Fernando Ravsberg

Cuba’s Foreign Investment Law Behind the Scenes

PhD in Economics Omar Everleny Perez expounds on the underpinnings of Cuba’s new Foreign Investment Law, recently approved by the island’s parliament. “Foreign investment is one of the mechanisms that can help Cuba secure the resources it needs to grow. It’s become clear that it is impossible to head down the road to growth again on our own efforts alone.”

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Cuba’s Energy Initiatives

Despite Cuba’s interest in reducing its dependence on oil, the island does not currently import electric cars or authorize the use of natural gas as fuel. Currently only 5 % of the energy Cuba consumes is derived from renewable sources. A work group for the promotion of such sources of energy was recently assembled.

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Cuba’s Expensive Glass of Milk

Officials from the Ministry of Finance and Prices, the Food Industry and CIMEX Corp. pulled off a fast one when they announced they would raise the price of milk because its price on the world market had gone up.

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Cuba and the Killer of Dreams

Actually the Cuban Twitter called “Zunzuneo”, created by USAID, is nothing new; this is the digital version of TV Marti and it’s having similar results: millions of US taxpayer dollars spent to exert negligible influence within Cuba, reaching only 40,000 people.

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Public Transportation in Cuba: Moving Backwards

As far as its public transportation system is concerned, Cuba has two choices: to continue doing the same thing for another 50 years or to study the experiences of other countries and apply those that best suit the situation at home, without the need of reinventing the wheel.

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The Empowerment of Cuban Women

There are many factors behind the empowerment of Cuban women, but one of the most important is their massive incorporation into the workforce and higher education – 66 percent of Cuba’s professionals and experts are female, as are 50 % of the country’s healthcare workers.

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A New Beginning for “Letters from Cuba”

Today marks the last post of Cartas desde Cuba (“Letters from Cuba”) you will read in BBC Mundo (in Spanish). From now on, those interested in continuing to debate about the island’s reality will be able to do so through my personal webpage, www.cartasdesdecuba.com, [and here on Havana Times].

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Cuba and an Investment Law

The law aims to attract more foreign entrepreneurs by offering greater guarantees and assurances. José Luis Toledo Santander, head of the Constitutional Affairs Committee of the National Assembly added that it even “includes bonuses and total tax exemptions in certain circumstances, as well as flexibility in Customs.”

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USA/Cuba and the Mote in Another’s Eye

The Cuban-American congresswoman from Florida, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, surprised many by questioning the US Justice system when she said: “it is extremely disappointing” that the courts release one of the five Cuban agents, even after he served his sentence.

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