Abstract: Venezuela’s, a nation once thriving, is now caught in the grip of a disturbing reality – the absence of official statistics. This deficiency, a legacy of the dictatorial regime, cripples the nation’s ability to plan for a brighter future. The persistent refusal of the government to acknowledge and tackle this issue is leading to an increasing sense of frustration and despair among the population.
For a decade, Venezuela’s National Institute of Statistics (INE) has remained in a state of inertia, depriving the nation of vital data. A visit to their website today reveals an empty shell, bereft of any meaningful content. From the last census conducted in 2011 to the present day, there’s an alarming absence of updated statistics. The INE, once responsible for producing official statistics to guide national planning, is silent about the ongoing demographic crisis. In stark contrast, the reality is that over 7 million Venezuelans have left their homeland, a fact ignored by the official statistics body.
Moreover, the state-owned oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, is no more accessible. The company’s website is unresponsive, leaving the public in the dark about the current status of oil production, a crucial pillar of Venezuela’s fragile economy. Likewise, the Ministry of Oil offers no respite, its website equally devoid of any significant data.
A similar blackout of information is observed in other sectors. Crime statistics for the year 2022 are nowhere to be found on the website of the Ministry of Interior, Justice and Peace. This absence of transparency extends to the Ministry of Health, with no access to vital health indicators, hospital reports, or disease data. A search for the historical Epidemiological Bulletin, a document that once chronicled the state of public health, yields no results.
Education, another key sector, is also grappling with a similar blackout. The Ministry of Education’s website is inaccessible, further deepening the information void. The Ministry of Economy, Finance, and Foreign Trade also falls short, with the latest available fiscal statistics dating back to 2009.
This systemic opacity, riddled with obsolete content, half-truths, and propaganda, is no mere coincidence. Rather, it’s a deliberate strategy aimed at obscuring the realities of a nation shattered by the reckless policies of Chavez and Maduro’s regime.
Currently, the primary source of data about Venezuela’s realities is a network of non-governmental organizations, universities, and international bodies. This situation reveals a disturbing truth: Venezuela has become a state without official statistics.
This lack of data cripples Venezuela’s ability to plan effectively and assess the efficacy of policies. The government’s predatory tendencies and incompetence have led to a contempt for transparency, information, and data. The absence of official statistics is a calculated move to maintain power and continue the systemic looting of the nation’s resources while trampling on human rights. This intentional obscurity and misinformation only serve to deepen the social and political fragility of Venezuelan society.
Conclusion: For Venezuela to break free from this vicious cycle, it must rise against the relentless tide of corruption, human rights violations, and resource exploitation. Only then can it restore transparency, accountability, and above all, hope among its people. A nation without statistics is a nation lost. But a nation united in purpose can find its way again.
Keywords: Venezuela’s, National Institute of Statistics, absence of official statistics, demographic crisis, Petróleos de Venezuela, Ministry of Oil, Ministry of Interior, Justice and Peace, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Economy, Finance, and Foreign Trade, Chavez and Maduro’s regime, corruption, human rights violations, resource exploitation, transparency, accountability.