Housing Construction in Cuba Plummets

HAVANA TIMES, Feb. 24 – Housing construction has nosedived in Cuba since 2006, when 111,373 new homes were built, according to a report by the National Office of Statistics (ONE). In 2010 barely 34,014 homes were built, reported IPS.

Cuba was hit by three major hurricanes in 2008 and the subsequent priority shifted to repairing and rebuilding destroyed housing and infrastructure, debilitating the new housing program.  A shortage of building materials is another factor.

The housing shortage is one of the biggest problems facing the Cuban population, especially felt by the youth who find it nearly impossible to live independently.