Venezuela set to become ‘producing, exporting power’, Maduro says

Venezuela will become a “food producing and exporting power” in the near future, President Nicolas Maduro has told his nation, saying the country will wean itself from dependence on oil.

In his latest speech on air at state television on Wednesday, Maduro said, “Venezuela has an offer for international foreign investment to come in and produce food. Venezuela is going to become a food producing and exporting power, you will see it.”

The Venezuelan leader says he aims to achieve this through a scheme he has “offered to at least a dozen” countries and investors.

“We have a plan, a strategy, we have a scientific method with the nine vertices of the Great AgroVenezuela Mission and Venezuela has been offered foreign investments to come in and transform us into a food producing and exporting power.”

Maduro stated that the Caribbean nation “will no longer depend on oil or on anything or anyone in this world,” explaining that after having “an economic system sick of oil rentism” for more than a century, Venezuela has been “finding the path of diversification” of its economy.

The South American country’s oil-dependent economy, along with US sanctions, has deprived the country of productivity, with large industries being negatively affected.

According to the head of the state, Venezuela used to import 90 percent of everything it consumed, while now it produces “more than 80 percent of the food” that goes to homes.

Meanwhile, Minister of Agriculture and Lands Wilmar Soteldo said Venezuela has already received representatives from “different friendly countries” to work with Venezuelan producers.

“What is coming is investment from abroad to produce with our producers, increase production capacity, leave an important quota to complete everything we need to reach that 100 percent and export,” Soteldo said.

The country has made bilateral agreements with “sister” nations, Soteldo said, while hosting different foreign investors throughout last week.

The Caribbean nation has managed to withstand economic pressures of the unprecedented sanctions throughout the years while gradually finding ways to get around.

The US has imposed several rounds of crippling sanctions against Venezuela in the wake of Maduro’s re-election in 2018 for a second term in a ballot boycotted by the opposition.

MG