Chicago, IL – 2022 was a successful year for the Venezuelan economy. The Venezuelan central bank recorded a growth rate of 19%, while the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America put it at 12%. While inflation in food and gas prices eroded workers’ incomes in the United States and much of the world last year, inflation in Venezuela was low compared to previous years. This is due to booms in both the food and oil sectors in Venezuela attributed to the Bolivarian Revolution’s ability to overcome US sanctions.
Recovery of the oil industry
PDVSA oil began flowing back to the US and EU after March, when the Biden administration was negotiating with President Nicolas Maduro’s administration. Due to the ongoing debacle of the US war against Russia in Ukraine, the US and EU are desperate to source oil from Venezuela.
With the help of chemical additives, new technology and machine parts from Iran, Venezuela has restored its oil industry and refineries are operating at levels not seen since US sanctions came into effect under President Obama. Gas pipelines still exist in parts of Venezuela, but the industry has fully recovered and production is high. A gallon of gasoline costs about 36 cents in Caracas.
Grow your own food
Likewise, following the agricultural policy begun under President Hugo Chavez, Venezuela is self-sufficient and will start exporting food in 2023. “We will produce 94% of the food in 2022 after importing 80% of everything [in previous decades]’ said Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a New Year’s interview with Spanish journalist Ignacio Ramonet. The agricultural revolution of the last 20 years has involved land redistribution, the recruitment of Colombian farmers and production geared towards feeding Venezuela’s 30 million people. Anyone who claims that people in Venezuela are starving is lying.
Today, the CL` food production and delivery program, started in 2016, covers 85% of Venezuelan households. Boxes of staples like rice, beans, fruit and veg, even protein are delivered cheaply every two weeks. The CL` program (for the Comité Local de Abastecimiento y Producción, or Local Committees for Supply and Production) was set up after US sanctions were imposed and large warehouse owners began hoarding to create shortages of goods and drive up prices . Their plans were foiled.
While Venezuelan workers and farmers did the production, much of the set-up to enable production stemmed from Venezuela’s special envoy Alex Saab’s ability to negotiate and finalize trade deals, particularly food-for-oil. It has been over 900 days since the US seized diplomat Saab in Cape Verde to accuse him of conspiracy. The kidnapped diplomat is being held as a prisoner by the US in Miami, Florida. A recent court ruling by a Miami judge ignored overwhelming evidence and dismissed Saab’s diplomatic status. The judge’s logic is that if the US government doesn’t recognize President Maduro, the court shouldn’t either.
A productive economy
While oil remains important to Venezuela’s economy, much of the growth is occurring in newer industries, with support from the national government. There are joint ventures between the Venezuelan government, Venezuelan companies and foreign companies that manufacture or assemble laptops, motorcycles, vans and electric buses. The diversification and industrialization of Venezuela’s economy is a priority to “break free from the old oil-dependent rentier capitalist model,” as President Maduro says.
Bolivarian determination overcomes US sanctions
It is clear that the US sanctions regime of Obama, Trump and now Biden is missing its mark. In fact, it had the opposite effect – Venezuela’s economy has recovered and strengthened through diversification. It is still an economy geared towards serving people rather than making profit. Last year, President Maduro announced that 4.4 million new apartments and houses had been built. These replace the dreadful shanty towns in which many people lived under corrugated iron roofs, with garden hoses for water and extension cords for electricity. The new apartments are free or low cost as they are owned by the residents.
Friends help friends
The Bolivarian Revolution is thriving under the leadership of President Maduro and the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, but it also has good friends. Cuba and Iran are good friends, but China, Russia and Vietnam all have joint ventures or infrastructure projects in Venezuela. Turkey and India do business and trade with Venezuela despite US sanctions. How could they not when both the EU and the US are taking oil shipments?
In the current multipolar world, where the US empire is in decline, Latin American integration is progressing at full speed. The US is unable to isolate Venezuela. The New Year’s inauguration of President Lula in Brazil marks a major change for Colombia, Venezuela and the region. The Bolivarian Revolution is likely to recover along with the Venezuelan economy in the coming year. With the ten-year commemoration of Comandante Hugo Chavez on March 5, the PSUV and its millions of supporters will reaffirm their Bolivarian principles and fight for a socialist future.
Comments are closed.