Resources from Pearl Linguistics

CUBAN Facts & Figures

Size: 42,426 square miles

Population: 11,241,894

Capital: Havana

Currency: Cuban Peso

Weather / Climate:

Cuba's climate is tropical and moderated by trade winds. The dry season lasts from November to April and the rainy season from May to October.

Cubais an archipelago of islands located in the Caribbean Sea, with the geographic coordinates 21°3N, 80°00W. Cuba is the principal island, which is surrounded by four main groups of islands. These are the Colorados, the Sabana-Camagüey, the Jardines de la Reina and the Canarreos. The main island of Cuba constitutes most of the nation's land area or 105,006 km² (40,543 sq mi) and is the seventeenth-largest island in the world by land area. The second largest island in Cuba is the Isla de la Juventud (Isle of Youth) in the southwest, with an area of 3,056 km² (1,180 sq mi). Cuba has a total land area of 110,860 km² (42,800 sq mi).

The main island consists mostly of flat to rolling plains. At the southeastern end is the Sierra Maestra, a range of steep mountains whose highest point is the Pico Real del Turquino at 1,975 metres (6,480 ft). The local climate is tropical, though moderated by trade winds. In general (with local variations), there is a drier season from November to April, and a rainier season from May to October. The average temperature is 23.1 °C (73.6 °F) in January and 27 °C (80.6 °F) in July. Cuba lies in the path of hurricanes, and these destructive storms are most common in September and October. Havana is the largest city and capital; other major cities include Santiago de Cuba and Camagüey. Better known smaller towns include Baracoa which was the first Spanish settlement on Cuba, Trinidad, a UNESCO world heritage site, and Bayamo.

Taken from wikipedia

CUBAN languages

The official language of Cuba is Spanish and the vast majority of Cubans speak it. Spanish as spoken in Cuba is known as Cuban Spanish and is a form of Caribbean Spanish. Lucumi, a dialect of the West African language Yoruba, is also used as a liturgical language by practitioners of Santería,^[157] and so only as a second language.^[158] Haitian Creole is the second largest language in Cuba, and is spoken by Haitian immigrants and their descendants.^[159] Other languages spoken by immigrants include Catalan and Corsican.^[160]

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba

CUBAN culture

Cuba has survived more than 40 years of US sanctions intended to topple the government of Fidel Castro. It also defied predictions that it would not survive the collapse of its one-time supporter, the Soviet Union.

The imprints of Cuban history can be seen everywhere in the country today - from the intermingling of races to the importance of sugar, the historical continuum is palpable. When Columbus reached Cuba in 1492, declaring it "the most beautiful land human eyes have ever seen," he encountered three indigenous groups: the Siboney, Guanahatabey and Taino. Although all three were virtually wiped out within 50 years, Siboney and Taino are popular terms in Cuba still.

In addition to disease, the Spanish and French settlers who followed brought with them sugarcane and later slaves; both sugar and Cubans of African descent continue to help define the character of the island. The racial make up of the country is a mosaic of these separate waves of human inhabitation and in Cuban cities, dynamic and varied racial mixtures can be observed.

Two wars of independence defined 19th-century Cuba. The first, between 1868 and 1878, ended in stalemate; the second, in which the rebels were inspired by the poet and revolutionary, José Martí, began in 1895 and ended when the USA was drawn into the war in 1898. Interestingly, the term 'yellow journalism' was coined during this latter Spanish-American war. Cuba was initially occupied for two years by US forces. After their withdrawal in 1901, the USA maintained effective political and economic control of the island, while Cuba was governed by a series of corrupt dictators including Fulgencio Batista. Then came Fidel Castro and his rebel army which overturned the hugely corrupt Batista Government in 1959, establishing a socialist state. All US businesses were expropriated in 1960, and diplomatic relations between the two countries were broken by the USA. Thereafter, Cuba accelerated relations with the Soviet Union and the USA instituted a full economic and financial blockade on the island.

In 1961, the US Central Intelligence Agency organised a corps of anti-Castro rebels to invade the island. This 'Bay of Pigs' invasion was a complete fiasco; all the invaders were captured or killed and US involvement was quickly revealed. The following year, Soviet missiles capable of hitting targets in the USA were installed on Cuba. President Kennedy ordered a naval blockade against the island. The confrontation escalated to the threshold of nuclear war, before Kennedy and Khrushchev reached a settlement.

