The delegation was addressed by the Deputy Minister of Minerals and Metallurgy. He outlined the mining history of the country, which dates back to pre-colonial times. The colonialisation of the country resulted in workers being brought from Africa to work in the Bolivian mines. Bolivia declared its independence from Spain on 6 August 1825 but the State started to intervene in the mining industry through nationalization in 1952. The tin, lead and silver mines were nationalized. The ownership and management of the mines by the State continued until it was interrupted in 1995 when neo-liberal policies were introduced. The private mining companies are reported to have extracted and taken the best minerals out of the country during this period. The former state mine workers left mining and had to find work in other industries. There was no transfer of skills to indigenous population during this period. The exploitation of workers was rife during the neo-liberal period. Since his inauguration in January 2006, President Morales has forced a number of companies to hand back majority control of privatized assets to the state. When recapturing the privatized mines, the ruling alliance discovered the following: