Cuba's Economic Reforms
Summary:
Relevant Facts:
- First draft written and approved in November 2010
- Sixth Communist Party Congress convened in April 2011 to discuss and debate the Lineamientos.
- Second draft written and approved in May 2011
- 2/3 of the linemaientos were modified, integrated or eliminated in the second draft, and 36 new lineamientos were added.
- Majority of new lineamientos were in the Macro Economics and the Agricultural Industry sections.
- Total lineamientos in Draft I: 291
- Total lineamientos in Draft II: 311
General Themes of the Lineamientos:
- Increase unproductive land by 50%
- Regain lost capital available to industry
- Cut excessively high payrolls and restructure payroll and employment policies
- Raise labor productivity with a combination of harsher discipline and more salary bonuses.
- Increase exports in a wider array of products.
- Reduce dependence on imports.
Various Initiatives:
I. Economic Management Model
- 1: The socialist planning system will remain as the dominant strategy in Cuba.
- 9: The creation of supply markets selling at wholesale prices, without subsidies for cooperatives, lessors, farmers and self-employed workers.
- 22: The number of employees will be determined by the private enterprise.
II. Macroeconomic Policies
- 56: Change taxation system in favor of a more progressive structure.
- 62: The central authority will remain in control of price levels and structure.
VI. Social Policy
- 162: The rations book will no longer be used as the method of distribution.
VII. Agricultural Policies
- 172: Modify the production system to allow a more streamlined and efficient collection process.
- 183: Develop a training program to provide education in the fields of vetinary, industrial technology, economics, administration and others.
X. Transport Policy
- 286: Allow the sales of privately owned automobiles between individuals.
XI. Construction, Housing and Hydraulic Resource Policy
- Allow the sales of private homes between individuals.
June 2013
| Date | Title |
|---|---|
| 6/5/13 | Internet access to expand in Cuba – at a price The Christian Science Monitor |
| 6/4/13 | Cubans try out new public Internet centers Bloomberg Businessweek |
| 6/3/13 | A specter is haunting Cuba GlobalPost |
May 2013
| Date | Title |
|---|---|
| 5/23/13 | Cubans more optimistic about Castro's economic changes MiamiHerald.com |
| 5/21/13 | Cuba OKs Individuals to Import Electric Appliances, Mopeds Efe |
| 5/2/13 | Amid Fealty to Socialism, a Nod to Capitalism The New York Times |
April 2013
| Date | Title |
|---|---|
| 4/28/13 | Cuba's young see bleak future, many want to leave Chicago Tribune |
| 4/19/13 | Yoani Sanchez and Cuba's black-market politics MiamiHerald.com |
| 4/17/13 | Venezuela forces Cuba's pace of change Financial Times |
March 2013
| Date | Title |
|---|---|
| 3/20/13 | Cubans on the move as new real estate market grows Chicago Tribune |
- Change Comes to Cuba: Citizen's Views on Reform after the Sixth Party Congress An October 2011 publication by Freedom House based on research conducted in June 2011, several months after the Sixth Communist Party Congress. Researchers conducted 190 in-depth interviews in six provinces in Cuba. (768.3 KBs)
- The Cuban Economy: Recent Trends A special report by the Wilson Center's Latin American program authored by Rafael Romeu, Jorge Perez-Lopez and Carmelo Mesa-Lago and edited by Jose Raul Perales. (3.6 MBs)