When the Eastern bloc dissolved in 1989, Cuba lost nearly all its trading partners and foreign aid overnight. A 'Special Period in Time of Peace' was declared, an extraordinarily difficult economic period that threatened the revolutionary government's survival. Since the fall of the US-backed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista Cuba has been a one-party state led by Mr Castro and - since February 2008 - by his anointed successor, younger brother Raul.

Fidel exercised control over virtually all aspects of Cuban life through the Communist Party and its affiliated mass organisations, the government bureaucracy and the state security apparatus.

Exploiting the US-Soviet Cold War, Fidel Castro was for decades able to rely on strong Soviet backing, including annual subsidies worth $4-5 billion, and succeed in building reputable health and education systems. But, at least partly because of the US trade sanctions, he failed to diversify the economy.

The disappearance of Soviet aid following the collapse of the USSR forced the government to introduce tight rationing of energy, food and consumer goods. The economy soldiered on with the help of Canadian, European and Latin American investments, especially in tourism.

Controls were relaxed in the 1990s, with companies allowed to import and export without seeking permission and a number of free trade zones opening up.

Some of these economic reforms were later rolled back, with Fidel Castro denouncing what he called the "new rich".

However, after Fidel Castro was succeeded as president by his brother Raul, the pace of economic reform picked up once more. Cuba has forged closer ties with China and with oil-producing Venezuela. The latter supplies cheap fuel, while the former is helping Cuba to develop its own oil industry.

But the money sent home by Cubans living abroad - many of them in the US city of Miami - is still crucial to the economy. Hardships have led to an increase in prostitution, corruption, black marketeering and desperate efforts to escape in search of a better life.

Cubahas fallen foul of international bodies, including the UN's top human rights forum, over rights abuses. The UN's envoy has urged Havana to release imprisoned dissidents and to allow freedom of expression.

The US leases the Guantanamo Naval Base on the eastern tip of the island under a 1903 treaty, and continues to send Cuba payment for it. Cuba under the Castros disputes the lease, saying that it was concluded under duress, and has refused to cash any of the cheques since the early days of the revolution. Relations with the US showed signs of a thaw following the election of President Barack Obama, who in April 2009 said he wanted a new beginning with Cuba. Russia has also taken steps to revitalise ties with its Soviet-era ally, and in July 2009 signed an agreement to explore Cuba's offshore oil deposits, which are believed to be substantial.

Technically Roman Catholics are in majority, though the percentage drops precipitously for practicing Catholics. A variety of Afro-Cuban religions like Santería and Abakuá are widely practiced.

While handshakes are used in more formal settings, in almost all other situations, the typical greeting in Cuba is one kiss on the right cheek. A handshake is the normal form of greeting. Cubans generally address each other as compañero, but visitors should use señor or señora.

Some Cubans have two surnames after their Christian name; the first surname is the correct one to use. Normal courtesies should be observed when visiting someone's home, and a small gift may be given if invited for a meal. Cuban men rarely wear shorts away from the beach. Visitors doing so are not frowned upon, but they may receive the odd sideways glance. Women should cover their legs and shoulders if visiting churches. Cuban women tend to dress up for evenings out. Cubans of all classes like to dress up (especially for evenings out) and tourists are often seen as underdressed as a result.

Holidays

· 01 January – Liberation Day

· 02 January – Victory of Armed Forces

· 01 May – Labour Day

· 20 May – Independence Day

· 25 July – Days of Rebelliousness

· 10 October – Anniversary of the beginning of the War of Independence

· 25 December – Christmas Day

Taken from:

www.bbc.co.uk

www.worldtravelguide.net

CUBAN people

Cubans or Cuban people (Spanish: Cubanos) are the inhabitants or citizens of Cuba. Cuba is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds. As a result, some Americans do not treat their nationality as an ethnicity but as a citizenship with various ethnicities comprising the "Cuban people." Aside from the indigenous Native American population, nearly all Cubans or their ancestors immigrated within the past five centuries.

Despite its multi-ethnic composition, the culture held in common by most Cubans is referred to as mainstream Cuban culture, a Western culture largely derived from the traditions of Western European migrants, beginning with the early Spanish settlers, along with other Europeans arriving later such as the Portuguese and French with African culture which has also been very influential.

The largest urban populations of Cubans in Cuba (2010) are to be found in Havana ( 2,135,498), Santiago de Cuba ( 425,851), Camagüey (305,845), Holguín (277,050), Guantanamo ( 207,857), and Santa Clara ( 205,812). According to Cuba's Oficina Nacional de Estadisticas ONE 2002 Census, the population was 11,177,743,^[9] including:

5,597,233 men and
5,580,510 women.

