With a legislative agenda focused on the crisis Cuba is going through, aggravated by US sanctions, the National Assembly of People's Power (ANPP, in Spanish), Cuba's legislative body, began its ordinary winter sessions on Wednesday (18), where it will establish the budget and economic planning for 2025.
The Secretary of the Assembly and the Council of State, Homero Acosta, told the local press that the parliamentary activities will also discuss measures to encourage foreign investment, update the labor code in the context of the growth of the private sector on the island (labor protection laws), food production and the fight against corruption, among others.
ANPP's activities will take place against a complex national and international backdrop, in which Donald Trump's second arrival in the White House is expected to further intensify the aggressions that Washington has been waging against Cuba for more than 60 years.
In this context, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel called on the “heroic Cuban people” to hold a “combatant march” on December 20, at the end of parliamentary activities. The protest will take place on Havana's emblematic Malecón, in front of the US embassy, demanding an end to hostility targeting the island.
Economic planning
Although the official figures are not yet available, authorities at the Ministry of Economy have reported that the country will probably end the year with a new economic contraction, following the 1.9% drop in GDP in 2023. At the same time, according to the National Statistics and Information Agency, Cuba’s year-on-year inflation rate remained at around 28%.
In addition to the prolonged and sustained aggression of the US blockade, Cuba is facing internal difficulties both in stabilizing the economy and updating its socialist model. In recent years, the country has steadily lost its export capacity while its agricultural sector has suffered a major depression.
This year, the island suffered two hurricanes that caused millions of dollars in losses, with the total or partial destruction of more than 46,000 houses and the loss of 37,000 hectares of agricultural production, which had a strong inflationary impact on locally produced food.
In this context, during the debates of the National Assembly's Economic Affairs Committee, the Minister of Economy and Planning presented a draft budget that estimates economic growth of 1% of GDP for 2025.
A really difficult year
In his end-of-year speech to the plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, President Miguel Díaz-Canel said, “We are going through a very difficult period. We are practically living day by day”, noting that "The people have many complaints,” which he described as “fair”.
The Cuban president also stated that the country’s authorities are not “sitting on their hands”. As an example of the day-to-day difficulties Cuba is going through, he recalled that recently, during the energy crisis, a ship was unable to unload liquefied gas (LPG) for 15 days because the country had been prevented from paying for the service, as banks were not accepting Cuban deposits as a result of its inclusion on the list of “state sponsors of terrorism.”
The list is unilaterally drawn up by the US State Department without an international mandate. The inclusion of a country on this list prevents it from accessing credit and the international payment system with the explicit aim of causing economic, political and financial damage.
“This isn't a rosary of lamentations. I'm just reflecting and giving an example to insist on something: we have to end our dependence on imports and do so only with what is strictly necessary, such as raw materials and inputs for our production processes and services,” Díaz-Canel said.
In the period from March 1, 2023, to February 29, 2024, alone, the US blockade generated an estimated loss of US$5.5 billion, which means a loss of more than US$421 million per month, according to UN estimates.
“People will have more confidence in socialism when they see that it is a system capable, first of all, of guaranteeing social victories, and that it can meet their fundamental material demands,” he said.
He argued that “it is necessary to get the greatest legitimacy and leadership among the cadres, which is only possible when they demonstrate exemplarily, conviction and political steadfastness,” and added that "the main responsibility” lies with the leaders.
For his part, about Donald Trump's recent election victory and the appointment of ultra-right-winger Marco Rubio as head of the State Department, the body responsible for US foreign policy, Díaz Canel assured that the recent election result “did not surprise” Cuba.
“We were not surprised by the euphoric dance of the haters, desperate to sing the end of the Revolution that they failed to defeat. This result and the possibility of increased aggression against Cuba were foreseen in the scenarios. Aware of this reality, we are ready to face this new scenario with equanimity and without fear, but alert and prepared.”
National Assembly of People's Power
The National Assembly of People's Power is the highest state authority in Cuba. It is a unicameral body, with constituent and legislative functions, formed by non-compulsory universal suffrage. As in parliamentary systems, the president, vice-president and secretary of the Assembly are elected by the Assembly.
Members of the Cuban legislature are not chosen through party competition. The candidacies are a combination of proposals drawn up by different sectoral groups, such as the Cuban Workers' Central, the National Association of Small Farmers, the Federation of University Students, the Federation of High School Students, among others. Half of the parliament is selected by nomination in territorial votes at the city level.
Members of the National Assembly of People's Power keep their jobs while in office and do not receive a higher salary than an ordinary worker. In addition, officials are legally accountable to their constituents and their terms can be revoked at any time. The Assembly meets twice a year in ordinary sessions, in the middle of the year and at the end of the year.
Edited by: Rodrigo Durão Coelho
