More than 26,370 families across the country were affected by drought, frost and hail

The country is plagued by weather phenomena. According to the Deputy Ministry of Civil Protection, so far 8,595 households have been affected by drought and 17,776 by frost and hail.There are 26,371 people nationwide.

Deputy Minister Civil Defense, Juan Carlos Calvemontes, He detailed that the drought has affected more than 8,550 families in 364 communities. So far, 27 municipalities have declared a state of emergency or disaster due to lack of rain.

“Bolivia is starting to report water shortages in nine provinces; we are not talking about the entire region, but about certain areas. Thirteen cities have declared an urban disaster due to drought, 12 have declared a state of emergency,A total of 27 cities in Bolivia were affected” reports Calvimontes.

Likewise, he explained that the period of frost and hail has so far affected the departments of La Paz, Cochabamba, Oruro, Potosí, Santa Cruz, Tarija and Chuquisaca. A departmental state of emergency has been declared in the latter. For this reason, 25 municipalities have declared a state of calamity and three have declared an urban state of emergency. 546 communities and 17,776 families were affected.

“The country has also started a period of frost and hail, affecting seven provinces,” insisted Deputy Minister Carl Vimontes.

A week ago, the Concepcion City Council approved a drought disaster declaration, affecting about 45 communities. Affected 1,976 households, covering 3,295.35 hectares Losses in maize, cassava, beans, rice, peanuts and banana crops were reported. In addition, the municipality reported damage to livestock.

Authorities said the city had been experiencing a lack of rainfall since April and therefore hoped for help from relevant departments.

Councillor Claudia Moreno explained that the declaration will also prevent the loss of forest cover, address the problem of fires, and protect and conserve the environment.

Meanwhile, the Valles area of ​​Santa Cruz She was kicked Due to frost and snow between last Thursday and Friday, the temperature even reached -8 degrees in the highlands of Vallegrande.

“We work with several affected municipalities. So far we have seven municipalities that have declared a state of emergency or disaster,” the Secretary of the Ministry of Environment reported. Environment and Water Resources, Dora Clarosregarding drought losses in the sector.

The impact has affected people’s consumption and also production in industries such as Konosur that produce all year round. In other areas, they need water for livestock and for daily consumption, Claros added.

“Within our power, the government only supports irrigation unless they are parallel projects (between state levels),” said the department secretary in Cochabamba.

He remembers The UMSS report analyzes annual rainfall and shows that rainfall has been decreasing in recent years, mainly in the valleys, the Southern Cone and the Andes.Water shortages expected to continue until 2029based on historical data from UMSS,” he said.

Regarding drought relief, Governor Humberto Sánchez delivered to the Yana Rumi community in the municipality of Tarrata a project to improve the shortcut with a geomembrane coating, benefiting the families of producers. It can store 2,500 cubic meters of water.