From sponsored child to mayor 

Mayor Nixon Mamani is determined to help people in his community

A former Plan sponsored child, who has become one of Bolivia’s most progressive and popular mayors, is spearheading a US$2 million project to develop tourism in his home town of Guaqui.

The port of Guaqui, just 90 kilometres from La Paz in the Bolivian Altiplano, is a poor and largely excluded rural community. Mayor Nixon Mamani is determined to change that. He has raised US$2 million to fund the construction of the 'Lake Titikaka Ecological and Railway Complex' and 'Telecentres' to benefit rural children.

When it is completed, the complex will have the highest railway in the world and house three museums, wildlife viewing points, craft workshops and a botanical garden.

From shepherd to mayor

Born in 1963, Nixon was a Plan sponsored child. While he had to spend much of his childhood tending sheep, he benefited from an education and eventually completed university, where he qualified as an agronomist.

He said: “When I was young, Plan was training families in adequate soil and seed management so they could produce more. I learnt everything and then applied that knowledge to my family's land with good results.”

Nixon later helped to set up the first faculty of agronomy in the La Paz Altiplano, benefiting hundreds of young people every year.

Telecentres project

Nearly four decades after being a Plan sponsored child, Nixon is working closely again with Plan on the Telecentres project in Guaqui. The project aims to provide children in rural areas with access to computers, so they can enjoy the same opportunities as those in urban areas. The project will provide 10 state-of-the-art computers with internet access in safe, modern rooms.