The racial make-up was 7,271,926 whites, 1,126,894 blacks and 2,778,923 mulattoes.^[10] The Chinese population in Cuba is descended mostly from indentured laborers who arrived in the 19th century to build railroads and work in mines. After the Industrial Revolution, many of these laborers stayed in Cuba because they could not afford return passage to China.

Taken from wikipedia

CUBAN food

Cuban cuisineis a fusion of Spanish, African and Caribbean cuisines. Cuban recipes share spices and techniques with Spanish and African cooking, with some Caribbean influence in spice and flavor. This results in a unique, interesting and flavorful blend of the several different cultural influences. A small but noteworthy Chinese influence can also be accounted for, mainly in the Havana area. During colonial times, Cuba was an important port for trade, and many Spaniards who lived there brought their culinary traditions along with them.^[1]

As a result of the colonization of Cuba by Spain, one of the main influences on the cuisine is from Spain. Along with Spain, other culinary influences include Africa, from the Africans that were brought to Cuba as slaves, and Dutch, from the French colonists that came to Cuba from Haiti.^[1] Another important factor is that Cuba itself is an island, making seafood something that greatly influences Cuban cuisine. Another contributing factor to Cuban cuisine is the fact that Cuba is in a tropical climate. The tropical climate produces fruits and root vegetables that are used in Cuban dishes and meals.^[2]

A typical meal would consist of rice and beans, cooked together or apart. When cooked together the recipe is called either "Congri" (red beans and rice) or "Moros" or "Moros y Cristianos" (black beans and rice). If cooked separately it is called "Arroz con/y Frijoles" (rice with/and beans).^[3][4] A main course (mainly pork or beef), some sort of vianda(not to be confused with the Frenchviandewhich stands for "meat", this term encompasses several types of tubers, such as yuca, malanga, and potato, as well as plantains, unripe bananas and even corn), a salad (usually simply composed of tomato, lettuce and avocado, though cucumber, carrots, cabbage and radish are not uncommon). Curiously, typical criollo meals largely ignore fruit, except ripe plantains, which are usually consumed together with the rice and beans. Tropical fruit could be served, however, depending on each family's preferences. Usually, all dishes are brought together to the table at once, except maybe for desserts.

Rice and beans are a culinary element found throughout Cuba, although it varies by region. In the eastern part of the island, "arroz congri oriental" is the predominant rice and bean dish. White rice and red kidney beans are cooked together with a sofrito and then baked in the oven. The same procedure is used for the above mentioned Congri (also known by the terms Arroz Moro and Moros y Cristianos - literally "Moors and Christians") which instead uses black beans. Although the process of preparing the black bean soup contains basics (onion, garlic, bay leaf, salt) each region has their tradition of preparing it.

Meat, when available on ration book is usually served in light sauces. The most popular sauce, used to accompany not onlyroasted pork, but also the viandas, is Mojo or Mojito (not to be confused with the Mojito cocktail), made with oil, garlic, onion, spices such as oregano and bitter orange or lime juice. The origin of Cuban mojo comes from the mojo sauces of the Canary Islands. Cuban mojo is made with different ingredients, but the same idea and technique is used from the Canary Islands. Of course with so many Canary Islander immigrants in Cuba, the Canary Islander influence was strong. Ropa vieja is shredded beef dish (usually flank) simmered in tomato-based criollo sauce until it falls apart. ropa vieja is the Spanish name meaning "old clothes", in which the dish gets its name from the shredded meat resembling "old clothes". Ropa vieja is also from the Canary Islands, as is many of the origins of Cuban food. Boliche is a beef roast, stuffed with chorizo sausage and hard boiled eggs.

Equally popular are tamales, although not exactly similar to its Mexican counterpart. Made with corn flour, shortening and pieces of pork meat, tamales are wrapped in corn leaves and tied, boiled in salted water and served in a number of different ways. Tamales en cazuela is almost the same recipe, although it does not require the lengthy process of packing the tamales in the corn leaves before cooking, but rather is directly cooked in the pot. Tamales as well as Black Bean soup, are among the few indigenous foods that have remained part of the modern Cuban cuisine.

Stews and soups are common. These are usually consumed along with white rice or gofio (a type of corn flour, also from the Canary Islands), or eaten alone. Corn stew, corn soup (guiso), caldosa (a soup made with a variety of tubers and meats), are popular dishes as well. Also common when available are the popular white bean Spanish stews, such as Caldo Gallego (Galician Stew), Fabada Asturiana (Asturian Stew) and Cocido de Garbanzos (Chickpea Stew).

