May 13, 2009
Bolivia eyes lithium with hopes to transform economy

Bolivia controls nearly half of the world’s reserves of lithium, a metal crucial for electric cars and other alternative energy technologies. But who will benefit from this discovery is creating controversy.

Worldfocus’ Ivette Feliciano, Bryan Myers and Ara Ayer venture to the “Salar de Uyuni” — the largest salt flat in the world, and one that may turn out to be the key to Bolivia’s future economic growth.

For more on how Bolivia and other developing countries might leverage their resources, listen to our online radio show on resources in the developing world.

For more Worldfocus coverage of Bolivia, visit our extended coverage page: On the Ground in Bolivia.

Comments

2 comments

#2

Each region of the world is different. The localization of the economy/resources of Bolivia should utilize the lithium in a business model that will benefit the local population. The explotiatin of the resources by the global business interests for a few rich folks is not the way to go for Bolivians or any other local group facing ourside explotation.

#1

That is amazing, such a poor country gets a huge chance to take off economically, but I doubt is going to happen. Already parts of Bolivia want to part from the central government and that stuff is so rich, watch its neighbourgs try to get a piece of that salar, mainly Chile, they did it before with salitre and they may do it again with Lithium…

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