Wilma Alanoca Bolivian journalist and politician Date of Birth: 05.07.1978 Country: Bolivia

1. Wilma Alanoca: Bolivian Journalist and Politician
2. Early Life and Education
3. Journalism Career
4. Political Career

Wilma Alanoca: Bolivian Journalist and Politician

Wilma Alanoca is a Bolivian journalist and politician who served as Minister of Culture under President Evo Morales' third government from January 23, 2017, to November 14, 2019.

Early Life and Education

Alanoca was born in La Paz in 1984 and moved to El Alto in 1990. She graduated from high school in 1996 and studied social communication at the Higher University of San Andrés (UMSA), where she obtained a degree in journalism in 2003.

Journalism Career

Alanoca began her media career in 2004 as a student, hosting a program on Continental Radio. She later worked for Radio Fides, Unitepc, and Paceña de Televisión (Canal 33). On state television (Bolivia TV), she hosted a program for small businesses called Pymes y Mypes. As a radio host, she launched her own program, Dos horas con Wilma, on Radio Integración in El Alto, and Wilma y Usted on regional television channel Canal 24. She also held a brief stint as Director of Communications for COTEL. In 2011, Alanoca joined Red ATB, a leading national television channel, where she covered news from El Alto and served as a news anchor until 2014.

Political Career

In 2015, Alanoca ran for local office under the Movement for Socialism party (MAS-IPSP), led by President Evo Morales. She was elected to the city council in El Alto, serving from 2015 to 2017.

On January 23, 2017, President Morales appointed Alanoca as Minister of Culture and Tourism of Bolivia. She was one of the youngest ministers in Morales' third government, alongside Mariana Prado (born 1982) and Ariana Campero (born 1986). However, her tenure was marked by sexist remarks from Morales, which drew public criticism.

In 2019, Alanoca announced that the country had received a record number of nominations for the prestigious World Travel Awards. After President Morales and his government were forced to resign by security forces, the new "interim" authorities attempted to charge Alanoca and other MAS officials with "preparing sedition," detaining four civil servants from her ministry and claiming to have found Molotov cocktails in the ministry's storage facilities. On November 19, 2019, Alanoca sought asylum in Mexico.