FACT SHEET Venezuela January 2019 January was a month of political upheaval in Venezuela, starting with the 5 January election of a new unified and belligerent leadership in the opposition-dominated National Assembly. This was followed by the 10 January inauguration of a disputed second mandate for President Nicolas Maduro, which has not been recognised by a significant portion of the international community. This in turn led to massive nation-wide anti- government demonstrations on 23 January and the self-proclamation of the President of the National Assembly, Juan Guaido’, as interim “President in Charge” tasked with putting an end to the “usurpation” of power, setting up a transitional government and leading the country to hold free and fair elections. A government crackdown led to some 40 fatalities and 850 arrests, many directly affecting communities of concern to UNHCR, but anti-government protests continued unabated. January 2019 closed as the month with the highest incidence of social conflict in the history of the country. On an economic level, the situation continued to deteriorate for most Venezuelans. A major shock factor was introduced by the government on 29 January, with the launch of the new Interbanex currency exchange platform and the recognition of the previously illegal black market dollar as a baseline for trading. The official exchange rate soared to almost 3,300 Bolívares, significantly beyond that of the black market dollar, which added fuel to hyperinflation and further reduced the purchasing power of Venezuelans. The 18,000 Bolívares minimum monthly salary closed the month at the official equivalent of 5.5 US dollars. HIGHLIGHTS FUNDING (AS OF JANUARY 2019) TOTAL ESTIMATED HOST COMMUNITIES BENEFICIARIES USD 15.9 million + 87,000 requested for Venezuela PERSONS OF CONCERN (GOVERNMENT FIGURES) Refugees 8,246 Asylum seekers 1,108 Source: CONARE Venezuela Persons in refugee-like situation: 117,653 Source: INE Venezuela UNHCR PRESENCE Staff: 77 Personnel: 63 national staff (including TAs) 02 affiliate workforce/deployees 01 national intern 11 international staff (including TAs) Offices: 1 Representation in Caracas 4 Field Offices in San Cristóbal (Táchira), Guasdualito (Apure), Maracaibo (Zulia) and Ciudad Guayana (Bolivar) 1 Field Unit in Caracas © ACNUR/JUAN ANDRES PINTO 2019 www.unhcr.org 1 FACT SHEET Venezuela JANUARY 2019 Working with Partners UNHCR is implementing community-based activities in 54 prioritised communities in eight of the country’s states, primarily in the border areas with Colombia, Brazil and Trinidad and Tobago, but also in Greater Caracas and the nearby Miranda state. UNHCR is working with 15 implementing partners (Aliadas en Cadena, AZUL Positivo, JRS, HIAS, RET, Red Cross Zulia, Luz y Vida, Fe y Alegria, Sociedad Wills Wilde, Fogones y Banderas, Fundacion Innocens, Fundacion Casa Bonita, Fundacion Soy un Guardian, Instituto Nacional de Nutricion and NRC) and other local actors, including government institutions and NGOs. UNHCR holds regular coordination meetings with humanitarian and development actors to discuss the design, coordination and implementation of the protection response for persons of concern and host communities, including identification, provision of humanitarian assistance, monitoring of refugee rights and promotion of durable solutions. UNHCR liaises within the UNCT and with specific UN agencies (e.g., UNICEF, UNFPA) to mainstream protection issues within the UNDAF, UPR and other shared mechanisms. UNHCR chairs the Protection Working Group, an inter-agency space for joint analysis of protection gaps and coordination of protection response and advocacy which includes some international NGOs. UNHCR partners with relevant Government institutions, such as the National Commission for Refugees (CONARE), the Ombudsperson’s Office and Child Protection Councils, as well as community councils. Main Activities Community-based Protection UNHCR promotes an innovative community-based approach to assess and respond to the protection needs and risks of persons of concern in Venezuela. UNHCR promotes international refugee law and refugee status determination procedures, encouraging State institutions to identify and refer persons in need of international protection to the asylum procedure. UNHCR and partners conduct capacity building activities with government institutions. UNHCR Venezuela conducts border monitoring and binational cooperation with UNHCR mirror offices in Colombia, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba and Curacao to strengthened communication with communities and dissemination of information related to rights, obligations and referral pathways for persons in transit. UNHCR coordinates the SGBV and Child Protection Safe Spaces