Breaking News English

The government in Venezuela has taken a [drastically / drastic] step to try and deal with the country's growing [energetic / energy] problems. It has [initiated / inundated] a two-day working week for all [static / state] employees. Public workers had already been working four days a week after [officials / officially] made Fridays a no-work day two months ago. The country's 2.8 million public workers will now have five days off [a / the] week. President Nicolas Maduro addressed the nation in a televised [stated / statement] , saying: "From tomorrow, for at [last / least] two weeks, we are going to have Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays as non-working days for the [public / publicly] sector." Employees were told they would still be paid in full, despite the [great / greatly] reduced working week.

The government is blaming the current energy crisis [in / on] droughts and El Nino weather [patterns / patterned] . Water levels in hydroelectric dams are dangerously low. Mr Maduro [likening / likened] the Guri region, home to the nation's biggest dam, to a desert. Critics of the president [say / says] ineffective management, inadequate investment and [corrupt / corruption] are behind the current [messy / mess] . The country's 30 million people are facing [daily / day] disruptions to their lives. Women have been asked to use hair dryers less and shopping malls have to [relay / rely] on their own electricity generators. Electricity is being rationed [in / on] most of the country. The president even turned the [clocks / watches] back thirty minutes to provide half-an-hour of extra evening sunlight.