[permaculture-oceania] Re: Cuba discussion

[Tom Duncan]

Hello Permies,
A German friend of mine has been living and studying in Cuba for 9 months, 
and he sent through this socio-economic evaluation the other day, of how he 
sees Cuba. I thought it would contribute to the Cuba discussions.
Tom
Economy in Cuba
Posted by: "Kjell Kühne"
Tue Sep 5, 2006 5:13 pm (PST)
Dear friends,

after spending 9 months in Cuba I would like to share with you a
general evaluation of what living in the country is like and what the
Cuban Revolution has achieved and which are its shortcomings. One of
the reasons I wanted to go to Cuba to do my (psychology) internship
was to learn about socialism in Cuba and how it works in our days. I
think I have learned a lot about that and this is my account for now.

I will divide it into three parts/mails: economic, sociopolitical and
cultural development.

Here comes the first:

Economy

There are two dimensions to an economy: the general size and the
equality how goods are distributed.
Cuba is very big on the equality dimension. Almost all Cuban have a
similar level. They all have access to the basic things, and hardly
anyone has access to expensive things (cars, international trips,
computers) out of their own efforts. The only ways to get those
things are through family or friends from other countries or by
getting an opportunity to be sent on a mission to work abroad and
earn "hard" currencies. This is possible for some doctors, professors
and other professionals that take part in internationalist projects
of cooperation between the Cuban government and other countries.

Basic needs

I once read on a big sign "In this world thousands of children sleep
in the streets each night. - None of them is Cuban." And I believe
that it is true. In Cuba most people have most of their basic needs
met: food, housing, clothes, access to health services. Cuba being
basically a poor third-world country that is a big achievement. If
you look at the indicators of Human Development, Cuba is far ahead of
other countries with a similar economic level.

Low Motivation

But there is a curse on the typical socialist economy. People earn
their salary if they do a good job. And if they don't, well, they
just earn their salary just the same. That is a big stopper for
motivation. Why should you make an effort if the financial result is
just the same as whithout effort? In Cuba it feels like a pleasant
surprise when you see someone who does his work in a motivated and
dedicated way. Most people are quite lethargic at work, but quick in
sending you to someone else.

Surviving economically

Another fact is that official salaries are too low to survive on
them. With the 250-450 Pesos Cubanos (9-16 Euros) that every normal
Cuban earns in his official job, he cannot survive. The subsidized
food they can buy with the so-called "libreta" - a little booklet
where you get a mark once you bought what corresponds to you - is
enough for about half the month. For the other half of the month they
have to find ways/money. A standard way is to take home some of the
products you are managing in your job. You sell them or simply eat
them. It is seen as normal. Everybody knows the necessity. As long as
you don't steal too much, and there doesn't happen to be an anti-
corruption campaign, you won't have problems. Those who don't handle
any products in their job have to find other ways. Cubans call
that "inventar". They are the kings of "inventing" ways to make a
living. It ranges from selling fruits or home-made candy in the
streets to giving private lessons or cleaning and washing for more
affluent neighbours (usually those who have family abroad).

But these informal, mostly illegal activities are just accepted
because they are necessary for the people to survive. Who earns good
money will spend it on better food. But it is very rare to see anyone
making a fortune. As soon as it becomes obvious that someone has a
lot of money, people become jealous and it is likely that some party
institution starts investigating whether there is anything illegal
going on. Since practically all the Cubans are involved in some kind
of illegal activity, it is better to keep a low profile.

So there is economic equality in Cuba, but it is somewhat imposed and
comes at the cost of hampering the motivation of almost all parts of
the economy.

Macro-Economy

Before the 1990s Cuba was like the spoilt child of the socialist
camp. They profited from subsidies (or very favourable terms of
trade) from the Soviet Union that accounted for a considerable part
of the economy. After the Soviet Union and the whole socialist camp
broke down, Cuba had to wake up. The so-called "periodo especial"
initiated. Cuba was now really left alone. There wasn't even enough
food for the people and many suffered hunger. A friend of mine who is
about 1,50m tall says she stayed small, because she was so unlucky to
go through the periodo especial in her adolescence. Cuba had to start
producing its own food and look for sources of money in hard
currencies. One of them is tourism, which has increased a lot since
then. As you could read in one of my former mails, there is now a
split in the economy: the normal economy in Cuban Pesos and the
tourist/dollar economy. (Although the dollar is now practically
eliminated and you have to pay a kind of fine when changing it.) This
brought money to Cuba but also negative energy: envy, prostitution
and a system that is almost like an "apartheid": there are many
places where Cubans can't go, because they can't pay or simply
because they aren't allowed in. Some foods that Cuba produces, like
beef are almost exclusively for tourists and sale in Convertible
Pesos (the Cuban equivalent to foreign currency).

The US Embargo

Maybe you have heard about the embargo. Since the early sixties the
USA imposed a commercial embargo on Cuba, meaning that companies are
prohibited to do business with Cuba if they want to operate in the
United States and that no ship can enter US ports, if it has been to
Cuba. For US citizens it is illegal to go to Cuba and they may face
heavy fines if they get caught. Many go there anyway, but they have
to go through Cancun in Mexico, they cannot fly directly. The embargo
makes the difficult economic situation more difficult. But at the
same time it also serves Fidel to blame the US for the weak economy.
The embargo has been repeatedly condemned by the United Nations, but
because there are many exiled Cubans in Florida (who were
expropriated by the Cuban Revolution and hate Fidel Castro) who are
now US citizens and voters, the embargo has not been lifted.

Education

Another paradox of Cuba is found in the field of education. The Cuban
Revolution has effectively succeeded in guaranteeing free education
for everyone. All kids go to elementary school and if you want to and
have good grades, you can study at university. So, a dream for many
poor people in this world has come true in Cuba: free education for
everyone up to university level. But here comes the paradox:
everybody can get a good education, but it doesn't help! A doctor or
an engineer earns less than a brick-layer (the lowest occupation here
in Mexico) or some guy who sells pizza or who collects the money on a
private truck (used like buses; both of these jobs are part of the
informal economy). And after a long workday he still has to think
about how to get some extra-money to feed his family! Many highly
educated people are interested in emigrating to have their education
pay. But that is not at all easy.

I just found out that at www.wikipedia.org you can read about these
things in more detail. So if you are really interested, take a look!

Take care, wherever you are!

with greetings from San Cristobal,

Kjell