It's time for another weekly topic here in the Frugal Community although I'll be posting in the larger Hive Learners community because I'm hoping someone can bring it to the attention of the Venezuelan community.
This week will be a little different. Usually I'd like feedback on a commodity or service in the community. This week the topic is about what happens or should happen when there just isn't enough.
Feel free to write about surviving when there just isn't enough money to go around. Do you go to friends or family? Do you get help from the church? NGO's? Aid agencies? Government aid? Or as 
As usual there will be prizes for the top 3 writers (3HBD, 2HBD and 1HBD respectively) although as usual I reserve the right to change that up a bit.
This time there will also be HBD reserved specifically for Venezuelan writers.
Why Venezuela?
Because I'll be using their CLAP program and their country as an example below. However, I am a little nervous writing about a difficult situation in a country I have no ties to. My information is indirect from Google searches, news sources, and a friend who has business ties there.
I could be telling lies, untruths, or have been misled by the media. If I am I would truly love to have someone local set me straight from first hand knowledge. Hopefully in a nice way 😌
Looking forward to your entries, especially from 
And now on to my entry on this topic
I recently read an article from a Venezuelan Hive Member 
So excited that I cross posted it into the #Frugal not Stingy community! Unfortunately I didn't reply to his post because I was short on time leaving him upset and confused. My sincerest apologies I meant no offence.
For any of the Nigerian members who are here you may know that I look for every possible way to save a penny. I'm all about being frugal, budgeting and working with what I have.
But lets look at that for a moment:
If I'm a Rich American I'm looking at a food budget of $3000HBD/month. No problem--buy whatever without restriction. The biggest issue is trying not to get fat!
If I'm a Canadian working minimum wage then the food budget is 1/10th of that. $300HBD/month. It isn't enough to eat at a restaurant every night. However, with budgeting, being frugal and knowing how to cook it is quite reasonable to eat with that budget.
If I'm a Nigerian working minimum wage the food budget is lowered by 1/10th again. $30HBD/month. That's tough. Really tough. I did write an article about surviving on $1HBD/month but it was really lean living and honestly lacking in full nutrition. (and yes, I got lots of people saying it just wasn't possible...but I'd fight to make it work)
If I'm a Venezuelan going through the economic crisis and hyperinflation from a few years back (and maybe ongoing..I don't know). Then my food budget is 1/10th of what a Nigerian has. $3HBD/month.
Imagine That for a moment
$3 HBD for a months food.
It is truly impossible to survive on that ... I'm a strong proponent of never giving up hope. To fight with every breath. But at $3 HBD for a monthly food budget? I'd give up and cry if that's what I was stuck with. No budget hack, no frugal techniques, no cunning plan can make that work. In a case like that its best to hope that others aren't stingy and charity wins.
When I heard about the hyperinflation in Venezuela I read what I could to see what on earth was going on. I also asked a friend of mine who works with a shipping company if he had heard anything about the Venezuelan situation.
There are conflicting reports. There are reports of mismanagement. Reports of meddling between superpowers. Reports of corruption, nepotism, political power plays. I honestly don't know all the causes for the economic meltdown. However, a saying comes to mind.
I am fairly certain that the average Venezuelan person suffered when all this happened though.
I heard rumors that kidnappings of foreigners became so bad that there were huts lined up along the road to the airport to house them
I heard rumors that in one year the average Venezuelan lost 20% of their weight due to lack of food.
I heard rumors of gangs running rampant, people fleeing for the border, empty store shelves and people collecting the subsidized fuel in Venezuela and smuggling it across the border to sell for a profit.
I heard rumors of educated Venezuelan women (Doctors, Engineers, Nurses, etc) going to foreign countries to work as prostitutes to provide for their families.
So Many Rumors!
So to all my Nigerian friends.....If you think the ending of gasoline subsidies has hurt you...if even half of what I've heard is true the Venezuelans would look at that trouble and laugh
But as I said I do not know the whole story!
Which is why I was so happy to read an actual article with actual information and an actual video that gave me a sneak peak into what's actually going on. At least from the government providing aid.
I've taken this image from a longer post by
@terganftp/aqzwavrh-hive-192111
Here are the main points that I pulled from the post:
I wish I knew where to start with dissecting this. I think I'll start with the positive though because honestly I am impressed with what was put into the package. Also because I hate focusing on the negative (and yes there are negatives).
Now when I look at what should be in the package it actually looks like a very solid base of food.
Overall it covers the 3 basic macronutrients: Proteins, Fats and Carbohydrates.
If I was making the absolute least expensive package that held the most nutrition--this is exactly what I would make
9.1kg and 14 days
Just simple numbers. However, they actually mean a lot! 9.1kg = 9100g and typically carbs and proteins are 4calories per gram. 36,400calories for this package. Oil is 9cal/gram so lets add another 2000 calories there.
38,000 calories per package.
