Lynn A Sosnosky
Abstract: Over the past few decades, many countries of Latin America have embarked upon national development projects in an effort to improve and eventually eliminate the disadvantageous economic and social situations that have come to be equated with Latin American nations. This being said, many of these nations have struggled to make the transition from dependent, underdeveloped countries to self-sufficient, developed nations. The transition is often dependent on foreign capital, which ultimately allows growth policies to be implemented, such as Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI). These policies have proven to be very successful in providing the accumulation of wealth, growth and development throughout Latin American nations. However, Venezuela has proved an exception to the successful growth policies such as ISI throughout Latin America, as it does not meet one of the two necessary elements for successful development—an agrarian sector. This article highlights the Venezuelan dependence on its industrial sector, specifically oil, paired with a “failure on the farm” as the principle reason for Venezuela’s failure to become self-sufficient, even with the huge economic growth resulting from the industrial boom of the 1960’s and 1970’s. This article uses historical and modern statistics to illustrate the necessity of investing in the agricultural sector throughout Venezuela, along with pointing towards other industries, such as fishing, that Venezuela could potentially implement in order to reach self-sustainability.
Keywords: Venezuela, Latin America, Agriculture, Economics, ISI, Industry, Development
