Venezuela’s currency the Bolivar is worth almost nothing these days. That’s forced the country’s citizens to figure out new ways to put food on their tables
Hyperinflation and the continuing economic and political crisis in Venezuela is driving more Venezuelans to travel to the Colombian border to buy food and other supplies. Even though the government has raised the minimum wage, it is still not nearly enough and most Venezuelans continue to struggle
Venezuela, opposition leader Juan Guaido remains free while several of his allied lawmakers face possible criminal prosecution after a failed attempt to force socialist President Nicolas Maduro from office. Dozens of countries, including the United States, view Maduro’s 2018 re-election as illegitimate and have recognized Guaido as Venezuela’s leader. Brian Padden reports on concerns for the opposition leader’s safety as Maduro seeks to reassert his authority by cracking down on opponents
The power struggle for control of Venezuela is also playing out at the country’s official mission in Washington
The FAO report says that 2018 was the third consecutive year in which the number of people facing all levels of food insecurity topped the 100 million mark, although it was slightly better than 2017’s number of 124 million people. The study said some countries were less affected by severe weather events such as drought and flooding
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Maduro remains dug in, blaming the White House for openly backing what he calls a coup to remove him from power and exploit his country’s vast oil wealth. He retains support from powerful allies, including Russia and China, but is growing increasingly isolated as more nations back Guaido
the Trump administration’s confrontational approach is adopted by the European Union, some of whose members have threatened to recognize Guaido if Maduro doesn’t announce new elections in eight days, it could bring oil production to a standstill, heaping more hardships on the 29 million Venezuelans already struggling with hyperinflation, widespread food shortages and anemic economic activity