Economy of Venezuela - Social Development

Social Development

In recent years, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, under the direction of President Hugo Chávez, has made giant leaps in the realm of social development. With social programs such as the Bolivarian Missions, Venezuela has made tremendous progress in areas such as health, education, and poverty. Through what President Hugo Chávez terms 21st Century Socialism, Venezuela has been able to fix many of its domestic issues. Many of the social policy pursued by Chávez and his administration were jumpstarted by the Millennium Development Goals, eight goals that Venezuela and 188 other nations agreed to in September 2000. In each of the goals, Venezuela has made improvements, and at this rate, will meet all eight goals by their 2015 deadline.

When the international community agreed to the Millennium Development Goals, each country pledged to use social policy to achieve each of the eight goals. The former President of the General Assembly of the United Nations, Ali Abdessalam Treki, stated: “What Venezuela has achieved with regards to the Millennium Development Goals should serve as a model for all other countries."

The country has allocated much of its government spending on social policy. From 1999-2009, 60% of government revenues focused on social programs. Social investment went from 8.4% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 1988 to 18.8% in 2008. Through this social spending, Venezuela has been able to stay on track to reaching the Millennium Development Goals.