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| President Chavez inaugurates the El Silencio Communal Mercalito in Zulia (Correo del Orinoco) |
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In a nationally televised address Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez
announced a massive expansion of the government’s subsidised food
system, Mercal, on Thursday. He also argued that it is necessary to
establish a socialist system of distribution and consumption of
products, to replace the capitalist market.
In order to strengthen the program, which currently benefits 10.7
million Venezuelans, a total of 1.4 billion bolivares will be invested
through the food ministry. With the expansion the program will
immediately reach 11.5 million beneficiaries, and up to 12 million in
the near future the president told residents of San Francisco
municipality, El Silencio, in Zulia state where he inaugurated the El
Silencio Communal Mercalito.
Mercal will increase its total monthly quantity of food distributed
from 100 thousand tonnes, to 110 thousand tonnes – a seven percent
increase.
To achieve this goal Chavez said a further 1,221 Mercal
establishments would be opened around the country, 94 of which were
inaugurated on Thursday. The new Mercal establishments will include
increased storage facilities as well as new stores and “Communal
Mercals.”
"The cold storage capacity, that is, refrigerators, will go from
5,000 to 7,000 tons, while the dry storage capacity will increase from
66,700 to 70,400 tonnes," he said.
Chavez also insisted in community participation to ensure
accountability and transparency. "We must create a different system to
the market, a humane distribution and consumption system, because the
market will always be capitalist," he explained.
He emphasised that the country is going through a transition stage,
"The Mission Mercal is being transformed, we are creating a socialist
system of distribution and consumption to satisfy the nutritional needs
of the people," he said.
Chavez stressed that the capitalist market is “the cause of
inflation and hunger ", and argued that this reality must be changed
saying that the people should be the owners of the land and the produce.
"This is the solution, there is no piecemeal solution. If it’s not
integral, it’s not a solution. We must have solutions to all parts of
the production chain," he added.
According to figures of the United Nations Organization for Food and
Agriculture more than 1 billion people around the world are hungry, and
world hunger increased by more than fifty million people in 2009 as a
result of the global capitalist crisis he pointed out.
"While hunger increases in the world, it is almost nonexistent in Venezuela," he said.
“This is called social justice. Here up to 15 years ago people died of hunger…that no longer happens here," he said.
Venezuelan Analysis
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