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Introduction - Venezuela
Background:
Venezuela was one of three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran
Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and New Granada, which became
Colombia). For most of the first half of the 20th century, Venezuela was ruled
by generally benevolent military strongmen, who promoted the oil industry and
allowed for some social reforms. Democratically elected governments have held
sway since 1959. Hugo CHAVEZ, president since 1999, seeks to implement his "21st
Century Socialism," which purports to alleviate social ills while at the same
time attacking capitalist globalization and existing democratic institutions.
Current concerns include: a weakening of democratic institutions, political
polarization, a politicized military, drug-related violence along the Colombian
border, increasing internal drug consumption, overdependence on the petroleum
industry with its price fluctuations, and irresponsible mining operations that
are endangering the rain forest and indigenous peoples.
Geography - Venezuela
Location:
Northern South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic
Ocean, between Colombia and Guyana
Geographic coordinates:
8 00 N, 66 00 W
Map references:
South America
Area:
total: 912,050 sq km
country comparison to the world: 33
land: 882,050 sq km
water: 30,000 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly more than twice the size of California
Land boundaries:
total: 4,993 km
border countries: Brazil 2,200 km, Colombia 2,050 km, Guyana 743 km
Coastline:
2,800 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 15 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
Current Weather
tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands
Terrain:
Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos);
Guiana Highlands in southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Pico Bolivar (La Columna) 5,007 m
Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals, hydropower,
diamonds
Land use:
arable land: 2.85%
permanent crops: 0.88%
other: 96.27% (2005)
Irrigated land:
5,750 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
1,233.2 cu km (2000)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 8.37 cu km/yr (6%/7%/47%)
per capita: 313 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
subject to floods, rockslides, mudslides; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
sewage pollution of Lago de Valencia; oil and urban pollution of Lago de
Maracaibo; deforestation; soil degradation; urban and industrial pollution,
especially along the Caribbean coast; threat to the rainforest ecosystem from
irresponsible mining operations
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life
Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83,
Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed but not ratified:: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
on major sea and air routes linking North and South America; Angel Falls in the
Guiana Highlands is the world's highest waterfall
People - Venezuela
Population:
27,223,228 (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 45
Age structure:
0-14 years: 30% (male 4,153,009/female 4,012,099)
15-64 years: 64.7% (male 8,664,411/female 8,944,598)
65 years and over: 5.3% (male 641,489/female 807,622) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 25.8 years
male: 25.1 years
female: 26.5 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.515% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 80
Birth rate:
20.29 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 93
Death rate:
5.14 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 182
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 70
Urbanization:
urban population: 93% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 2% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 21.07 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 97
male: 24.6 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 17.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.77 years
country comparison to the world: 108
male: 70.69 years
female: 77 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.45 children born/woman (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 94
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.7%; note - no country specific models provided (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 63
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
110,000 (1999 est.)
country comparison to the world: 45
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
4,100 (2003 est.)
country comparison to the world: 49
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea
vectorborne disease: dengue fever and malaria (2009)
Nationality:
noun: Venezuelan(s)
adjective: Venezuelan
Ethnic groups:
Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Arab, German, African, indigenous people
Religions:
nominally Roman Catholic 96%, Protestant 2%, other 2%
Languages:
Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93%
male: 93.3%
female: 92.7% (2001 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 12 years
male: 11 years
female: 12 years (2003)
Education expenditures:
3.7% of GDP (2006)
country comparison to the world: 124
Government - Venezuela
Country name:
conventional long form: Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
conventional short form: Venezuela
local long form: Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela
local short form: Venezuela
Government type:
federal republic
Capital:
name: Caracas
