Arguing that the model of economic
development imposed on Latin American
governments by the United States has
failed, Chavez call his approach a new
“socialism of the twenty-first century.”
Inspired by the teachings of Jesus, he has
Spent large amounts of money on social
Programs such as housing and health care.
Cuban doctors run neighborhood clinics,
bringing free primary care to the poorest
areas. Price controls have been placed on
over four hundred food items, with soup
kitchens providing food for the poorest. In
one year alone, state spending for such
programs increased by more than 30 per-
cent. Chavez’s Bolivarian Missions ( named
after Bolivar ) work to combat disease,
illiteracy, and poverty. According to government statistics, between 2000 and 2007 , extreme poverty was cut in almost half, from 17 to 8 percent. Chavez has provided more for the poor than any other Venezuelan leader. As Muller Rojas, a leader of Chavez’s United Socialist Party of Venezuela, argues, “ Asocial consciousness has been created. It’s improbable that we will regress to the way it Was before “
These programs benefitted from escalating export revenues 1999. During these years economic growth was strong. By 2004,the government had full control over the oil industry through the takeover of Venezuela’s national oil company , PDVSA, by Chavez loyalists. Yet several government policies regarding oil have proven counterproductive. Although world petroleum prices remained high at least midway through 2008, Venezuela’s production costs increased due to declining technical capacity. Policies that require PDVSA to supply cheap oil to other countries in the region have also led to an overall decline in revenue.
During his tenure, Chavez has been able to exercise his democratic authority by reducing the size of the political center and confronting his political opposition, but not banning them. He lavishes his supporters with gifts and withholds resources from those who oppose him.
He has increased his control over the judiciary, the institution that supervises elections, as well as his control over the petroleum industry. This strategy, sometime called “ Chavenomics ,”entails the
Overwhelming presence of the state in the economy and presidential involvement in state management. Chavez has broadened popular political participation through the Bolivarian Circles,
grassroots political and social groups. That participation can be seen both in poor neighborhoods around the capital and in rural areas. Bringing technology to these areas has connected