‘Warmi empollerada’, combines tourism and self-esteem to “empollerada” women in Bolivia

‘Warmi pollerada’ is an initiative that seeks to revalue the use of the pollera, the pleated skirt characteristic of the cholitas of Bolivia, with indigenous women that form a network of “ambassadors” of tourism, while working to “get stuffed up”” and improve your self-esteem through experiences and workshops.

“We empower women through clothing and tourism, since clothing alone has a lot of power, it is synonymous with elegance and the struggle of many women”entrepreneur Jesika Ajata explained to EFE.

Thus, Ajata, through ‘Warmi empollerada’, brings more women to wear the skirt, since as she said, many stopped doing so due to discrimination, but their mothers, grandmothers or a family member used this clothing, which they now wear again. with pride”.

“A 90% “Some of them dress as cholitas with us for the first time (…) so we give them the whole experience of empowerment or, as we call it, ‘craving'”Ajata highlighted.

This “enveloping” It is that women who wish can wear the pleated skirt, the blanket, the bowler hat with respect and then travel to a tourist destination to show off this clothing and appear on fashion catwalks or in photo shoots.

Are “ambassadors” of tourism because they show Bolivia and at the same time they prepare in leadership, public speaking, debate and entrepreneurship workshops.

This is done so that they leave fear behind and have all the tools to “connect” with visitors to the country, but above all to improve their self-esteem, Ajata explained.

From 2019 to now, fifty women are part of this initiative that helps enhance their capabilities, but also to generate a support network, since among them they are motivated to follow their dreams, to open their ventures and leave fear behind.

“We don’t distinguish age or anything, we have everything from grandmothers to young girls, so we want to empower women by wearing the skirt attire and saying that by supporting each other we will go very far.”Guadalupe Pedraza, who has been part of ‘Warmi empollerada’ since 2021, told EFE.

Support net

The Bolivian Zulma Heredia has been part of the venture since 2022. She told EFE that one of the best experiences she had was traveling to the emblematic Salar de Uyuni with the other women and looking at the photographs they took of her in the place, since for some time didn’t feel “as well” With herself.

“I feel more confident, my self-esteem has risen a lot because before I felt very low”added Heredia.

In the same way, Marcela Bautista told EFE that she joined ‘Warmi empollerada’ thanks to her daughter, since she was going through a “dark” moment because her husband and her father had died, which left her devastated, but in that initiative she found a support network of women and understood that she could get ahead alone.

“I learned to love myself, to love myself too much, to value myself a lot”he noted.

Likewise, Alejandra Aliaga, 72, decided to be part of this initiative to preserve the use of the skirt, so that it does not disappear and told EFE that she felt very happy to know that she can also get on a catwalk and show off this skirt. outfit.

The women have several activities planned this year, such as traveling to the southern Tarija and showing more tourist places and encouraging more women to dare to wear skirts with pride.

‘Warmi pollerada’ It was part of the program “We promote Bolivia” which trained 30 entrepreneurs in the country, also received seed capital from the Women and Business Institute of the Franz Tamayo University in alliance with Bridge For Billions.

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