APCOB Apoyo Para el Campesino-indígena del Oriente Boliviano

What APCOB Apoyo Para el Campesino-indígena del Oriente Boliviano does

APCOB (Apoyo Para el Campesino-indígena del Oriente Boliviano) is a Bolivian non-governmental, non-profit civil society organization founded in 1980 by a group of social scientists to defend and promote the rights of lowland indigenous peoples. Headquartered in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the organization serves seven indigenous groups (Ayoreo, Chiquitano, Guaraní, Guarayo, Mojeño, Yuracaré) and the Afrobolivian community, with primary geographic focus on the Monte Verde and Lomerío indigenous territories in the department of Santa Cruz. APCOB organizes its work into two main programmatic lines: Programa Indígenas Urbanos y Bienestar Social, addressing autonomy, welfare, and rights of urban and rural indigenous populations, and Programa Gestión Territorial y Cambio Climático, focused on environmental management and climate response in indigenous territories.

APCOB's outputs include applied research and diagnostics, ethnographic and audiovisual production, and two large institutional archives: the Fondo Audiovisual (80+ documentaries, 1,200+ indigenous news segments, 12 ethno-educational CDs, 350+ third-party documentaries, 28,000+ digitized photographs, 1,200+ raw video recordings, 100+ indigenous radio programs) and the Fondo Bibliográfico (including the Jürgen Riester collection and the 'Serie Pueblos Indígenas de las Tierras Bajas de Bolivia'). Technical capabilities include participatory territorial planning, a NASA Landsat 8-based satellite fire-monitoring system used to quantify burned areas (e.g., 29,366 hectares in Monte Verde as of August 2019), and curation of cultural exhibitions such as 'Matriarcas del Bosque' (2025) and 'Los Guarasug'we' (2022).

APCOB does not sell services; it is sustained by international cooperation funding from a broad set of donors including MISEREOR, Swiss Cooperation, GIZ, WWF Bolivia, Solidar Suisse, Manos Unidas, Gerda Henkel Stiftung, Global Wildlife Conservation, Euroclima+, AVINA/VAC, PROFIN, and the French Embassy in Bolivia. Its go-to-market is direct community engagement in territories plus institutional distribution of publications, research outputs, and archives via its website and partner venues. In 2024 APCOB co-founded the Ecobosque social enterprise (a jointly-controlled commercial arm for non-timber forest products), and in 2025 it launched the Zapocó Arte Ayoreo artisan brand and signed a cooperation agreement with the Marca Santa Cruz government program to commercialize indigenous products. The organization is led by Executive Director Patricia Patiño following the September 2019 passing of founder Jürgen Riester.

Name

APCOB Apoyo Para el Campesino-indígena del Oriente Boliviano

Legal name

APCOB Apoyo Para el Campesino-indígena del Oriente Boliviano

Website

https://apcob.org.bo

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

APCOB is a Bolivian non-profit founded in 1980 that defends the rights of seven lowland indigenous peoples and the Afrobolivian community through research, audiovisual archives, and territorial programs in Santa Cruz. It funds operations via international cooperation grants and supplements income through the Ecobosque and Zapocó social enterprises.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Indigenous Rights Advocacy Services

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAHAI

Indigenous, Ethnic & Folk Arts/Heritage Organizations

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

Keywords

• Indigenous rights advocacy
• Community development programs
• Anthropological research services
• Cultural heritage documentation
• Nonprofit social services

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Cruz de la Sierra

HQ country

Bolivia

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

APCOB is a non-governmental organization that delivers research and diagnostic services, audiovisual production, and cultural heritage documentation for indigenous peoples of Bolivia's lowland regions. It operates two main programs—one for urban indigenous welfare and social wellbeing, and one for territorial management and climate change in the Monte Verde and Lomerío territories—while maintaining extensive digital archives (Fondo Audiovisual and Fondo Bibliográfico) and supporting indigenous-led social enterprises for non-timber forest product commercialization.

Product overview

APCOB is a non-profit organization (ONG) founded in 1980 that works for the defense and promotion of indigenous rights in the lowland regions of Bolivia. Rather than a unified technology product, APCOB operates as an integrated services organization offering research and diagnostic services, audiovisual production, and manages digital archives (Fondo Audiovisual with 80+ documentaries and Fondo Bibliográfico with ethnographic publications). The organization implements two main programs: one focused on urban indigenous populations and social welfare, and another on territorial management and climate change. Through its social enterprise ECOBOSQUE (founded 2024), APCOB supports indigenous women entrepreneurs in commercializing sustainable non-timber forest products including cosmetics, personal care, and crafts under brands like Atalea, Kopaibo, and Zapocó Arte Ayoreo.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ecobosque: Commercial enterprise for non-timber forest products (cusi, copaibo, honey, essential oils) led by indigenous women's associations, established 2024
• Zapocó
• Marca de Origen Monte Verde

Products and services

• Investigaciones y diagnóstico
• Producción Audiovisual
• Fondo Audiovisual
• Fondo Bibliográfico
• Programa Indígenas Urbanos y Bienestar Social
• Programa Gestión Territorial y Cambio Climático
• Ecobosque (Comercializadora del Bosque)
• Zapocó · Arte Ayoreo

