1.2.1. Infrastructure

Venezuela’s infrastructure faces severe deterioration due to years of abandonment and decay, increasing production costs and timelines, and discouraging investment.59

Venezuela’s oil infrastructure began to deteriorate during the administration of President Hugo Chávez (February 1999–March 2013), with conditions worsening under President Maduro (March 2013-January 2026) and further declining after the US imposed sanctions on Venezuela in January 2019.60 In January 2026, President Donald Trump stated that US companies would invest in Venezuela’s oil infrastructure.61

The lack of public investment and the broader economic crisis have weakened Venezuela’s health system, limiting financing and disrupting essential services such as water and electricity, conditions that hinder proper equipment sterilisation and adequate sanitation.62 The National Survey of Hospitals (ENH, Encuesta Nacional de Hospitales) reported that the overall medicine‑shortage index between January and July 2024 stood at 36 %, a one‑percentage‑point decrease compared with 2023; shortages in operating rooms reached 74 % in both 2023 and 2024.63 The ENH also indicated that, as of July 2024, 47 % of hospitals experienced power‑supply problems.64

Sources further noted that Venezuela’s road infrastructure suffers from chronic under‑maintenance and that no effective auditing mechanisms exist to ensure the safety of those using the country’s road network.65

In December 2025, the Ministry of Communications reported that the government had carried out 1 749 infrastructure projects nationwide during the year; the majority of these projects (960 in total) involved the construction or rehabilitation of local offices of justices of the peace, while a further 193 focused on 'social infrastructure' and 78 on rainwater‑management systems, in addition to investments in sports facilities and public monuments.66