Networks for the identification, case management and referrals to specialized services. To strengthen Child Protection and prevention of SGBV at the community level, UNHCR and partners support 13 SGBV prevention and response committees and child protection committees. Also, in an effort to support school attendance as a means of risk prevention, UNHCR has distributes school kits throughout its prioritised communities. UNHCR coordinates the work of four protection networks in the dissemination of information on the rights of persons in need of international protection, including those in transit to other countries, safe routes and referral pathways. Community promoters are trained to provide information on protection mechanisms at community level and on main transit routes. UNHCR supports two community centres delivering multi-sectorial services from different actors to provide outreach, identification and referrals pathways to persons with specific needs. UNHCR conducts awareness campaigns on refugee rights, including women’s and children’s rights and anti-fraud messages. Asylum and Durable Solutions UNHCR supports CONARE field missions to register new asylum applications and issue or renew asylum seekers certificates. In close coordination with UNHCR in Colombia, UNHCR Venezuela facilitates and supports the voluntary repatriation of refugees, ensuring that they are enabled to take well-informed and voluntary decisions and are repatriated in conditions of safety and dignity. Since 2015, UNHCR has supported the voluntary repatriation to Colombia of 194 persons of concern. www.unhcr.org 2 FACT SHEET Venezuela JANUARY 2019 Activities implemented in January 2019 Working with Partners and Authorities On 12 January, the UNCT met with President Nicolas Maduro in the Presidential Palace. The meeting resulted in a commitment by the Government to include the Agenda 2030 and the SDGs in their next six-year programme, the 2019-2025 Plan de la Patria, and its alignment with the UNDAF, a call on the UN to help promote a broad inter-sectorial and comprehensive national peace dialogue and support to the Plan Vuelta a La Patria migrant return scheme and a positive appraisal by the government of the possibility of including other agencies in the UN scale-up. In the first week of January, UNHCR in San Cristobal held a meeting with the Venezuelan National Institute for Nutrition (INN) to begin implementing the common action plan and the nutritional assessment in 11 prioritised communities in Táchira state that will be conducted within the framework of the CERF. On January 11, UNHCR hosted a meeting with the President of the National Commission for Refugees (CONARE) to review the draft Joint Cooperation Agreement and the 2019 Work Plan that are expected to be signed by both entities at the end of the month. UNHCR in Ciudad Guayana held CERF coordination meetings with IOM and UNFPA on upcoming projects and activities in Bolivar, a state from where on average 700 Venezuelans cross into Brazil every day, with some 300 electing not to return. UNHCR in San Cristobal, Táchira, held a meeting with UNICEF and the National Institute for Nutrition (INN) to coordinate nutrition activities under the CERF. UNHCR will evaluate 4,400 people in 11 prioritised communities. In Táchira, UNICEF will assist children from 0 to 5 years of age and pregnant and lactating women, while UNHCR will do the same for older children, adults and people with disabilities through the provision of food kits and vitamin supplements. An ECHO mission visited the community of "El Cafetal" in Caracas to observe the progress of WASH and educational projects implemented locally by UNHCR and partners, which benefit an estimated 630 people, mostly children and adolescents. The ECHO mission then proceeded to Zulia state to visit three prioritised communities where UNHCR and partners develop WASH, nutrition and protection projects. UNHCR in Ciudad Bolivar held coordination meetings with the local branch of the National Nutrition Institute (INN) and the Bolivar Safe Spaces Network in the context of the implementation of CERF humanitarian funds. UNHCR in Bolivar state held coordination meetings with the UN Interagency Group UNICEF, UNFPA, Red Cross, HIAS, RET and other partners), the Office of the Public Prosecutor in Ciudad Guayana and NRC to discuss interventions to be implemented in prioritised communities in 2019. UNHCR and members of the binational protection network in Zulia held the first monthly meeting of 2019, during which partners reported an increase in cases of military officers seeking information on asylum in third countries, some citing fears of retribution. In the last week of January, UNHCR organized the first meeting of the Protection Working Group, a space for