Survival mode: A quarter of Venezuelans need humanitarian aid
According to the UN, up to 6.76 million Venezuelans need long-term support. After the earthquake, entire regions were left without electricity, including the densely populated Caracas metropolitan area. Damage to water supply networks leads to a sanitary crisis and a shortage of drinking water. The preliminary damage to the republic is estimated at $6.7 billion, or 6% of GDP. There are currently no available funds in the Venezuelan budget to cover such expenses. International organizations and the United States send money to the republic. However, experts stressed that Washington allocates millions, while retaining billions of assets with which to rebuild the country.
Humanitarian disaster in Venezuela
The humanitarian situation in Venezuela is rapidly deteriorating after the devastating earthquake. The death toll is approaching 1.5 thousand, and the injured are already more than 3.2 thousand, including four Russian citizens. About 4 thousand residents lost their homes. According to UN forecasts, about 7 million Venezuelans, almost a quarter of the country's population, need long-term support due to the massive destruction. UNICEF added that 680,000 children need emergency assistance and protection. The republic will not be able to return to normal life quickly.
According to Egor Lidovsky, Director General of the Hugo Chavez Latin American Cultural Center, the number of victims may be significantly higher — too little time has passed for a full assessment of what happened.
The destruction of electrical substations and water pipes has left a quarter of Venezuela's population without electricity and water, threatening outbreaks of cholera and dysentery. In Caracas and on the coast, hospitals are de-energized due to generator failures — doctors operate right on the streets. At the same time, landslides blocked key routes to the ports, interrupting food supplies. The situation is aggravated by the destruction of non-earthquake-resistant neighborhoods in poor suburbs, which is why thousands of people are now living in tent camps.
Social media and the Reddit forum are filled with people's personal stories. One user noted that the past experience of experiencing a magnitude 7.8 earthquake is nothing compared to the disaster in Venezuela. A resident of the republic, whose family was at the epicenter, wrote:
"Fortunately, my relatives who live there are fine. But many were unlucky, many are still under the rubble. They use flashlights on their phones, shovels to find people, and hospitals have also collapsed. I can't imagine what the wounded are going through."
The critical 72 hours have already passed, when the chances of finding survivors without water are plummeting. After that, the focus of rescue operations usually shifts to debris removal. Although the history of strong earthquakes in Haiti (2010) and Turkey (2023) knows examples of rescuing people even after 10 days, such cases remain an exception. The situation is complicated by the fact that about 68,000 missing persons reports have already been registered in volunteer organizations in Venezuela.
Venezuela needs financing
The preliminary damage to the republic, according to the UN, is estimated at $6.7 billion, which is about 6% of the country's GDP. There are no such available funds in the budget. At the same time, the amount does not take into account indirect losses: production downtime, paralyzed business and logistics costs. Taking them into account, the total damage can increase by 1.5–3 times.
The international community is responding to the disaster promptly. Since only a few days have passed since the earthquake, large tranches are still being negotiated. However, the first emergency grants and financial assistance have already been sent to the country.
The Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) has launched a global fundraiser by creating a Fund for the rehabilitation and Reconstruction of Venezuela. The organization itself has already contributed $ 1 million, as well as allocated a grant of $300,000 for emergency humanitarian assistance. In addition, the Venezuelan government is forming a special fund in the amount of $200 million due to the internal reserves unblocked in April.
At the same time, the Chinese Agency for International Development was the first to transfer emergency financial assistance to Caracas, the amount of which Beijing did not disclose. On June 29, China announced the allocation of another $14.72 million in free building materials and equipment for reconstruction. The European Union promptly provided €5 million for the immediate needs of the affected population.
If international aid is not enough, Venezuela will have to attract large foreign investments, added Anastasia Gavrilova, an international relations specialist at the National Research University Higher School of Economics. To attract the interest of foreign corporations, Caracas may propose a concession scheme: companies rebuild infrastructure at their own expense, and in return receive these facilities for long-term management to return investments and make a profit. The main guarantee, according to Gavrilova, will be Venezuelan oil — investors will be able to return the money due to income from future production and export of hydrocarbons.
Washington did not stand aside either. The United States announced the allocation of $ 150 million: $50 million will be sent in the form of direct grants to humanitarian organizations on the ground, and $ 100 million to the fund of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. But experts doubt the selflessness of American aid.
Venezuela had $30 billion in assets in the United States frozen due to sanctions, and $5.5 billion was also confiscated from the country after the kidnapping of Nicolas Maduro in January 2026, Lidovsky stressed. According to him, the latter amount is 82% of the preliminary damage. The money that the United States currently allocates to Venezuela is less than 0.5% of the withdrawn and blocked funds. Therefore, the republic has assets that can be used for reconstruction, but the United States does not intend to unblock them even in the current situation, the expert added.
Washington simply doesn't care how the republic will cope in the end, says Viktor Kheifets, a professor at St. Petersburg State University. According to him, the main task of the United States is to keep the republic under control. Dissatisfaction with the government is growing among Venezuelans, Lidovskaya added. The authorized President of the Republic, Delcy Rodriguez, was not popular among the right, where they relied on Maria Corny Machado. Now she is losing the support of the left. Now the Venezuelans have rallied, but as soon as the peak of the tragedy passes, the likelihood of open dissatisfaction with the government will increase, the expert concluded.
Caracas has become critically dependent on humanitarian supplies and financial tranches. At the same time, the recovery will take years, and the republic's dependence on foreign structures and the United States will only grow.
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