Akella Tech

  (Note: This is the second part of a two part series. The first chapter can be read here ) Previously, we looked at the rise and fall of Venezuela between 1960 and the 1990s. The story of how this country drowned in their own success. What followed was a series of famine, riots, corruption, and hyperinflation, with the government continuously making poor decisions driving the nation into turmoil.  We continue our exploration in 1998, when a military lieutenant by the name of Hugo Chavez decided to take advantage of the current public anger towards the government. An already known figure, he used his popularity and left-wing ideas to gain the confidence of the Venezuelan people, and eventually rise to power in 1999.  Chavez started his Presidential leadership by going on a massive spending spree on social programs in an attempt to better the quality of living for the Venezuelan citizens who had previously been victim of extreme poverty and hyperinflation. Unsurprisingly, he had to use

Oil has a very clear correlation with money. Just look at countries in the Middle East such as the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia etc. Blessed with extremely large reserves of oil, they have used this to their advantage by means of exports and trade deals to attain mind-boggling amounts of wealth. A life of luxury hotels, supercars, advanced technology, mansions, and buildings that quite literally touch the sky.  Such was Venezuela. With access to just over 18% of the world's oil reserves, Venezuela housed the largest oil deposits in the world, helping them become one of the richest countries in the world after the overthrowing of their military dictatorship in 1958. Throughout the 1960s and '70s, the country grew exponentially richer as a result of this lucrative industry they stumbled upon and the trading opportunities. This was made even more beneficial for them when the prices of oil quadrupled during the '70s and international demand for the good shot up.  Venezuela were