Taken from wikipedia

Places to go in CUBA

Those hoping for a shopping splurge in Cuba will likely be disappointed - art being the obvious exception. There are a few luxury shops in Old Havana and in large hotels like the Habana Libre, but stock is generally uninspiring. A new, welcoming crafts market, the Almacenes San José, has opened in the historic port building at Avenida del Puerto, next to the church of San Francisco de Paula.

Cuba makes the world's finest cigars. Buy the real thing at factories such as Real Fábrica de Tabacos Partagás in Havana, which also sells fabulously ornate cigar boxes. Other official outlets called Casas del Habano sell authentic wares as well. Cigars from street vendors will probably be fakes or factory rejects. Visitors can export 20 loose cigars, or up to 50 boxed cigars if they are in their original packaging, with all seals and holograms intact. Receipts must be shown to export over 50 cigars. Castro's favourite brand (before he gave up) was Cohiba, Ché Guevara favoured Montecristos, and, before he put the blockade in place, JFK stocked up on H Upmanns.

Santiago de Cuba was once home to the Bacardi family distillery, but Havana Club is now the most famous Cuban rum. Good though it is, connoisseurs prefer Varadero. The rich seven-year-old variety is sipped like fine malt, while younger and lighter blends are used for cocktails.

Havana is renowned for its after-dark entertainment scene, and only the tip of the iceberg is visible to tourists on a short stay. Even medium-sized bars usually have a house band playing Cuban classics. The two Casas de la Música in Havana attract tourists and locals alike, the latter distinguished by their accomplished salsa dance moves. The famous Tropicana nightclub stages nightly open-air cabarets that are that are a throwback to decadent, pre-Revolution days. The Cabaret Parisien at the Hotel Nacional is similar, and both attract tour groups on 'day and night' packages from the coastal beach resorts.

Theatre, opera and ballet are staged all year round in Havana and seats are very cheap. Cinemas show films in Spanish and blockbuster Hollywood movies - the latter are always subtitled, never dubbed. Santiago de Cuba is the spiritual home of Son - the music that gave birth to salsa, and regular live sessions are on offer at the Casa de la Trova. In beach resorts, nightlife tends to mimic what is on offer in Havana, with varying degrees of success. Varadero has a thriving scene, but in the smaller resorts (many of which are all-inclusive) most entertainment is planned and formulaic.

Havana is one of the most exciting, vibrant cities in the Caribbean. With unprecedented changes continuing apace since the withdrawal of Fidel Castro from Cuba's politics in 2008, it's also one of the most dynamic. Cuba pulsates with laughter, music, humour and yes, difficulties. All life's ingredients coalesce in Cuba's tropical mix and nowhere more so than in its magnetic capital. Even the name Havana (La Habana) evokes images of antique cars, killer cigars and revolution.

Today's Havana tempers revolutionary fever with the fervent desire for hard cash, but the city remains true to its heart, its passion permeating its steamy alleys and salt-sprayed sidewalks. The exquisite architecture of Old Havana makes it the Americas' best-preserved colonial centre. Taking a stroll through shady plazas to the world famous Malecón with no goal beyond an ice-choked mojito feels like stepping back in time.

A UNESCO World Heritage site, Habana Vieja (Old Havana) is being restored through a programme that feeds tourist revenues into renovation efforts. But not all that glitters is gold: some 300 buildings a year become uninhabitable or collapse outright in Havana, and visitors are offered the jarring sight of brightly painted, restored buildings alongside crumbling ones.

Even the worldliest travellers can suffer from culture shock in Havana, where Al Capone-era cars cruise alongside late-model Audis and children in pressed uniforms skip to school. Contradictions are rife, but trumped by a live-for-the-moment attitude embodied in the ubiquitous Cuban rhythms.

Take a tour of the Capitolio in Havana's centre. Built by a dictator to mimic Washington DC's Capitol (though the detailing on Havana's version is finer), it housed a puppet parliament until the Revolution.

Wander around the Castillo de la Real Fuerza and its new shipwreck museum. The oldest of Havana's three forts is still standing because it was, to all intents and purposes, built in the wrong place.Raise a glass to Hemingway at his old haunt La Bodeguita del Medio.

