Here are some interesting facts about Venezuela!
1. Venezuela has had more Miss World winners than any other nation in the world. The country has provided six Miss World winners, putting it ahead of the UK, India, the US, Jamaica, and Iceland. Venezuela clearly loves a beauty pageant, as they’ve also served seven Miss Universe winners.
2. Venezuela is a heaven for wildlife – and home to the world’s largest rodent. According to Conservation International, only 17 countries are considered “megadiverse”. Each possesses a vast number of different species, many found nowhere else, and Venezuela is one. Some 23 per cent of reptilian and 50 per cent of amphibian species that inhabit the country are endemic to Venezuela.
3. Conservation is very important in Venezuela. It’s no good having heaps of wildlife if you don’t look after it, and Venezuela leads the way when it comes to conservation, having designated 53.9 per cent of its territory as protected, more than any other nation. In Britain that figure stands at 28.4 per cent, while the global average is just 14.8 per cent.
4. Venezuela is a dangerous country. It has the second highest number of gun-related deaths in the world that is 59.13 per 100,000 residents per year, after Honduras, while the capital, Caracas, has a shocking murder rate of 119.87 per 100,000 residents per year – the worst of any major city. The government no longer produces or releases crime data as violent crimes have become so prevalent in Venezuela.
5. Venezuela is also one of the world’s deadliest places to drive, according to the World Health Organization’s figures, with 37.2 road deaths per 100,000 inhabitants per year. Only four countries have a higher death rate: Eritrea, Dominican Republic, Libya and Thailand.
6. Petrol is incredibly cheap in Venezuela. It’s practically free, in fact. Petrol costs just $0.01 a litre, that’s just one per cent of the global average of $0.97. Second on the list is Saudi Arabia, where it costs $0.24 per litre. Oil is cheaper than water in Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.
7. In Caracas it is customary to travel to early-morning church services during the festival period on roller skates. Roads are even cleared to provide Christmas worshippers with a safe passage.
8. Catatumbo lightning is a meteorological phenomenon that only occurs at the mouth of the Catatumbo River where it joins Lake Maracabio. For up to 160 days a year, lightning strikes the lake repeatedly for up to ten hours at a time in the evening.
9. Angel Falls, the world’s tallest continuous fall is located in Venezuela with a height of 979 m is only accessible by curiara, airplane, or helicopter. It is sixteen times the height of Niagara Falls and named after bush pilot Jimmy Angel who crash landed there in the 1930s.
10. In 1863. Venezuela became the first country to abolish capital punishment for all crimes, including serious offenses against the state.
So that was all for Venezuela. Do let us know how did you find these facts in the comments section below!
