Overall Context
The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the World Bank are expanding and deepening their support to Bolivia under SURGE through the Bolivia Urban Resilience Technical Assistance Program. Launched in 2020, the program seeks to reduce vulnerability to natural hazards and improve living conditions by strengthening the technical and financial capacity of Bolivian cities to plan and invest in resilient, sustainable urban development. The program provides technical assistance to the municipalities of Santa Cruz de la Sierra and La Paz, as well as to the national government, to promote integrated urban transformation and advance sustainable, inclusive practices.
It is structured around three components:
- Component 1: Improving capacities for implementing resilient infrastructure, public space, and urban mobility in Bolivian cities
- Component 2: Mobilization and diversification of financing for urban resilience
- Component 3: Strengthening the capacity of the Government of Bolivia to apply tools and mechanisms for urban resilience.
To date, the program has established itself as a key enabler of resilient urban development, combining municipal and national interventions to strengthen DRM, climate action, and institutional capacity. At the municipal level, it has enhanced Santa Cruz de la Sierra’s DRM framework and flood risk modeling through updated topographic and hazard maps, and in La Paz , it has improved geohazard risk management with a new DRM plan, operational geodatabase, upgraded early warning systems (EWS), and a modernized Barrios de Verdad neighborhood upgrading model.
Both cities finalized their Climate Action Plans, identified green financing opportunities, and, in La Paz, piloted a streamlined cadaster and property valuation process. At the national level, the program has supported the Vice-Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (VMVU) in operationalizing and updating the National Integrated Development Cities Policy (PNDIC), advised on the design of an Urban Development Fund, and worked with the Ministry of Development Planning (MPD) to develop a national risk management policy, strategy, and territorial planning guidelines.
For for the latest results and achievements of the program, please refer to the latest annual report.
Last Updated: Jul 01, 2026
