Economy: The Cancha

View from the North
The Cancha is the largest market in Bolivia. It crosses out over a 15 block area in the southern part of the downtown area. Because of the agricultural importance of the region of Cochabamba, the Cancha is also the central market for all of Bolivia. Trucks travel from all regions of Bolivia to buy fruits and vegetables that will be sold to all the ferias (market days) in each city of Bolivia. The Cancha has many vendors, all of which work in the informal employment sector. Each area of the Cancha has a special function, each selling specific goods. See drawing of Cancha . There are two types of vendors at the market, the permanent vendors which have a stable stand that they rent from the city and the mobile vendors who set up their stands on the streets during the market days (ferias) which are Wednesday and Saturday. In 1983, it was calculated that there were 3.7 families to every vendor and there were 146,559 families in total in all of Cochabamba. The population has risen in the city as well as the population of vendors in the Cancha. Now there is a concern because there are so many vendors and not enough people to sell to. Often times, women may only make about 5$ for every 100 kg. of potatoes that she sells.
View on Pulacayo Avenida- moblie street vendors	Permanent vendors on Tarata