Join fishermen, families and couples, and take a stroll along the Malecón, the sea wall that links Old Havana to the western edge of Vedado. Careful though: during high seas and storms, the surf surges over the wall, the boulevard is sometimes closed to traffic as a result.

Visit the Museo de la Revolución for a historical context of modern Cuba. Outside is the Granma, a cabin cruiser built for 12 people. In 1956, 80 exiled rebels (both Castros and Ché among them) came perilously close to sinking the overcrowded yacht, as they sought to return to Cuba.

Head to the Plaza de Armas in Old Havana for a glimpse of colonial majesty at the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, former residence of the Spanish Crown's representatives, and now the Museo de la Ciudad.

Live the high life in Havana's Vedado district. The Hotel Nacional has hosted gangsters and film stars and is well-placed for Carnaval processions along the Malecón.

Experience the country's best musicians and dancers hard at work in Santiago de Cuba. Unmissable are Ballet Folklorico Cutumba: their Afro-Cuban performances are simply spectacular. Visit the Museo Emilio Bacardí in Santiago de Cuba ('the heroic city'). It contains the rum magnate's collection of antiques and fine art and the Moncada Barracks, where Fidel Castro launched an abortive uprising in 1953. The Castillo El Morro is now a museum of piracy.

Visit revolutionary Santa Clara, and the monument, museum and mausoleum of Ché Guevara. His body was only returned from Bolivia in 1997, 30 years after his capture and execution. In 1959, he and 300 rebels defeated 3,000 of Batista's troops here, leading to the dictator's flight just days later.

Baracoa– a visit to this lost-in-time corner of Cuba is a must for history and nature buffs. Getting to the quaint seaside town and nearby sites was made feasible only in the 1960s with the construction of 'La Farola' - one of Cuba's most scenic roads.

Feel the history in colonial Trinidad, founded in 1514. Locals ride horses down cobbled streets, past houses painted in pastel colours. Elegant mansions are now museums in this UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Enjoy outstanding views of the Valley of the Sugar Mills from the Torre de Manaca Iznaga - a former slave watchtower by an old plantation house-turned restaurant.

Follow in Hemingway's footsteps with a pub crawl to his favourite haunts, having a daiquiri (or three) at El Floridita and a mojito at La Bodeguita del Medio. Follow up with a visit to his suite at the Hotel Ambos Mundos, where he penned part of For Whom the Bell Tolls.

Take an emotional journey to the museum at Playa Girón, scene of the US-backed 'Bay of Pigs' invasion in 1961.

There are 30 dive sites at Varadero alone and more reefs around Isla de la Juventud - Robert Louis Stevenson's inspiration for Treasure Island. With few crowds and teeming marine life, the Hotel Colony on the Isla de la Juventud makes a great base for a dive vacation. Wreck diving is also possible here. One of the world's biggest reefs is offshore at Cayo Coco, and the underwater eye candy at María la Gorda, a dive camp in the western extents of Pinar del Río, is spectacular.

Walk in the footsteps of the revolutionary army, including to Cuba's highest peak, Pico Turquino (1972m), in the Oriente's Sierra Maestra range. Other hiking gems include the Sierra del Rosario and Viñales areas of Pinar del Río province and around Baracoa in Guantánamo.

Pinar del Río is arguably Cuba's most beautiful province, and its most outstanding feature must be the mogotes: oddly rounded limestone mountains, covered in lush vegetation. The caves here are awash with stalactites and stalagmites, and underground rivers.

Saddle up and gallop through the scenic sugarcane fields around Trinidad and the Valle de Ingenios, or the hills, tobacco fields and valleys of Pinar del Río. Kids love pony rides offered at bigger Havana parks like Parque Almendares.

Soak up some glorious sunshine from one of Cuba's beautiful beaches, including Playas del Este near Havana, where the locals play, to exclusive island resorts like Cayo Coco. Just 20 minutes from downtown, the beaches of Santa María, known as the Havana Riviera, offer the soft sand and turquoise waters for which the Caribbean is famous. Other picture-perfect beaches include Playa Ancón near Trinidad; Cayo Coco north of Ciego de Ávila; and Playa las Tumbas on the Guanhacabibes Peninsula, a UNESCO biosphere on the island's western tip. Varadero is a particularly lively resort that combines beach life with nightlife.

Relax on Cayo Largo - Cuba's most pristine beaches ring this small island off the southern coast developed exclusively for tourism. Accessible only by plane, the beaches here are also sea turtle nesting areas.

