How Chávez Has Helped the Poor « Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in the U.S.
Policies enacted since Chávez was elected have also helped redistribute the gains of Venezuelas record economic growth. Unemployment is down, employment in the formal sector is up, and the minimum wage has increased notably. More important, income has grown fastest for Venezuelas poorest. According to the polling firm Datanalisis, from 1998 to 2006 Venezuelas poorest sectors saw an increase in income of 445 percent, and the wealthiest saw a gain of 194 percent. These gains have come despite a concerted effort by certain sectors of the opposition to throw the country into crisis in 2002 and 2003. In a shocking omission, Rodríguez does not mention that the sabotage of the oil industry in late 2002 and early 2003 bled Venezuela of 24 percent of its GDP. By comparison, during four years of the Great Depression, the United States lost 29 percent of its GDP.