An average person needs 2000 calories daily so that means a package is a 19 day supply of food.
RESULT: it is enough food for one person.
How about two people?
1350 calories per day
This is not going to be a fun number of calories. It is similar to "half rations" that were previously used on ships or during wartime measures. People might be able to survive on it but its going to hurt and is certainly not optimal.
How about three, four or five people?
lets not go there. It is not enough
I'm hoping whoever was tasked with making the package made it on the assumption of going to a single person (or maybe two). In that case they were balancing the minimum needs of a person so they could help the maximum number of people. My congratulations to them! If they made this for a family of four then they lose my respect because they are just helping to die slowly.
the government opted for the production of low quality food but this led to another problem of malnutrition
Now I don't believe that any of that food is "low quality". It is actually quite a well thought out blend. Sure I'd use Soybeans instead of lentils because soybean has a better amino acid profile and is more versatile, but that's a small change. The bigger issue is variety of foods. It is just not possible to get all the vitamins and micronutrients that a person needs with such a limited number of foods.
People need more variety!
Fruits and Vegetables are notably missing from the mix. Honestly that is probably a wise decision.
Everything in that package is shelf stable and dry. There is no extra weight from cans, no spoilage, no refrigeration required. Adding enough variety to be give full nutrition would make the package far more expensive, far heavier and bulkier to transport, and still be inadequate to provide everything.
If I was able to change the package .. just a little bit here are the small things I would change.
There are a few "necessities" that would make the average person's life so much better. However, they differ from person to person. Making different packages for different people would be awesome but it would be a logistics nightmare. A simple coupon that could be redeemed for a small package of "essentials" would be huge.
Examples:
Those items shouldn't be in the food package for a small coupon for those who need would be a great add on in my opinion.
Now I would like to point a few things which I see as positives:
Why is this a positive? Responsibility. People have to pay for the food even if it is a small amount. That means people have to find a way to work or a source of income...even if its only a small amount!
I don't like handouts as a general rule. I don't support laziness. Sure some people cannot work and for them handouts are acceptable. However, here we are talking about 82% of the population!
Also, being able to work for and buy your own food can preserve some sense of dignity and a little empowerment. I like knowing that I am working towards feeding myself rather than begging.
There are adequate calories and macronutrients in this package. However, none of it is prepared. If you want to eat you'll have to cook! You can make sourdough bread, pancakes, muffins, and much more from that pack of food. However you will also have to cook. Don't know how? Learn!
In the end learning to cook is huge! So many people love their prepackaged, precooked, or ready to eat foods. Being able to take basic ingredients and MAKE food is incredibly valuable. Indeed when the crisis is over the people are likely going to be stronger because they have valuable skills! Providing they survive of course.
Now this is the subject of some debate. I'll go with the authors statement that the food comes from local sources. If true that means that the government is supporting local suppliers and keeping the money in the country. I also didn't see any major multinational brands in the mix. I have nothing against the multinational brands because they make some great products with great quality control.
I don't think that supporting multinational corporations is a good idea when there is a national emergency though.
If the food arrived every 14 days then great. However, if it only arrives every 3 months then it is far less useful. Food supply and food security is important. Food should be reliable and not just a distant glimmer of hope.
It isn't provided to enough people. If 82% need it and 82% get then great. However if only 22% get it then its not helping enough people.
There is corruption. People are reselling food for profit while others are going hungry. I believe in people being able to make money but NOT if letting another person die of hunger!
I've heard that there is controversy over the program. If you look at the box you can see that the president's image is on the front of the box. I've heard it said that the government is using the program in order to get votes and stay in power.
Maybe that's true.
Maybe its bad for the government to "buy votes" and "make more debt" but at the end of the day if people are kept from starving then I'd let it be.
I've also heard that funds are being diverted and food is being kept from those in need. In this case I think there should be better accounting of who gets what.
I've also heard reports that the food isn't coming from Venezuela and that businessmen from other countries are getting rich from large contracts to provide food for the CLAP programs. No idea if that's true but I absolutely believe that local sources should be used first and that the government should always strive to be as responsible as possible with the funds of the country.
Just as a side note to end things here.
Imagine if every CLAP package had a code on it which was minted as an NFT on Hive.
Imagine if you could "buy" that package with funds earned from the Hive community.
Imagine if people on HIVE could fund the purchase of the products which would be put in the CLAP packages so there would be greater availability to those in need.
Imagine how great that could be
My apologies that I wasn't able to write a better article. There are so many things that I wanted to touch on and I just didn't have the time.
My apologies if I offended anyone as I know charity and aid is a difficult topic and in this case a political one as well.
I do not mean to make light of anyone's individual situation and I know a lot of Venezuelans are hurting.
I also don't mean to make light of the tough situation that many Nigerians find themselves in.
But I just couldn't sit by and say nothing.
Hope at least someone enjoys this article.
Thanks for reading!
and one final apology....I ran out of time to proofread 😣
