
Water4All with Quaker Bolivia Link
United4Change Center (U4C) is proud to continue the legacy of Quaker Bolivia Link (QBL-USA) and the impact of QBL’s work in the lives of thousands of Aymara families in rural Bolivia. Water4All with Quaker Bolivia Link (QBL) is implementing sustainable projects to provide clean water, improve food security and promoting better health and wellbeing of indigenous communities in Bolivia.
Image by Geni Cavanaugh
THE CHALLENGE
Bolivia is a landlocked and isolated country in South America. With a population of approximately 11,306,341 (July 2018 est.) and an economy of $37.78 billion (2017 est.), this Country has one of the highest indigenous (66.2%) and rural populations (31.5%) of the continent (National Institute of Statistics, INE). Despite general human development improvements in the past decade, 45% of the population still lives below the poverty line. Today, many families in rural areas do not have access to clean water and sanitation facilities.
More than a million people in these areas still rely on contaminated water from rivers and lakes. In general, these rural communities are confronted every day with the prospect of becoming unsustainable due to the absence of freshwater and the effects of climate change on water availability. These circumstances threaten the health and wellbeing of community residents.
According to UNICEF, almost 90% of child deaths from diarrheal diseases are directly linked to contaminated water, lack of sanitation, and/or inadequate hygiene. In Bolivia, diarrhea is the third leading cause of morbidity and mortality in children under 5 years of age (sources: Pan American Health Organization).
ABOUT QUAKER BOLIVIA LINK
Quaker Bolivia Link (QBL) was founded in 1995 to address issues such as clean water, food security, and economic development amongst the Aymara people of the Altiplano. Over the past 25 years, much has been accomplished and thousands of indigenous families have been impacted with access to clean water, food security and sanitation training. However, there is still much work to be done! Climate change, COVID-19 and other challenges have added another dimension to these indigenous people’s daily lifestyle challenges, and now more than ever, we might proclaim, “El agua es vida – water is life”! QBL’s legacy continues with U4C Water4All with QBL, working in collaboration with QBL-UK and Fundacion Quaker Bolivia Link (FQBL) in La Paz, Bolivia. John Scardina, who served as the Clerk of QBL-USA for many years, and Jenny Reddick, also a former board member of QBL-US, have joined the Board of Directors of United4Change Center.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
We have an exciting challenge – a matching donation from a loyal QBL/U4C donor who will match your contribution to U4C Water4All QBL up to $15,000. That $30,000 funding level will allow us to implement a water project and provide sanitation training as well as COVID-19 prevention campaigns in the villages of Calacruzani and Parcocota (Coro Coro), impacting the lives of approximately 80 people (26 families) directly and 180 families indirectly.
Please maintain your support for this good work in the altiplano: together with our QBL-UK friends and the staff and Board in La Paz (Fundacion QBL) we can continue this vital assistance. As your read about the experience of Nilda Condori (longtime FQBL financial administrator) and her family as they battled with Covid-19 you can see the impact that clean water and food security can have on a country like Bolivia.
THE IMPACT
HAPPENING NOW

Meet Nilda Condori
"Meet Nilda Condori" By Nilda Condori I am a member of Santidad Amigos Church and a former Bolivia Quaker Education Fund (BQE) scholarship recipient. My first job was teaching girls from 5 to 10 years old every Sunday. Sadly, my father had died when I was 16, leaving...

Meet Nilda Condori
"Meet Nilda Condori" By Nilda Condori I am a member of Santidad Amigos Church and a former Bolivia Quaker Education Fund (BQE) scholarship recipient. My first job was teaching girls from 5 to 10 years old every Sunday. Sadly, my father had died when I was 16, leaving...
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