Half of Venezuela's refugees and migrants in Latin America can't afford three meals a day

Some 4.3 million refugees and migrants in Venezuela face difficulties in accessing food, housing and formal employment, according to the Refugee and Migrant Needs Analysis of the Regional Platform for Inter-agency Coordination* for refugees and migrants.

In fact, according to the report**, half of the refugee and migrant population in the region cannot afford three meals a day and do not have access to decent and safe housing. To buy food or avoid living on the streets, many Venezuelans are forced to resort to survival sex, begging or indebtedness.

The accelerated rise in the cost of living, exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, the prolonged impact of the COVID-19 emergency, and high unemployment rates have exacerbated the vulnerability of refugees and migrants from Venezuela, making it difficult for them to integrate and rebuild their lives in host communities across Latin America and the Caribbean.

In the midst of these socio-economic challenges, the region has witnessed a continued modest influx of refugees and migrants from Venezuela, who are increasingly heading north through Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica and other Central American states to Mexico with the intention of reaching the United States - the country that an increasing proportion of displaced Venezuelans consider their intended destination.

In the face of increasingly unstable and uneven socio-economic conditions in the region, the needs of refugees and migrants in the region are expected to worsen during the second half of 2022 and beyond, likely creating new waves of refugees and migrants who will not have access to basic services and employment, according to the report.

Despite progress made through various regularisation and documentation initiatives implemented across the region, the increase in humanitarian needs highlights the urgent need to improve protection and access to services and employment opportunities, according to the Analysis.

"People from Venezuela want to share their skills and knowledge and contribute to the communities that have generously welcomed them. Many are already doing so. But they will not be able to continue if they are not given the opportunity to integrate effectively," said Eduardo Stein, joint special representative of the UN Refugee Agency and the International Organization for Migration.

Extremely low wages further hinder their ability to support themselves and their families. In Ecuador, for example, 86% of Venezuelan migrants say they do not have enough income to meet their basic needs, while in Chile, 13% of them live below the poverty line.

Despite the reopening of schools, many refugee and migrant children and adolescents continue to face multiple obstacles to accessing education services in their host countries, particularly due to lack of places or space in schools.

For example, in Colombia, 29% of Venezuelan children and adolescents between the ages of six and 17 are not enrolled in school because their parents cannot afford to pay for school fees and materials. In Aruba and Curaçao, the cost of compulsory insurance, transport and school supplies prevent schooling.

Many Venezuelans without documentation, livelihoods or local integration prospects resort to secondary movements to new host countries in the hope of a secure and sustainable future. To reach it, they often put their lives at risk through extremely dangerous irregular routes.

"As the world faces multiple humanitarian crises, the people of Venezuela and the communities that host them cannot be forgotten," Stein added.

"Host countries have shown consistent leadership in their response to the crisis, adopting regularisation measures and facilitating access to health, education and other social services. However, regularisation is only the first step towards integration and must be accompanied by policies that enable refugees and migrants to become self-sufficient. International support is urgently needed".

As of October 2022, there are more than 7.1 million refugees and migrants from Venezuela worldwide, according to official statistics reported by host countries and compiled by the Regional Platform for Inter-Agency Coordination. More than 80% are hosted in 17 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

* The Platform is co-led by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

**The document is a collaborative effort of the 192 partners of the R4V Platform and Venezuelan refugees and migrants in 17 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The document is based on joint needs assessments, focus groups and secondary sources, such as reports produced by humanitarian actors, academia, international and local NGOs, as well as official statistics from government authorities and institutions.