Chávez and poverty
Michael Rowan
Special for El Universal
In 2006 there were 137 million people living in twelve Latin
American countries with GDP per capita annual incomes ranging
between US$2,000 and $6,000 - the world average was $9,000 -
which means 80% of them were poor and miserable. The twelve
include Venezuela, Paraguay, Ecuador, Bolivia, Cuba, Nicaragua
and Haiti which are loosely or closely aligned to Chavez's Bolivarian
Revolution - socialism for the 21st century. During his rule,
Chavez has done nothing to change these numbers either in Venezuela
or in the foreign places where he is spending about $100 billion
to prove that he has the economic solution to the world. But
he doesn't.
There were also 386 million people living in ten Latin American
countries with GDP per capita annual incomes ranging between
US$7,000 and $13,000 and where traditional capital markets operated.
In these countries, poverty was falling by a few percent per
year - not enough, but a lot better than the twelve poor countries
noted above. These ten nations include Mexico, which has integrated
its economy with the US and Canada, and Brazil, which is competitively
trading with North America, Europe and Asia. Mexico and Brazil
also have the best records for reducing poverty in South America.
And there were 50 million successful Hispanic-Americans with
GDP per capita annual incomes ranging between US$22,000 and
$25,000. Four million of them live in Puerto Rico and the rest
live and work in the USA. If the 550 Latin Americans were as
productive as those 50 million Hispanic-Americans, the 2006
GDP for Latin America would have been $12.1 trillion and not
the $2.4 trillion actually recorded. Why are Puerto Ricans and
Hispanic-Americans producing so much more wealth than Latin
Americans? The answer is: because they live under a dependable
system of law, freedom, and private enterprise.
Thirty years ago, it looked like Venezuela would join the rich
countries. But every government since 1976 has made Venezuela
poorer, especially the Chavez government. In the name of nationalism
and socialism, the pied piper of populism has produced only
more poverty. One wonders if they'll ever wake up to what they're
doing.
michaelrowan22@gmail.com
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