Sharing the river

In the farming community of Los Negros in rural Bolivia, the river is their life and livelihood. So when that river started to dry up, it made life very hard. They blamed the villages upstream for not looking after their precious water.

This conflict could have turned ugly. But with the support of a local charity, what came out of it instead was a ground-breaking agreement. After years of negotiations, the town at the bottom of the river agreed to support the communities upstream to protect their forests and keep the river healthy.

The idea is now the blueprint for water sharing agreements between communities across the continent.

We first podcast this programme in November 2023.

Presenter: Myra Anubi Reporter: Jane Chambers Producer: Bob Howard Series producer: Tom Colls Sound mix: Hal Haines Editor: Penny Murphy

Email: peoplefixingtheworld@bbc.co.uk

Image: Senor Rogelio Valverde sits by his water source