ActionAid's work ActionAid has been working in Bolivia since 1990 and currently works in four parts of the country. In 1995 it began working in Calcha on the Altiplano. Most people here are farmers. They grow maize, potatoes and beans to eat and fruit to sell. They also keep goats and sell cheese made from their milk. I went to visit Calcha and was amazed to see how quiet it was. Then someone told me that it was because many of the men are forced to go away for five months of the year to find work. There's not many ways of them earning money where they live you see. The women are usually left behind with the children and they have to work twice as hard to keep things going. ActionAid is helping people in Calcha to protect their land from soil erosion. This can be a big problem if it suddenly rains heavily. ActionAid is also improving the water supply and helping farmers to increase crop yields. An important part of the work is finding ways in which people can earn an income without having to travel hundreds of miles to do so. Projects include making jam and honey and a textiles project making traditional cloth. ActionAid helps by giving people loans to buy equipment and raw materials so they can set up in business.