Planned Bolivia-Brazil highway threatens Chiquitania dry forest

Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz signed an agreement with Brazilian officials and agribusiness figures to begin technical studies on a 135-kilometer highway linking San Ignacio de Velasco to the Brazilian border, extending further into Mato Grosso state. The signing drew roughly 15 private planes to the small municipal airfield, most belonging to Brazilian businesspeople including Eraí Maggi, dubbed the 'soy king.'

San Ignacio de Velasco already accounts for nearly 15% of all Bolivian deforestation between 2017 and 2023, with over 324,275 hectares cleared, more than half of it by medium and large corporate properties. Bolivia posted the world's second-highest tropical forest loss in 2025, even as neighboring Brazil's deforestation rate has fallen toward historic lows.

An economist quoted in the piece says the highway is built to move merchandise for Brazilian agribusiness rather than to connect population centers, generating little tax revenue or employment since mechanized soy farming needs few workers. Bolivia's Ministry of Public Works counters that the road will reduce transport costs and strengthen economic development for local communities.

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