In 1952, the United Nations Technical
Assistance Board (TAB) sent a mission comprising labour specialists, doctors
and anthropologists to the
Andes. The
mission, which went by the name “Beaglehole”, was tasked with studying the
living and working conditions of the “indigenous” peoples. On its return
four months later, the mission formulated a series of recommendations that
would give rise to the Andean Programme.
ILO was put in charge of a special committee set up within TAB and made up
of representatives of the participating organizations:
- the United Nations;
- the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations (FAO) ;
- the World Health Organization (WHO);
- the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The committee conducted its activities within the framework of the United
Nations Expanded Programme of Technical Assistance (EPTA), established in
1949.
Starting in 1953, teams of specialists were sent to various countries (Peru, Bolivia,
Ecuador, and later Colombia, Chile, Argentina and Venezuela)
to spread knowledge of modern techniques liable to improve the crops and
living conditions of the “indigenous” populations. A second, teaching and
training phase was launched later and ran concomitantly with the first
phase of demonstration. The aim of the second phase was to set up vocational
workshops, a teacher training institute (Peru),
a social worker training centre (Bolivia),
and a centre to train community workers and senior administrative staff (Ecuador).
