Helping at Home: Richard Obuchi MPP'98 and the Struggle to Reverse Venezuela's Decline

Once the wealthiest country in Latin America, Venezuela is now plagued by debt, hyper-inflation, social unrest, and a loss of hope. 

News reports recount stories of residents in need. Pensioners like Antonio Perez wait in line behind 140 people to cash his monthly pension check, which trades for about $1.81 on the black market. Doctors like Dr. Christian Ramos cannot prescribe medication because the country can’t afford to import drugs and medical supplies.

Richard Obuchi MPP’98 faces this reality every day. He lives in Venezuela, where decades of poor leadership have left the country mired in a profound socioeconomic crisis, despite having the largest oil reserves in the world. 

Mismanagement, power-hungry political leaders, and ill-considered policies have crippled the country with hyper-inflation, soaring crime rates, government corruption, and rampant shortages of food, medicine, and other necessities. 

By some estimates, more than 2.5 million people have fled the country since 1999. Most who remain have turned against their government, as evidenced by the most recent of several attempts to bring a violent end to President Nicolás Maduro (this time with an explosive drone), who won a second six-year term in what was considered by most observers to be a rigged election last May.

Despite the country’s dire situation and a government that is less than welcoming to criticism and opposition, policy experts like Obuchi have remained, and they persist in their efforts. Obuchi is a partner at a leading public policy consultancy, ODH Groupo Consultor, which provides companies, governments, and regional entities with economic, political, and social analysis, as well as guidance on strategic decision-making in Venezuela.

In addition to his work in public policy, Obuchi is a professor at The Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administración (IESA), one of Venezuela’s top management schools. His 20-year tenure teaching in the school’s International Center of Energy and Environment and its Public Policy Center began less than a year after receiving his MPP at Harris. 

Born in Venezuela to a Japanese father and Venezuelan mother, Obuchi attended the country’s largest and oldest Catholic university, the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, where he majored in economics. A year after receiving his undergraduate degree, he entered Harris. 

There was never any doubt he would return to Venezuela to apply his Harris education toward helping people in his home country. In fact, it was his desire to help his country that drove him to Harris in the first place.

“I was in Venezuela and Latin America, which as you know, face a lot of challenges in terms of growth, opportunities, inequality, and the functioning of the society and the economy,” Obuchi said. “I was very interested in trying to find a way to pursue a career in which I could help promote better institutions, solutions, and results.” 

“I was really attracted to Harris’ offerings,” he added. “I was introduced to the school through one of my professors. I think that what I liked the most was the problem-solving orientation of the school through rigorous training, having the best tools available, and having the very best experts in the world talk about very important issues – about growth, inequality, poverty, social programs. To be at the frontier of knowledge was a great opportunity for me and something that has always left a mark in my career.”

Obuchi’s return to Venezuela upon receiving his master’s in 1998 coincided with the election of populist president Hugo Chávez, who quickly – and radically – moved the country from a neo-liberal democracy that embraced free market principles toward a socialist state with substantial policies for income redistribution and social welfare. 

The problem with these programs – and the problem that has long plagued Venezuela – is that the success and effectiveness of its policies depend almost solely on the fortunes of the country’s vast oil reserves. When the price of oil is high, the country flourishes. But when the price of oil plummets, as it has several times over the last two decades, the country suddenly finds itself in crisis.

That’s where Venezuela finds itself today. The country went into a deep recession in 2014. A July report from the International Monetary Fund indicated that the country is in a state of “economic collapse,” with GDP forecast to contract 15 percent this year and an inflation rate expected to reach 14,000 percent. (To catch up with inflation, the Maduro government has raised the minimum wage 21 times since 2013.)

“I don't know how to put it softly, but let me say that the problems we have in Venezuela represent a significant demonstration – not only for our people but for the rest of Latin America and in the world – that bad policy ideas could have very bad consequences,” said Obuchi. 

“There were bad policy decisions, a poor execution of policy, political challenges that were not addressed in time, and deep social problems that have not been addressed by the political leaders or society.” 

For Venezuela to right the ship, Obuchi contends that the right institutions need to be having the right discussions. Pulling from his time at Harris, he added that it’s critical to understand the complexity of the situation and realize that it is very difficult to solve a problem if you don’t understand it. In other words: before the right institutions have the right discussions, they need to ask the right questions. 

“We must have deep and meaningful discussions about the political situation, and to have everybody involved in that discussion. But I think that the challenge is to train a new generation of leaders who can have these discussions. A lot of bright people that have worked here, worked together, and have gone to institutions like Harris. I think that's one of the things that will make a difference in the future; having people who are gaining experience, who are working in other countries, and who are very sensitive to the challenges that this situation presents to everybody,” said Obuchi.

Obuchi offered some words for these present and future leaders.

“I always advise people who are seeking a degree in public policy in order to try to make things better: they've got to use that experience at Harris to gain the best tools, the best training, the best advice, and the best network to be able in the future to make a contribution and change,” said Obuchi.

“For me, it was a life-changing experience to have the opportunity and the privilege to be part of the UChicago community, to see how knowledge grew in front of my eyes, and to have the very best people provide advice and training for all of us. I think people have to take real advantage of all the researchers, all the opportunities, and all the tools for what they want to deal with in the future.”

Until a new generation takes the reins, Richard Obuchi will be on the front lines advocating for smart policies that will bring Venezuela out of its economic slump and lessen the country’s programs’ reliance on oil reserves.