Quantifiable outcome

• 8,000+ people in 28 communities received humanitarian assistance during 2024 forest fire emergency
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Centro de Estudios y Cooperación Internacional (CECI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 August 2025CECI partnered with APCOB in the 'Matriarcas del Bosque' exhibition and is involved in broader programmatic support. Marcela Vallejos, CECI's Regional Director for Latin America, highlighted the international projection of APCOB's cultural initiatives, announcing plans to bring exhibitions to Canada and COP in Brazil.
• Jóvenes Chiquitanos Unidos por el Medio Ambiente (JUMA)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 August 2025JUMA, a youth organization of Chiquitano youth, partnered with APCOB on the 'Matriarcas del Bosque' exhibition, participating in intergenerational dialogue and documentation of indigenous women's knowledge.
• Ecobosque (Comercializadora del Bosque)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2025Ecobosque is a collective marketing enterprise founded on July 12, 2024, by women's entrepreneur associations from Monte Verde Indigenous Territory communities (Río Blanco, El Rancho, Santa Mónica, and Palestina). APCOB has been accompanying Ecobosque since its inception (with work beginning in 2015), supporting the development of non-timber forest product value chains (cusi, honey, copaibo) and providing technical and commercial guidance. APCOB signed a cooperation agreement with Marca Santa Cruz to strengthen Ecobosque's commercial reach.
• Marca Santa CruzcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 17 July 2025The Marca Santa Cruz program of the Santa Cruz Departmental Government signed a cooperation agreement with APCOB and Ecobosque to strengthen the commercial reach of indigenous forest products. The partnership provides institutional backing, promotional planning, and execution support to position indigenous products in local and national markets, aligning with the department's sustainable tourism and market access strategy.
• Centro de la Cultura Plurinacional (CCP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCP partnered with APCOB on multiple exhibitions including 'Los Guarasug'we – Crónica de sus últimos días' (2022) and 'Matriarcas del Bosque' (2025), providing institutional venue and curatorial expertise. The CCP is a key cultural institution in Santa Cruz for promoting indigenous heritage.
• Instituto de Investigación de la Facultad de Humanidades (INIFH) – UAGRMcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe research institute of the Gabriel René Moreno Autonomous University partnered with APCOB to deliver the 'Planificación indígena con enfoque de gestión de sistemas de vida' training program (October–December 2022), which was certified by the Faculty of Humanities and engaged 30 indigenous leaders in life planning.
• Veeduría Ciudadana de los Derechos HumanosminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with APCOB and UAGRM to deliver the 'Abordaje periodístico con enfoque intercultural' journalism training course (2021), which engaged 30+ journalists in research projects on indigenous rights.
• Fundación Munasim KullakitaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with APCOB in the inter-institutional dialogue table 'Por los derechos de las niñas, niños y adolescentes del pueblo ayoreo en Santa Cruz de la Sierra' (2021), focused on indigenous children's rights.
• IBIF (Instituto Boliviano de Investigación Forestal)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIBIF supported APCOB in organizing the Strategic and Operational Encounter for the Monte Verde Life Plan (November 2024), contributing to the participatory planning process with 280 indigenous representatives.
• CIPCA (Centro de Investigación y Promoción del Campesinado)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCIPCA co-supported the Monte Verde Life Plan encounter alongside APCOB, IBIF, and WWF Bolivia, contributing to the strategic planning process for the indigenous territory.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Survival International: International NGO focused on indigenous peoples' rights and tribal peoples globally; comparable to APCOB's rights advocacy mission but operates at a global advocacy and campaigning scale rather than grassroots territorial work.
• Conservation International - Bolivia: International conservation organization working in Bolivia on forest conservation and indigenous community partnerships; overlaps with APCOB's territorial management and climate programs but at much larger scale and with commercial finance instruments.
• Cultural Survival: International indigenous rights NGO supporting indigenous media, advocacy, and cultural preservation globally; comparable to APCOB in its focus on indigenous cultural preservation and audiovisual documentation, but with a global rather than Bolivia-only scope.
• WWF Bolivia: International conservation NGO with a Bolivian office that funds and co-implements indigenous territory conservation and fire brigade programs alongside APCOB; broader in scope but operates in the same indigenous territory conservation space.

Direct peers

• Fundación Tierra: Bolivian foundation working on rural, indigenous, and land tenure issues in lowland Bolivia, with overlapping programmatic focus on territorial rights, agricultural policy, and indigenous community development comparable to APCOB's territorial management work.
• CEJIS (Centro de Estudios Jurídicos e Investigación Social): Bolivian NGO providing legal research, advocacy, and capacity-building for indigenous peoples in lowland Bolivia — directly comparable to APCOB in mission, territory, and beneficiary communities, with overlapping work on indigenous rights and territorial defense.
• CIDOB (Confederación Indígena del Oriente, Chaco y Amazonía de Bolivia): Indigenous confederation co-founded by APCOB in 1982; represents the same lowland indigenous peoples APCOB serves and is the principal political advocacy counterpart for territorial and rights issues.
• CIPCA (Centro de Investigación y Promoción del Campesinado): Bolivian NGO focused on rural indigenous and peasant development; an existing APCOB partner that operates programs on territorial management and indigenous livelihoods in similar lowland regions, with comparable funding model and beneficiary base.

Emerging players

• Fundación AVINA: Latin American impact foundation that has funded APCOB's climate advocacy research through its Voices for Climate Action program; comparable as a Latin American funder/partner in indigenous and climate advocacy space.
• IBIF (Instituto Boliviano de Investigación Forestal): Bolivian forestry research institute that partnered with APCOB on the Monte Verde Life Plan; comparable in its focus on indigenous territory conservation and forest management in Santa Cruz department.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/APCOB
• Facebookfacebook.com/apcobolivia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/apcobolivia

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about APCOB Apoyo Para el Campesino-indígena del Oriente Boliviano