geographic coordinates: 10 30 N, 66 56 W
time difference: UTC-4.5 (half an hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard
Time)
Administrative divisions:
23 states (estados, singular - estado), 1 capital district* (distrito capital),
and 1 federal dependency** (dependencia federal); Amazonas, Anzoategui, Apure,
Aragua, Barinas, Bolivar, Carabobo, Cojedes, Delta Amacuro, Dependencias
Federales**, Distrito Capital*, Falcon, Guarico, Lara, Merida, Miranda, Monagas,
Nueva Esparta, Portuguesa, Sucre, Tachira, Trujillo, Vargas, Yaracuy, Zulia
note: the federal dependency consists of 11 federally controlled island groups
with a total of 72 individual islands
Independence:
5 July 1811 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 5 July (1811)
Constitution:
30 December 1999
Legal system:
open, adversarial court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999); Executive
Vice President Elias JAUA Milano (since 26 January 2010); note - the president
is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Hugo CHAVEZ Frias (since 3 February 1999);
Executive Vice President Elias JAUA Milano (since 26 January 2010)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
(For more information visit the World Leaders website )
elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term (eligible for
unlimited reelection); election last held on 3 December 2006 (next to be held in
December 2012)
note: in 1999, a National Constituent Assembly drafted a new constitution that
increased the presidential term to six years; an election was subsequently held
on 30 July 2000 under the terms of this constitution; in 2009, a national
referendum approved the elimination of term limits on all elected officials,
including the presidency
election results: Hugo CHAVEZ Frias reelected president; percent of vote - Hugo
CHAVEZ Frias 62.9%, Manuel ROSALES 36.9%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (167 seats; members elected by
popular vote to serve five-year terms; three seats reserved for the indigenous
peoples of Venezuela)
elections: last held on 4 December 2005 (next to be held in 26 September 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - pro-government
167 (MVR 114, PODEMOS 15, PPT 11, indigenous 2, other 25), opposition 0; total
seats by party as of 16 December 2009 - pro-government 156 (PSUV 141, PPT 5, PCV
4, other 6), PODEMOS 6, FPH 5
Judicial branch:
Supreme Tribunal of Justice or Tribuna Suprema de Justicia (32 magistrates are
elected by the National Assembly for a single 12-year term)
Political parties and leaders:
A New Time or UNT [Omar BARBOZA]; Brave People's Alliance or ABP [Oscar PEREZ];
Christian Democrats or COPEI [Luis Ignacio PLANAS]; Communist Party of Venezuela
or PCV [Oscar FIGUERA]; Democratic Action or AD [Henry RAMOS Allup]; Fatherland
for All or PPT [Jose ALBORNOZ]; For Social Democracy or PODEMOS [Ramon
MARTINEZ]; Justice First [Julio BORGES]; Movement Toward Socialism or MAS
[Felipe MUJICA]; United Socialist Party of Venezuela or PSUV [Hugo CHAVEZ];
Venezuela Project or PV [Henrique SALAS Romer]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
FEDECAMARAS, a conservative business group; VECINOS groups; Venezuelan
Confederation of Workers or CTV (labor organization dominated by the Democratic
Action)
International organization participation:
Caricom (observer), CDB, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, LAS (observer), Mercosur (associate),
MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, PetroCaribe, RG, UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Bernardo ALVAREZ Herrera
chancery: 1099 30th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 342-2214
FAX: [1] (202) 342-6820
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York,
San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Patrick DUDDY
embassy: Calle F con Calle Suapure, Urbanizacion Colinas de Valle Arriba,
Caracas 1080
mailing address: P. O. Box 62291, Caracas 1060-A; APO AA 34037
telephone: [58] (212) 975-6411, 907-8400 (after hours)
FAX: [58] (212) 907-8199
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, and red with the coat of
arms on the hoist side of the yellow band and an arc of eight white five-pointed
stars centered in the blue band; the flag retains the three equal horizontal
bands and three main colors of the banner of Gran Columbia, the South American
republic that broke up in 1830; yellow is interpreted as standing for the riches
of the land, blue for the courage of its people, and red for the blood shed in
attaining independence; the seven stars on the original flag represented the
seven provinces in Venezuela that united in the war of independence; in 2006,
President Hugo CHAVEZ ordered an eighth star added to the star arc - a decision
that sparked much controversy
Economy - Venezuela
Economy - overview:
Venezuela remains highly dependent on oil revenues, which account for roughly
90% of export earnings, about 50% of the federal budget revenues, and around 30%
of GDP. A nationwide strike between December 2002 and February 2003 had
far-reaching economic consequences - real GDP declined by around 9% in 2002 and
8% in 2003 - but economic output since then has recovered strongly. Fueled by
high oil prices, record government spending helped to boost GDP by about 10% in
2006, 8% in 2007, and nearly 5% in 2008, before the world recession caused a
contraction in 2009. This spending, combined with recent minimum wage hikes and
improved access to domestic credit, has created a consumption boom but has come
at the cost of higher inflation - roughly 20% in 2007 and more than 30% in 2008.
