Paraguay

As one of the poorest countries in South America, Paraguay has huge social inequalities – 10% of the population owns 66% of land.

Paraguay experienced many decades of dictatorship. 61 years of one party rule by the Colorado Party was broken with what was hailed the first truly democratic election in Paraguay in April 2008. Since then, Paraguay has been governed by a left-leaning coalition government led by former bishop, President Fernando Lugo of the Patriotic Alliance for Change. This change in government offers possibilities to tackle the vast inequalities and poverty, and change the lives of those 20% of the population living in poverty. But without strong pressure from civil society, this change could be slow to happen.

CAFOD’s partners are working to pressure the government to make lasting concrete changes for Paraguay’s poorest so that they can access their rights. This includes pushing to ensure the inclusion of the poorest sectors, particularly women and young people living in rural areas, in social programmes offering greater access to agricultural credit, health systems and education.

We spent £69,182 on projects in Paraguay in 2010/11, improving rural livelihoods with poor farmers and enabling more citizens to take part in the political process, for a more democratic and accountable government

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