In 1999, the country changed its model to socialism and elected President Hugo Chavez, who fought for populism, broke ties with the United States and joined China and Russia in lending Venezuela billions. Chávez ruled until his death in 2013 and is still considered a hero of the poor.

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But his government spent too much on welfare programs and set prices for everything. Agricultural land was first declared state property and then abandoned. So the country became dependent on the sale of its oil abroad.

Before he died, Chavez chose Maduro as his successor and he upheld the practices of the regime. His government also stopped publishing reliable statistics, including figures on economic growth and inflation. He also accepted millions in bribes for construction projects and racked up debts he is still struggling to pay off.

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Meanwhile, the only product that Venezuela had left began to devalue.

By 2014, the price of oil was around $100 a barrel. But then, several countries began to extract more of this product because it was no longer inaccessible: now it could be dredged with new technology. At the same time, companies worldwide stopped buying gasoline. So the oil glut led to the global price falling to $26 a barrel in 2016.

Today it is around 50 dollars, which means that Venezuela's income has been cut in half.

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The country has been brought to an unprecedented collapse.

 

The collapse has been imminent, the country has changed, its people have changed.