Firms rise to construction challenge
THE INFRASTRUCTURE MINISTRY HAS A VAST RANGE OF INTERESTS AND IS AT THE HEART OF GOVERNMENT EFFORTS TO IMPROVE HOUSING AND TRANSPORT

One of the highest priorities of the current government in Caracas is to provide citizens with efficient and high-quality services, whether they live in the capital, in other cities, or in rural areas. That implies massive investment in infrastructure and detailed planning, the bulk of it under the auspices of the Ministry of Infrastructure, which is sometimes referred to as the backbone of the government.

ISMAEL ELIÉZER HURTADO Hurtado Minister of Infrastructure

It is certainly huge, with over 10,000 employees, and a mind-boggling range of activities and spheres of interest. “It’s responsible for everything that moves – and many things that don’t move, as well,” says the Minister of Infrastructure, General Ismael Eliézer Hurtado. Like several of his senior colleagues, the Minister is a former military man. And the objectives set by the present government are as ambitious as those of a military campaign.
“Take the housing sector,” General Hurtado cites as an example. “Over the three years this government has been in power, many more housing units have been built than during the previous 40 years. Within the sector, about 144,000 homes have been provided for low-income families.”

Housing is just one aspect of the construction program being masterminded from the Ministry. Facilities for health, education, sports, culture and law and order are all major priorities.
“Large-scale works have been focused largely on highway construction and urban infrastructure with a strong social element, including schools and shelters for street children,” the Minister says. “Such activities have never before had the sort of social impact that they are having now.”

MASS TRANSIT programs are vital to maximize the productivity of the working population

Naturally, many of the programs in progress or on the drawing-board have an essentially economic motivation, aimed an enabling Venezuela to develop its resources better and to build up a sophisticated system of transport and communications. Land, sea and air transportation all come under the Ministry’s umbrella.
“This Ministry also guides consolidation projects,” says General Hurtado. “These include the telecommunications sector, mass transit schemes like the Caracas Metro, railways and so on, as well as the Instituto de los Espacios Acuaticos, which has the task of developing the Venezuelan merchant navy, ports, ferry services, canal dredging and other maritime activities.”

Of course, the Ministry does not do everything itself, but works in partnership with a range of different organizations, institutions and companies, both public and private. Some have come together in consortia to respond to the challenges set by the National Development Plan 2001-2006, which sets out numerous projects for development.

ALFREDO LAFUENTE NIETO President of Consorcio Contuy Medio

One example is the Consorcio Contuy Medio, which specializes in tunneling and underground work for railway development. The British and the Germans brought railways to Venezuela in the 19th century, but in the 20th century several governments prioritized road transport, to the railways’ detriment. The 2001-2006 Plan includes several important railway projects.

“The government has a plan for railways that it is now carrying out,” confirms Alfredo Lafuente Nieto, President of Consorcio Contuy Medio. “The first stage will be between Valles del Tuy and Caracas. This will primarily be a suburban railway, which is very worthwhile, because the area is highly populated and will become even more so with the coming of the railway. At the moment, people have to get up at four in the morning in order to be at work by eight. Once the railway is there, they will be much less tired and more productive.”
Mr. Lafuente stresses the social benefits of railway development. “As a transport engineer, I would say that the profitability of transportation should be expressed not so much in dollars, but in social service.”