Team size: Twenty

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

In June 2024, the organisation suffered a cyberattack, which was made public. The problem was addressed by breaking paradigms and innovating, based on the principle that we would not give in to the hackers’ demands. Corporate Affairs coordinated daily with the different teams, developing and proposing solutions within the law and regulations to keep operations running normally despite all existing limitations, successfully achieving the desired outcome with great adaptability to the new reality.

What do you see as the major legal challenges for businesses in Bolivia over the next five years, and how are you preparing to address them?

The major legal challenges for businesses in Bolivia over the next five years are concentrated in three areas: political constitution and regulations, judicial and bureaucratic systems, and investment security. Changing the current Political Constitution is a significant challenge. The existing framework and derived regulations are often seen as barriers to innovation and investment.

Bolivia’s judicial and bureaucratic systems are often described as slow and complex. Businesses face challenges such as a general lack of transparency, a large backlog of cases, and a high risk of corruption. Investment security is another major challenge, particularly for foreign investors, as the lack of recognition for international arbitration forums in the new constitution could create legal uncertainty for resolving disputes.

To address these challenges, reforming the Political Constitution is urgent, followed by changes to regulatory bodies and other regulations to create a more effective, modern state aligned with international best practices. The legal framework should also be adaptable to new technologies such as 5G, Internet of Things, and AI. Regulations should promote fair market competition, encourage private investment in infrastructure, and optimise spectrum use to reduce costs. A key part of this proposal is to make technology more accessible by eliminating taxes on imported elecommunications equipment and digital services, lowering the final cost of technology, stimulating demand, and boosting the digital economy.