Poverty in Venezuela climbs to 87%, thanks to hyperinflation, study says

Poverty in Venezuela reached 87% of the population in 2017, thanks to hyperinflation that has pulverized income, according to a study by the country's leIn its most recent report of 2016, the government of President Nicolás Maduro placed poverty at 18.1% and extreme poverty at 4.4%.

Venezuela had inflation of 2,600% in 2017, according to Parliament, with opposition majority, while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects at 13,000% by 2018.

The survey, conducted between July and September in 6,188 households, revealed that 56.2% have recently fallen into poverty, while 30.4% are in "chronic poverty," which "involves spraying the middle class in terms economic, "said Ponce.

ading universities and several NGOs released on Wednesday (21).

Poverty stood at 25.8% and extreme poverty at 61.2% - compared to 30.3% and 51.5% a year earlier, respectively - indicated the Survey on Living Conditions in Venezuela (Encovi).

"The majority of Venezuelans are below a poverty line, because wages can not reach the speed of inflation," sociologist María Ponce explained in presenting the results.

"After four uninterrupted years of crisis, the deterioration was monumental," said the sociologist, pointing out that, between 2014 and 2017, poverty rose from 48.4% to 87%.

The minimum wage of 797,510 bolívares today buys little more than two kilos of meat.

The loss of purchasing power means that 8.2 million Venezuelans - from a population of 30 million - have two or fewer meals a day, "said Marianella Herrera, from the Central University of Venezuela (UCV, public).

"New out of every ten Venezuelans can not afford their daily food," and 60% "lost 11 kilos (of the weight) in the last year due to hunger", undergoing a diet where cassava, rice and flour prevail, Herrera added.

Maduro, who wants re-election in the April 22 lawsuit, attributes the crisis to an "economic war" to overthrow him. Almost two years ago he created a subsidized food distribution plan, which he said benefited 6 million families.

He also created the "card of the motherland," credit card to access social programs that would have 16 million enrolled.

According to Encovi, these initiatives have virtually disappeared to focus on the food program, which benefits 12.6 million people, although the delivery of products is uneven.