authorities such as Children’s Defense Councils to raise awareness
of how to extend their services to include children with disabilities.
 Assist in production of educational materials for the above workshops
 Creation of an Integral Centre of Attention; library, events, early detection, point of
reference for disability issues.
 Working directly with the disabled children in activities in the Centre, and assisting them
to become better integrated into regular classroom activities.
 Collaborate with Rehabilitation Centres to encourage their children to use the Integral
Centre, and be more involved in mainstream events.
 Help to coordinate the creation of an inter-institutional network

Interactive activity with non disabled children

7. DEVELOPMENT WORKER PROFILE (Person specification)

Educational and professional qualifications

 Qualification relevant to the field of intellectual disabilities

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  Preferably masters in international development issues
 Preferably an additional qualification in adaptations of curriculums.

Work experience
 At least 3 years experience working with intellectual disabilities, preferably children –
including methods of early detection
 Experience in data collection
 Experience in training at grassroots level
 Experience in mainstreaming disabled children into regular classrooms, including
adapting curriculums.
 Preferably experience in development programmes
 Preferably experience in production of educational materials
 Experience in network participation and policy influencing

Language skills
 Good level of written and spoken Spanish.
 Preferably reasonable level of English.
 Effective communication and negotiation skills.

Personal qualities.
 Professional commitment to the cause of integrating disabled children.
 Flexible and able to work within a demanding team situation.
 Sensitive to the issues surrounding families with disabled children.
 Willingness to occasionally work outside the average working hours.
8. LIVING AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Working Environment
The dw will work in El Alto, within a small office, based at the Integral Centre, which will also serve
as the space for the resources on disability, training centre and events venue.
Within the EU project budget, there are provisions for the necessary office equipment. The dw
will have access to a computer, though this is likely to be shared with the other 2 team
members. All office and workshop materials will be covered by the project, together with the
transport fees to move around between the schools in El Alto. There is also provision for
production of educational materials that will support the workshops and the additional materials
needed for curriculum adaptations.

The dw timetable will be worked around school hours, opening times of the Integral Centre, and
occasionally may involve evening or weekend hours in order to train parents and/or teachers,
since this will be outside the normal working day.

Holidays will be the standard 20 days allocated to IS DWs, to be taken in coordination with the
Project team in order to avoid peak work periods / special events.

Living Conditions
The DW will be able to choose whether to live in El Alto or in La Paz - a 20 minute journey from El
Alto. The growth of El Alto has allowed it to become a city in its own right (since 1984), with an
estimated population of 825,000 (2006). Emerging from an altitude of 4,000m, it has a changeable
mountainous climate, experiencing substantial differences between day and night temperatures;

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20ºC to 0ºC. Many days are clear blue skies, with strong burning sunshine, while the nights can be
bitterly cold. The rainy season lasts from about late November to late February. During the coldest
months of July and August it is not uncommon to awake and find a covering of snow in the
morning, lasting until the midday sun melts it.

El Alto hosts the International airport of La Paz, and various other services such as the air force,
its own State University, hospitals, a symphony orchestra, museums and other cultural centres.
It is also an active productive area, where several of the country’s factories are based (textiles,
food, precious metals). Those not employed in factories are largely found in the informal
commercial sector of kiosk street selling. The city generally moves to the rhythm of the markets,
from early morning to late at night.

Initially El Alto served as the middle ground between immigrants arriving from rural areas, and
those already established in La Paz. It was the stop off point for those seeking ‘’a life in the city’’.
Due to lack of work opportunities in La Paz however, El Alto has established itself as a growing
alternative city, with its own council, services and infrastructure. There are various named zones
that make up El Alto, the most important or well known ones being: La Ceja, Ciudad Satélite,
Villa Exaltación, Villa Adela, Villa Alemania, Villa Dolores, El Kenko, Alto Lima, Senkata and
Nuevos Horizontes.

If the dw chooses to live in La Paz, they will find it a lively city where traditional culture meets
modern technology, creating an interesting mixture of both Andean customs, and western
influences. Most facilities found in any modern city are also present in La Paz, ranging from
modern shops, sports facilities, cultural and educational events etc.

Downtown La Paz with Mt Illimani in distance

The position of La Paz, being 3600m above sea level, means that most new arrivals take a few
weeks adjusting to the altitude, and the general steepness of most streets! The climate is very
similar to that of El Alto, with not quite the same coldness at night, especially since the houses in La
Paz are usually slightly better constructed to contain the heat.

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La Paz is well situated for weekend trips out of the city. There are regular and cheap bus
services to many rural and urban destinations – from mountainous to more tropical lowland
areas.

9. CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

• Appointment for a minimum of one year, dependant on funding for second year.
• Living allowance (4500 Bolivianos; approx €450/month)
• Accommodation costs.
• Outfit grant (€500).
• Medical costs, personal insurance and medical evacuation cover.
• Travel costs to/from Bolivia.
• Orientation costs in Bolivia.
• Twenty days annual leave.

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