Urban Agriculture in Venezuela: addressing food security (2019)

In 2006, the "Bolivar 1" urban agriculture plot was inaugurated by former president Hugo Chavez who, according to the Ministry of Urban Agriculture, had spent time in New York and was impressed by the urban agriculture he'd seen there and prospects for improving food security. The Ministry of Urban Agriculture was created three years ago, in 2016. Their goal is to provide 50% of the food needs ultimately, 25% by the end of this year. Given the dire effects of the US (and Canada) economic war and sanctions against Venezuela, this initiative is needed. One of the youths on the plot, from a nearby housing mission, explained: "We're about 20 young people working here, from the Robert Serra mission. We give them technical training, but also political training, so they understand why we're doing this. The political side of things is also part of what's going on here. The idea here is creating some independence, so we don't have to depend on importing food any more, especially in the war context we're now in.” March 2019, Caracas. Related: https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2019/03/31/us-is-manufacturing-a-crisis-in-venezuela-so-that-there-is-chaos-and-needed-intervention/ https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2019/03/25/march-16-demonstration-of-solidarity-with-venezuelan-government-and-against-imperialism/ https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2019/03/25/president-maduro-the-venezuelan-people-do-not-want-violence-or-foreign-military-intervention/ https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2019/04/04/venezuelans-calmly-helped-one-another-during-manufactured-electricity-crisis/