Volunteers and children recently partook in the Plurinational Olympic Games featuring participants of Special Olympics. As part of the opening ceremony, Projects Abroad volunteers paraded with children involved in the Equine Therapy Project. “The aim was to demonstrate to the public that children can get better with the aid of horses,” says Projects Abroad Bolivia director Carmen Herbas. “Next year we may implement a competition with these children performing exercises depending on their abilities. We are going to be the pioneers in this kind of competition.”

Equine therapy is a branch of occupational and physiotherapy that makes use of trained horses to help people living with disabilities to improve their physical mobility as well as their emotional well-being. Partnering with Centro Ecuestre Tunari, this programme, run by Projects Abroad, has assisted children with disabilities in improving their movement, spatial orientation, posture, language and muscle control.

 “I loved every second of my time at the event, in fact it was one of the highlights of my time in Bolivia,” says Trish Phillips, a career-break volunteer hailing from the United Kingdom. “I loved the social side of it; everyone being together, working together, the build-up, the excitement, the anticipation and it was obvious everyone was delighted to be a part of it. I just hope that the powers that be recognised how very important, beneficial and unique equine therapy is for the children.”

The Bolivian government approached Projects Abroad to participate in the opening ceremony, after seeing equine therapy volunteers participating in a parade on Bolivia's Independence Day. “The government didn't know this kind of therapy was taking place here, so the Minister of Special Needs got in touch with our project partners and invited us to participate in the opening ceremony,” says Carmen.

Read more about our Bolivian Equine Therapy Project here.