Venezuelans Started Buying Items Immediately Because Of Their Fear Of

Question - Venezuelans Started Buying Items Immediately Because of Their Fear of What?

In the last few years, the South American country of Venezuela has witnessed an extreme economic crisis. This crisis phase has led to a scarcity of goods and services, widespread poverty and hyperinflation. Corruption and political instability only made this situation worse. As a result, it led to a devastating impact on the citizens of Venezuela.

This economic instability leads to widespread effects among Venezuelans. These economic problems led to an absurd rise in price and a fall in the availability of resources. This limited their access to basic goods and services, and this made them anxious. The limited accessibility to basic needs like food, household objects, and medicine leads to panic buying among Venezuelans. They feared that they would soon run out of daily necessities, and they started hoarding objects out of fear.

A few factors drove this behaviour –

• Shortage of Basic Goods

As the economic crisis became more widespread, it limited the availability of basic food items like food, household supplies, and medicine. With resources getting scarce, it created a sense of panic and urgency among Venezuelans. So, they rush to get these objects for themselves when they are still available, as none of them wants to miss the chance to get these objects for themselves.

• Hyperinflation

The economic instability also impacted the inflation rate in Venezuela. In the last few years, the inflation rate has been skyrocketing, with all the prices rising at an alarming pace. This made the life of the Venezuelans extremely harsh, and they struggled to keep up with the rising living cost. So, they started to panic and started purchasing the objects fearing that the product prices would rise even more due to hyperinflation.

• Political Instability

It is no secret that political disturbances have plagued Venezuela in recent years. Adding to this, the country faced government crackdowns and political protests frequently. The ruling and the opposing political parties also engaged in clashes and riots, which led to a fearful and uncertain atmosphere in Venezuela. They started worrying about the violence in the country and feared how it might disrupt their normal lives.

• Lack of Trust in Government

Due to the disrupted economic situation, the Venezuelans lost all faith in the ability of the Government. They started believing that their Government won’t be able to address the persistent economic crisis or provide for the citizens. This led to a sense of panic and desperation, and the citizens started feeling that they should be prepared to fend for themselves if they wanted to survive.

Combining all these factors created an environment of fear and urgency among the Venezuelan people. This urgency led to panic buying, which saw people standing for hours in queues before grocery stores. The scarcity of basic food items like rice and flour led people to wait desperately in front of supermarkets and grocery stores.

It was also observed that Venezuela saw a rapid sell-out of essential items like diapers, napkins, medicines, and other essential items. However, though panic buy can offer them a temporary sense of relief that they have obtained the goods they need, it eventually worsens that overall scenario. When people start hoarding essential goods, the resources get more scarce, and many people who genuinely need certain products won’t find them in the market. This eventually creates a sense of hostility and competition among the citizens. This is why they started believing that they should compete among themselves to fight for survival and avail the resources.

Conclusion

The uncertainty and fear created by the economic crisis in Venezuela is the primary reason behind the panic buying of the Venezuelan citizens. Several factors like hyperinflation, shortage of essential goods, unstable Government, and lack of trust in the Government drove this phenomenon. While hoarding and competing for essential goods seemed like a temporary relief to some, it eventually worsened the already degrading economy. This led to hostility and competition among the Venezuelans and exacerbated the scarcity of essential items in Venezuela.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the biggest economic problem in Venezuela?

According to the reports of the ENCOVI, a large population (94.5%) of Venezuelans live under the poverty level. Out of them, almost 76.6% of people live in extreme poverty. These astonishing figures can be deemed as the biggest economic problem in Venezuela.

2. Is the economy of Venezuela getting better?

According to the reports, Venezuela has seen a rise of 15% of GDP. This is their best rise in history and is also one of the best numbers among the Caribbean and Latin American countries. This signifies that the economy of Venezuela is getting better with time.

3. What is the reason behind the economic downfall of Venezuela?

Venezuela saw a drastic economic downfall in the last few years. The main reasons behind the same can be pinned on two reasons – the sanctions by the US government and sheer mismanagement by the Government.

4. What is Venezuela doing to reduce poverty?

Venezuela is coming up with certain measures to reduce poverty. One of the main strategies to do the same is by establishing a micro business. The “Cuatro Por Venezuela” is arranging donations and humanitarian aid to Venezuela to reduce its poverty.

5. What are the main economic sources of Venezuela?

The main economic sources of Venezuela are heavily dependent on the petroleum business. Venezuela is the twenty-fifth largest producer of oil in the world. It is also a leading country in exporting heavy industry products like aluminium, steel, and cement.