Once prosperous, more than 75 pct Venezuelans now living in extreme poverty: Survey
Around three-fourths of Venezuelans now live in extreme poverty as the once-prosperous OPEC nation’s hyperinflationary economic collapse continued for a seventh straight year, according to a study published on Wednesday.
The 2020-2021 National Survey of Living Conditions (ENCOVI), conducted by researchers at Andres Bello Catholic University (UCAB), found that of the country’s 28 million residents, 76.6 percent live in extreme poverty, up from 67.7 percent last year.
For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The report attributed the rise to both the COVID-19 pandemic and chronic fuel shortages, which at least 20 percent of respondents said meant they could not put gasoline in their cars, a major obstacle to employment.
The ENCOVI study was created in 2014 to make up for the absence of official data, according to Pedro Luis Espana, a UCAB sociologist who contributed to the study.
Espana said that beyond the loss of purchasing power, the lack of employment has led to boredom, adding that Venezuela’s public sector pays poorly, as the country’s minimum wage hovers around $3 a month, and the country’s private sector is small.
“It is the absence of opportunities,” Espana said. “It is sitting in front of the door of the house, doing nothing, not because you do not want to do anything, but because there is nowhere to do it.”
Venezuela’s information ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the findings.
Maduro
President Nicolas Maduro’s government frequently blames US sanctions for the country’s woes, but critics attribute the country’s crisis to his government’s economic mismanagement.
When measured solely by income levels, 94.5 percent of the population lives in poverty, a figure unmatched elsewhere in the region, the ENCOVI survey found.
The survey was conducted through questionnaires distributed to 14,000 households in 21 of the 23 states of the country between February and April.
Read more: US to give $336 million in aid to Venezuelans: State Department
-
US to give $336 million in aid to Venezuelans: State Department
The US is giving $247 million in humanitarian aid and $89 million in economic and development aid to Venezuelans, State Department spokesman Ned Price ... World News -
Under US sanctions, Iran and Venezuela strike oil export deal: Sources
Venezuela has agreed to a key contract to swap its heavy oil for Iranian condensate that it can use to improve the quality of its tar-like crude, with ... World News -
Venezuela opposition parties to announce participation in regional vote : Sources
Venezuela’s principal opposition parties are expected this week to announce candidacies for the upcoming elections for governors and mayors, three ... World News -
Venezuela’s warring sides to resume talks in September; opposition leader freed
Representatives of Venezuela’s government and the opposition said they will resume talks next month after a round of preliminary meetings in Mexico ... World News -
Venezuelan government, opposition start talks in Mexico City
Representatives of the Venezuelan government and the opposition began a round of talks on Friday in Mexico City aimed at overcoming Venezuela’s acute ... World News -
World’s cheapest Big Mac can be found in Lebanon, most expensive in Venezuela
The world’s cheapest Big Mac can be purchased in Lebanon, according to The Economist’s “The Big Mac index.”The index aims to highlight the purchasing ... Economy -
Venezuelans tied to anti-Maduro plot sentenced to 6 years
A judge in Colombia has sentenced three Venezuelan men to six years in prison for helping organize an ill-conceived plot to remove President Nicolás ... World News