Much of the land and water use changes in the Chiquitania are being driven by ongoing agricultural expansion of pasturelands used for extensive cattle grazing. Bolivia exports beef to Ecuador, Peru, Republic of Congo, Hong Kong, Vietnam and China. In 2020, China consumed 84% of Bolivian meat export, after an agreement on production standards opened the Chinese market to the export of Bolivian meat. And Chinese capital is transforming the country’s agricultural infrastructure; for example, a Chinese company recently secured the contract for the construction of a road between San Ignacio de Velasco and San José de Chiquito, which is part of a new inter-oceanic corridor connecting Brazil, Bolivia and Chile.
