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Venezuela’s government has announced plans for a reduced national budget for 2026, unveiling figures that are 12 per cent lower in dollar terms than this year’s spending plan.
Vice President Delcy Rodríguez presented the proposed budget of $19.9 billion to the National Assembly on Thursday, describing the country as “besieged” as President Nicolás Maduro faces mounting pressure from the United States, including what Caracas claims is the threat of military action.
Addressing lawmakers, Rodríguez said the budget had been drawn up under extraordinary circumstances, arguing that Venezuela was under constant attack from Washington.
She described the spending plan as evidence of resilience, insisting the country continued to function despite what she called US interference.
Her remarks were aimed at the administration of US President Donald Trump, which has been intensifying operations against alleged drug trafficking networks that it claims have links to the Venezuelan government.
US naval forces, including the world’s largest aircraft carrier, have been deployed in Caribbean waters as part of what Washington considers a regional security effort.
Maduro, however, has accused the United States of attempting to overthrow his government and take control of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, portraying the military presence as a direct threat to national sovereignty.
In local currency terms, the government is proposing a budget of 5.02 billion bolivars, significantly lower than the US dollar equivalent of $22.69 billion approved for 2025.
The difference reflects not only reduced spending but also the ongoing weakness of the national currency, which continues to lose value against the dollar.
Although the country suffered years of hyperinflation and a prolonged recession, official figures suggest Venezuela’s economy has recently shown signs of improvement.
The central bank reported economic growth of 8.7 per cent in the third quarter of this year, pointing to a modest recovery after years of decline.
However, the bolivar’s steady fall has continued to drag on living standards, and the gap between the official exchange rate and the black market dollar has widened to more than 50 per cent.
The government blames these conditions largely on US sanctions, first imposed in 2014 and tightened in 2019 with restrictions targeting the oil industry.
Rodríguez said Venezuela had learnt to withstand what she described as a campaign of psychological pressure, alongside the increased US military presence in the region.
Despite claims of stability from the government, the political and economic crisis has driven more than seven million Venezuelans to leave the country since 2013 in search of better living conditions abroad.
