Tapacarí is a province in the Cochabamba Department,

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

. Its capital is Tapacarí. The province is located at a turnoff from the major highway that links Cochabamba and Oruro. It has traditionally been amongst the poorest in the department. Tapacarí Province and neighboring

Arque Province Arque is a rural province in Cochabamba Department in the eastern cordillera of the South American state of Bolivia. Geography The province is surrounded by the provinces of Tapacarí in the northwest, Quillacollo in the northeast, Capinota ...

are the two poorest of the 16 provinces that make up the department of Cochabamba. The provincial capital of Tapacarí is the namesake of the that formally made Bolivia a constituent country of the Peru–Bolivian Confederation.

Geography

The approximate elevation of the province is above sea level. The terrain is very rough. Some of the highest mountains of the province are listed below:IGM Bolivia 1:50,000 Leque 6241-IIIIGM Bolivia 1:50,000 Mazo Cruz 6241-I

Subdivision

The province is not further subdivided into municipalities. So Tapacarí Municipality and Tapacarí Province are identical. The province is divided into four cantons.

People and economics

The majority of the people who live in Tapacarí are indigenous Quechua villagers or ''campesinos'' as they are known in Spanish. The principal economic activities of the families are agriculture and livestock, with wheat, barley, potatoes, corn and other staples being the major cash crops and sheep, goats, pigs, and guinea pigs being the most popular animals. Food is first and foremost used for domestic consumption, while the excess is traditionally sold at the local markets. While the men work in agriculture and haul the excess off to larger markets in Quillacollo and Cochabamba, the women of the Tapacari valley are known as superb

weaver Weaver or Weavers may refer to: Activities * A person who engages in weaving fabric Animals * Various birds of the family Ploceidae * Crevice weaver spider family * Orb-weaver spider family * Weever (or weever-fish) Arts and entertainment ...

s. The fur from the sheep is removed and dyed with traditional flowers that grow in the wild. and then spun by the women. Finally, in the same fashion that the Incas used centuries ago, it is then extended on the loom to make beautiful products. Although some of the weavings are exported, the majority is sold in the city at centric markets. Aramasi, which is the site of a weaving center funded via PRODEVAT, in addition to a mill which was funded in part by USAID, is located in Ramadas Canton. The Mary Mahoney Medical Center, which is funded by Asociacion Amistad, also works out of Aramasi. Finally, Aramasi also celebrates an annual weaving and music fair which was started by a US Peace Corps Volunteer. Politically, the province is almost entirely behind the ruling party of Evo Morales - ''

Movimiento al Socialismo The Movement for Socialism–Political Instrument for the Sovereignty of the Peoples ( es, Movimiento al Socialismo–Instrumento Político por la Soberanía de los Pueblos, abbreviated MAS-IPSP, or simply MAS, punning on ''más'', Spanish for ...

'', or ''MAS''. Ref.: obd.descentralizacion.gov.bo

Languages

The languages spoken in the Tapacarí Province are mainly Quechua, Spanish and Aymara.obd.descentralizacion.gov.bo / Observatorio Bolivia Democrático
(Spanish)

Transport

There are virtually no paved roads in the entire province, with the exception of the interdepartamental route linking Cochabamba and Oruro and

La Paz La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities ...

References