Pagina Siete has a excellent article today:

The budget for recurrent expenditures (salaries and wages, goods and services, interest and other debt) tripled between 2006 and 2011; during that time it went from 22,158 million to 69,453 million Bolivianos (exchange rate is “appreciating” the Bolivian currency, thus benefitting imports which are mostly sumptuary goods, subsidies and damaging our fragile export industries; one dollar to 6.86 Bolivianos).

According to the Ministry of Economy, Luis Arce, the budget increased from 22,158 million Bolivianos, in 2006 to 30,103 million in 2007, representing an increase of 35.9%. For 2008 it rose to 39,236 million; 2009 was 39,077 million; for 2010 rose to 44,268 million Bolivianos; and in 2011 rose to 69,453 million Bolivianos, an increase of 57%.

According to the explanation of economic analysts Armando Mendez and Ramiro Paz, such variations could be explained by the general increase in salaries and wages items, procurement of goods and services, interest payments on debt and social security contributions.

“Government figures in recent years have gone up significantly as a result of the increase in IDH (tax from hydrocarbons, mostly natural gas) which has allowed him to have many more resources and therefore costs,” said Mendez.
“It’s overspending, poor structure of public spending, and because it’s current expenditures are not investing,” said Paz [not investing means not producing; not producing means less taxes and more unemployment].

The Bolivian Economy Report 2010 of the Ministry of Finance explains that the biggest expense correspond to items of goods and services and personal services. One reason for this increase, he says, is that from 2006, with the nationalization of hydrocarbons, YPFB took over operations in the wholesale fuel market, bringing more revenue to the country and spending further, which were incorporated in the item of expenditure on goods and services. [oe way of explaining why we end up expending more than what we should]

The Government’s argument is also that the state apparatus grew in recent years due to the recovery of the companies that were capitalized at the time current government assumed office.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommended the government to control the increase in primary spending [that means reducing the governmental apparatus]. Analyst Paz agrees with the IMF, that an adjustment should be made in the administrative staff because, in his opinion, there is currently a deficit that is being hidden by the authorities. [large concentration of public servants ends by de facto a poor service]

In the opinion of Mendez, the various items are inflexible and must be followed.
He explained that even when current expenditures increased, this does not mean you have deficit in the State Treasury, the country has the resources to finance the budget.

Opinion
“You have to reduce the administrative staff”
Ramiro Paz Cerruto – Economist
Current expenditure is bureaucracy, wages and salaries, administrative expenses and are not investment. Bolivia has stopped investing in their future, ie, industrial and agricultural development. An ostentatious and unnecessary spending of current Bolivian president: the purchase of a luxury small aircraft, the purchase of the satellite and more recently the construction of a liquids separation hydrocarbons plant in Tarija. [there is also news that over ten million Bolivianos will be spent to build a “presidential gate” at the international airport of La Paz]
Thus, financing is been made not according to the fiscal situation, there are loans that the central government is getting from the Central Bank directly. In addition, national authorities are practically killing YPFB with the financing of current expenditures, but it is very difficult to prove this because the information on the state oil company is closed to public scrutiny.
The government has to reduce the administrative staff, wages and salaries and benefits, although that has a political cost and the Government could not stand it, but as the IMF says, the government would have to reduce their expenses.

http://www.paginasiete.bo/2011-11-05/Economia/Destacados/11Eco00105-indi.aspx

This government was fortunate enough to experience debt forgiveness from donor countries, a process that took over 15 years in some cases, this government was at the right time in the right place.

This government was also lucky or blessed to be in a time when most natural resources we export, experienced unprecedented high international market prices.

These two “lucky” events appeared together in a time that no previous government had, they were made possible not because of this government, they were ment to happen. The unfortunate reality is that Bolivians are loosing the opportunity to save those monies for times when prices of our exports will fall. This government is at risk to be remembered in history as the one who had it all but also lose it all. And the worst time loosers are the Bolivians of today and tomorrow.