Imports also jumped significantly before the recession of 2009. Declining oil
prices in the latter part of 2008 are undermining the government's ability to
continue the high rate of spending. President Hugo CHAVEZ in 2008-09 continued
efforts to increase the government's control of the economy by nationalizing
firms in the agribusiness, banking, tourism, oil, cement, and steel sectors. In
2007, he nationalized firms in the petroleum, communications, and electricity
sectors. In January, 2010, CHAVEZ announced a dual exchange rate system for the
fixed rate bolivar. The system offers a 2.6 bolivar per dollar rate for imports
of essentials, including food, medicine, and industrial machinery, and a 4.3
bolivar per dollar rate for imports of other products, including cars and
telephones.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$350.1 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
$360.5 billion (2008 est.)
$344 billion (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$357.6 billion (2009 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
-2.9% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 162
4.8% (2008 est.)
8.2% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$13,100 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 86
$13,600 (2008 est.)
$13,200 (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 4%
industry: 36.8%
services: 59.2% (2009 est.)
Labor force:
12.93 million (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 41
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 13%
industry: 23%
services: 64% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate:
7.9% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84
7.4% (2008 est.)
Population below poverty line:
37.9% (yearend 2005 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.7%
highest 10%: 32.7% (2006)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
41 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 57
49.5 (1998)
Investment (gross fixed):
22.1% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69
Budget:
revenues: $66.37 billion
expenditures: $86.47 billion (2009 est.)
Public debt:
18% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 106
14.4% of GDP (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
27.1% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 220
30.4% (2008 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
33.5% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 2
28.5% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
22.37% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 32
17.11% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$78.09 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 19
$61.74 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$10.69 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 62
$8.687 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$62.42 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 50
$50.24 billion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA (31 December 2008)
$NA (31 December 2007)
$8.251 billion (31 December 2006)
Agriculture - products:
corn, sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee; beef, pork, milk,
eggs; fish
Industries:
petroleum, construction materials, food processing, textiles; iron ore mining,
steel, aluminum; motor vehicle assembly
Industrial production growth rate:
-4.9% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 111
Electricity - production:
113.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29
Electricity - consumption:
83.02 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
Electricity - exports:
540 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
1.651 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Oil - production:
2.472 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 11
Oil - consumption:
740,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24
Oil - exports:
2.182 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 10
Oil - imports:
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 207
Oil - proved reserves:
99.38 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6
Natural gas - production:
23.06 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29
Natural gas - consumption:
24.86 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 31
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 102
Natural gas - imports:
1.8 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 48
Natural gas - proved reserves:
4.84 trillion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 9
Current account balance:
$8.561 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24
$37.39 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:
$57.6 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
$95.14 billion (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:
petroleum, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, basic
manufactures
Exports - partners:
US 35.18%, Netherlands Antilles 8.56% (2009)
Imports:
$38.44 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 52
$49.48 billion (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:
raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction
materials
Imports - partners:
US 23.66%, Colombia 14.43%, Brazil 9.13%, China 8.44%, Mexico 5.47% (2009)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$36.75 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
$42.3 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$43.41 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 54
$47.03 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$38.27 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 57
$41.38 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$18.45 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
$16.62 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Exchange rates:
bolivars (VEB) per US dollar - 2.145 (2009), 2.147 (2008), 2,147 (2007), 2,147
(2006), 2,089.8 (2005)
note: on 1 January 2008 Venezuela revalued its currency with 1000 old bolivares
equal to 1 new bolivar; in January 2010 Venequela introduced a dual exchange
rate system for the fixed rate bolivar, with 2.6 VEB per US dollar on
essentials, and 4.3 VEB per US dollar on all other products
Communications - Venezuela
Telephones - main lines in use:
6.304 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 28
Telephones - mobile cellular:
27.084 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 32
Telephone system:
general assessment: modern and expanding
