Brazil and Bolivia plan road corridor for agribusiness expansion

Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva have expressed interest in a new road corridor project designed to connect the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso with the Bolivian municipality of San Ignacio de Velasco. The proposed route aims to facilitate the export of over 50 million tons of Brazilian grain to Pacific ports, such as Chancay in Peru, by providing a shorter transit route through the Chiquitania region.

The project is heavily supported by Brazilian agribusiness interests, notably Eraí Maggi, a prominent soybean producer whose family holds land in the region. The corridor would involve connecting Laguna Marfil and Palmarito in Bolivia to Vila Bela in Brazil.

However, environmental experts have raised alarms regarding the potential impact on the Chiquitania forest, which is the largest tropical dry forest in South America. Critics warn that the infrastructure could lead to significant deforestation and land-use changes to accommodate soybean cultivation and cattle ranching in Bolivia.