English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 1 October 2023 — Not many days ago, Cuba’s Minister of Energy, Vicente de la O Levy, announced the great success of drilling a third gas well that would allow the joint venture Energas to increase electricity generation. The state press welcomed the information as if it were the solution … Continue reading “Electricity and Gas Services Go From Bad to Worse”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 5 October 2023 — In a recent discussion on the Cuban State TV Roundtable program, the issue of the relationship of the ’regulated family basket’ [the monthly allotment of rationed goods] to banking was addressed by the Minister of Internal Trade (MINCIN), Betsy Díaz. She spoke about the increase in … Continue reading “The Disaster of the Communist Business Model in Cuba”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 2 October 2023 — How well a country operates is a reflection of how healthy its economy is. When it stalls, or begins showing signs that something might be amiss, it may be an indication that disaster is imminent. There is a common belief that the way to solve a … Continue reading “Is There Anything that Works Well in the Cuban Economy?”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, October 3, 2023 — The Cuban communist state press, with its usual lack of transparency, addressed the issue of the 2023 state budgets that were approved before the highest governing body after the report on the process of implementing the State Budget in 2023 and the accountability of the Minister … Continue reading “Budgets, Prices and Economic Control, the Black Hole of the Castro Economy”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 30 September 2023 — On a Cuban television program that usually deals with issues related to the economy, a surprising question was raised: Are we running out of workers in the field? Yes. You have heard correctly. Now it turns out that the Cuban countryside is having an employment problem, … Continue reading “The Cuban Countryside Goes From Bad to Worse: Lack of Manpower and Low Productivity, the Communist Pairing”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 27 September 2023 — Cuban state press just released information on freight traffic through the port of Mariel’s container terminal. Forecasts for this year point to around 300,000 twenty-foot container units (TEUs), a figure close to what it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. But it’s too early to celebrate for … Continue reading “The Cuban Regime Has No Solution for the Port of Mariel Crisis”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, September 29, 2023 — In the latest edition of the State TV’s Roundtable program, Cuba’s Minister of Economy Gil reaffirmed the “socialist” model to get the Cuban economy out of the rut, a combination of rejection of the market and a determined commitment to planning that are, in short, the … Continue reading “The Cuban Economy is Close to Collapse”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 11 September 2023 — Cuba’s communist regime seems hell-bent on phasing out the use of cash and replacing it with electronic payment platforms, specifically Transfermóvil and Enzona. To these ends, it organized a “trade fair,” a kind of Saturday street market along Galiano Street in Central Havana, where all transactions … Continue reading “The Business of Communist-Sponsored Street Fairs”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 9 September 9, 2023 — The two refrains that the Cuban communists repeat ad nauseam fall apart in a spectacular way. The first, that “the United States crushes us with the embargo” sounds more and more like a hollow shell. The US sends Cuba more than 8 billion dollars a … Continue reading “Attention to Vulnerable Groups: Another Black Hole in Cuba”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 4 September 2023 — The Stalinist doctrine that has governed the Cuban economic and political system for 64 years spares no effort in trying to prove the impossible. They have pulled out of a hat a story that intends to show that with a correct direction and collective effort, it … Continue reading “Prosperity in the Cuban Countryside or Don’t Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 3 September 2023 — With the Cuban economy suffering the acute effects of stagflation (economic stagnation and inflation), from which the authorities are unable to extract themselves, the demand to give continuity to the banking reform being referred to as bancarización* and the elimination of cash in payments for different … Continue reading “Cuba: If Gas Stations Eliminate Payment in Cash, What Will Happen Next?”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 2 September 2023 — Communists don’t want a private sector in Cuba like the one that exists in the rest of the world. On numerous occasions, the Castro revolution has been interpreted as a process that extends the poverty of the population by depriving it of one of the main … Continue reading “The Castro Regime’s Fear of Private Land Ownership in Cuba”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 29 August 2023 — It was just what was missing. Faced with the bewilderment caused by a fall in the value of the Cuban peso with respect to all currencies, which pushes the economy into an abyss, the regime takes out of the hat in the state press a theory … Continue reading “The Regime Brings Out the Heavy Artillery Against El Toque”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 25 August 2023 — There was expectation about Díaz-Canel’s speech before the G77 and the BRICS gathered in Pretoria during the XV Summit of these countries. A missed opportunity to correct mistakes and and set things straight. Unfortunately, this is not present in the Cuban regime and, therefore, this speech … Continue reading “Keys to Cuban President Diaz-Canel’s Speech at the BRICS Summit”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 24 August 2023 — Pending the Cuban communist leader’s speech at the BRICS Summit on Thursday, as pro tempore president of the G-77 and China, not much was known about Díaz-Canel’s visit to Pretoria, where this meeting aroused enthusiasm in the weak Castro diplomacy. There was interest in knowing if … Continue reading “According to Diaz-Canel, Relations Between China and Cuba Are Not Proceeding at the Rhythm Needed. Why?”
