Development and Agrarian Land Reform in Venezuela's Pioneer Zone: Social Progress Along the Llano‐Andes Border in a Half Century of Political Advance

Abstract

Abstract. Opportunities in the oil fields and on the large and small farms and ranches in the pioneer zone of Venezuela along the Llanos‐Andes border attract tens of thousands of “undocumented”Colombian migrants. Many replace Venezuelans fleeing from the country to the urban areas Residents of the higher “cold country” elevations move into the lower ones, whose residents move into the now healthier hot” lowlands. The affluent arc moving from the lowlands to the “cold country,” the reverse direction. Sites for hydroelectric dams, noted in 1932, are being exploited, and significant progress is marked by erection of schools and universities, libraries and other cultural institutions Political reform made possible agrarian land reform, but new latifundistas are appearing as lawyers, physicians and businessmen use wealth acquired in their professions to become large landowners seeking to profit from their holdings.