domestic: domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations; recent substantial
improvement in telephone service in rural areas; substantial increase in
digitalization of exchanges and trunk lines; installation of a national
interurban fiber-optic network capable of digital multimedia services; combined
fixed and mobile-cellular telephone subscribership 125 per 100 persons
international: country code - 58; submarine cable systems provide connectivity
to the Caribbean, Central and South America, and US; satellite earth stations -
1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 PanAmSat; participating with Colombia,
Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia in the construction of an international fiber-optic
network (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 46, FM 131, shortwave 3 (2008)
Television broadcast stations:
66 (plus 45 repeaters) (1997)
Internet country code:
.ve
Internet hosts:
155,139 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 68
Internet users:
7.167 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 35
Transportation - Venezuela
Airports:
406 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 20
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 131
over 3,047 m: 6
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 35
914 to 1,523 m: 63
under 914 m: 19 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 275
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 103
under 914 m: 155 (2009)
Heliports:
4 (2009)
Pipelines:
extra heavy crude 980 km; gas 5,258 km; oil 6,695 km; refined products 1,484 km;
unknown 141 km (2009)
Railways:
total: 806 km
country comparison to the world: 101
standard gauge: 806 km 1.435-m gauge (2008)
Roadways:
total: 96,155 km
country comparison to the world: 48
paved: 32,308 km
unpaved: 63,847 km (2002)
Waterways:
7,100 km
country comparison to the world: 21
note: Orinoco River (400 km) and Lake de Maracaibo navigable by oceangoing
vessels (2008)
Merchant marine:
total: 62
country comparison to the world: 65
by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 16, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas 5,
passenger/cargo 10, petroleum tanker 17, refrigerated cargo 2
foreign-owned: 12 (Chile 1, Denmark 1, Greece 3, Mexico 5, Panama 1, Spain 1)
registered in other countries: 12 (Bahamas 1, Panama 10, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines 1) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
La Guaira, Maracaibo, Puerto Cabello, Punta Cardon
Transportation - note:
the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in
the Caribbean Sea as a significant risk for piracy and armed robbery against
ships; numerous vessels, including commercial shipping and pleasure craft, have
been attacked and hijacked both at anchor and while underway; crews have been
robbed and stores or cargoes stolen
Military - Venezuela
Military branches:
National Bolivarian Armed Forces (Fuerza Armada Nacional Bolivariana, FANB):
Bolivarian Army (Ejercito Bolivariano, EB), Bolivarian Navy (Armada Bolivariana,
AB); includes Naval Infantry, Coast Guard, Naval Aviation), Bolivarian Military
Aviation (Aviacion Militar Bolivariana, AMB), Bolivarian National Guard (Guardia
Nacional Bolivaria, GNB), Bolivarian Militia (Milicia Bolivariana, MB) (2010)
Military service age and obligation:
18-30 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; 30-month
conscript service obligation; all citizens 18-50 years old are obligated to
register for military service (2008)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 6,891,648
females age 16-49: 7,047,565 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 5,504,152
females age 16-49: 5,976,339 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 276,612
female: 273,819 (2010 est.)
Military expenditures:
1.2% of GDP (2005 est.)
country comparison to the world: 122
Transnational Issues - Venezuela
Disputes - international:
claims all of the area west of the Essequibo River in Guyana, preventing any
discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join
Barbados in asserting claims before the United Nations Convention on the Law of
the Sea (UNCLOS) that Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela
extends into their waters; dispute with Colombia over maritime boundary and
Venezuelan-administered Los Monjes islands near the Gulf of Venezuela;
Colombian-organized illegal narcotics and paramilitary activities penetrate
Venezuela's shared border region; in 2006, an estimated 139,000 Colombians
sought protection in 150 communities along the border in Venezuela; US, France,
and the Netherlands recognize Venezuela's granting full effect to Aves Island,
thereby claiming a Venezuelan EEZ/continental shelf extending over a large
portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea; Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint
Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines protest Venezuela's full effect
claim
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Venezuela is a source, transit, and destination country for
men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual
exploitation and forced labor; Venezuelan women and girls are trafficked within
the country for sexual exploitation, lured from the nation's interior to urban
and tourist areas; child prostitution in urban areas and child sex tourism in
resort destinations appear to be growing; Venezuelan women and girls are
trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation to Western Europe, Mexico, and
Caribbean destinations
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Venezuela is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List,
up from Tier 3, as it showed greater resolve to address trafficking through law
enforcement measures and prevention efforts in 2007, although stringent
punishment of offenders and victim assistance remain lacking (2008)
Illicit drugs:
small-scale illicit producer of opium and coca for the processing of opiates and
coca derivatives; however, large quantities of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana
transit the country from Colombia bound for US and Europe; significant
narcotics-related money-laundering activity, especially along the border with
Colombia and on Margarita Island; active eradication program primarily targeting
opium; increasing signs of drug-related activities by Colombian insurgents on
border
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