Some recognize that the situation forces them to maneuver more, but they plan to continue on the Island in the long term
EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, 6 November 2024 — Latin American businessmen with a presence in Cuba said on Tuesday that, despite the deep crisis in which the Island is immersed, their commitment to the country remains long-term.
In a tour made by EFE at the Havana International Fair (Fihav), the main business event in the country, four representatives of companies from different countries in the region said that their firms will continue to look at the long term, although some did recognize that the situation has forced them to maneuver more.
Others stressed that the rise of private businesses has helped them maintain an acceptable level of sales.
Others stressed that the rise of private businesses has helped them maintain an acceptable level of sales
“If we didn’t have the private sector, we wouldn’t be exporting the amount we are exporting to Cuba today,” Ariel Morales, from the Mexican company Hidrogenadora Yucateca, dedicated to exporting edible oils and fats, tells EFE.
However, he clarifies that the volume of purchases made by the private sector does not yet reach the State levels.
That is not the case for the Colombian Avícola Santa Elena. Since July, it has exported 10 shipping containers of eggs to the Island and expects that this will be the monthly average in the future.
The product is scarce on the Island, and the cost for a carton of 30 eggs in private stores can cost more than 3,500 Cuban pesos. The average monthly State salary is 4,500 pesos.
In the case of Avícola Santa Elena, its manager, Alejandro Cabrera, hopes that they can soon become a much more important provider.
“It has been a very good experience that has opened the market to all Colombian poultry farming,” he told EFE.
The Fihav – with more than 700 participants from 63 countries, according to the organizers – opened its doors on Monday with a call from the Cuban Government for foreign investment, key to the country’s economic recovery. In addition to Spain, the presence of Russia, China, Vietnam and Mexico stands out.
“It’s always a challenge when you do business with another country. For us from Brazil, Cuba is no different.”
The country suffers from prolonged daily blackouts, inflation that has tripled formal market prices in the last four years and a public deficit of more than double digits, which has generated an unprecedented migratory wave.
Despite that scenario, Leonardo Ferreira of the Brazilian Interunion, dedicated to exporting equipment for the sugar industry – once the economic engine of the Island and in decline in recent decades – told EFE that the crisis has not been a factor when doing business.
“It’s always a challenge when you do business with another country. For us from Brazil, Cuba is no different. There are always difficulties working with other countries, but we manage very well,” he told EFE.
In the 19,000 square meters of the ExpoCuba fairgrounds, on the outskirts of Havana, Cuban companies predominate, both State and private. Among the foreign ones, the Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese, Mexican and Spanish stand out. Spain, with 63 companies, is the country with the highest representation.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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