Taken from www.worldtravelguide.net

Doing business in CUBA

The Cuban state adheres to socialist principles in organizing its largely state-controlled planned economy. Most of the means of production are owned and run by the government and most of the labor force is employed by the state. Recent years have seen a trend towards more private sector employment. By 2006, public sector employment was 78% and private sector 22%, compared to 91.8% to 8.2% in 1981.^[100] Capital investment is restricted and requires approval by the government. The Cuban government sets most prices and rations goods. Any firm wishing to hire a Cuban must pay the Cuban government, which in turn will pay the employee in Cuban pesos.^[101] Cubans cannot change jobs without government permission.^[51] The average wage at the end of 2005 was 334 regular pesos per month ($16.70 per month) and the average pension was $9 per month.^[102]

Cubarelied heavily on trade with the Soviet Union. From the late 1980s, Soviet subsidies for Cuban goods started to dry up. Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba depended on Moscow for substantial aid and sheltered markets for its exports. The removal of these subsidies (for example the oil ^[103] ^[104] ) sent the Cuban economy into a rapid depression known in Cuba as the Special Period. In 1992 the United States tightened the trade embargo, hoping to see democratisation of the sort that took place in Eastern Europe.

Like some other Communist and post-Communist states following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba took limited free market-oriented measures to alleviate severe shortages of food, consumer goods, and services. These steps included allowing some self-employment in certain retail and light manufacturing sectors, the legalization of the use of the US dollar in business, and the encouragement of tourism. Cuba has developed a unique urban farm system (the organopónicos) to compensate for the end of food imports from the Soviet Union. In recent years, Cuba has rolled back some of the market oriented measures undertaken in the 1990s. In 2004 Cuban officials publicly backed the Euro as a "global counter-balance to the US dollar", and eliminated U.S. currency from circulation in its stores and businesses.

Tourism was initially restricted to enclave resorts where tourists would be segregated from Cuban society, referred to as "enclave tourism" and "tourism apartheid".^[105] Contacts between foreign visitors and ordinary Cubans were de facto illegal until 1997.^[106] In 1996 tourism surpassed the sugar industry as the largest source of hard currency for Cuba. Cuba has tripled its market share of Caribbean tourism in the last decade; as a result of significant investment in tourism infrastructure, this growth rate is predicted to continue.^[107] 1.9 million tourists visited Cuba in 2003, predominantly from Canada and the European Union, generating revenue of $2.1 billion.^[108] The rapid growth of tourism during the Special Period had widespread social and economic repercussions in Cuba, and led to speculation about the emergence of a two-tier economy.^[109] The Medical tourism sector caters to thousands of European, Latin American, Canadian, and American consumers every year.

The communist agricultural production system was ridiculed by Raúl Castro in 2008.^[110] Cuba now imports up to 80% of food used for rations.^[110] Before 1959, Cuba boasted as many cattle as people.

For some time, Cuba has been experiencing a housing shortage because of the state's failure to keep pace with increasing demand.^[111] The government instituted food rationing policies in 1962, which were exacerbated following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the tightening of the U.S. embargo. Studies have shown that, as late as 2001, the average Cuban's standard of living was lower than before the downturn of the post-Soviet period. Paramount issues have been state salaries failing to meet personal needs under the state rationing system, chronically plagued with shortages. The variety and quantity of available rationed goods declined.

Under Venezuela's Mission Barrio Adentro, Hugo Chávez has supplied Cuba with up to 80,000 barrels (13,000 m³) of oil per day in exchange for 30,000 doctors and teachers.

In 2005 Cuba had exports of $2.4 billion, ranking 114 of 226 world countries, and imports of $6.9 billion, ranking 87 of 226 countries.^[112] Its major export partners are China 27.5%, Canada 26.9%, Netherlands 11.1%, Spain 4.7% (2007).^[6] Cuba's major exports are sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, and coffee;^[6] imports include food, fuel, clothing, and machinery. Cuba presently holds debt in an amount estimated to be $13 billion,^[113] approximately 38% of GDP.^[114] According to the Heritage Foundation, Cuba is dependent on credit accounts that rotate from country to country.^[115] Cuba's prior 35% supply of the world's export market for sugar has declined to 10% due to a variety of factors, including a global sugar commodity price drop that made Cuba less competitive on world markets.^[116] At one time, Cuba was the world's most important sugar producer and exporter. As a result of diversification, underinvestment, and natural disasters, Cuba's sugar production has seen a drastic decline. In 2002 more than half of Cuba's sugar mills were shut down. Cuba holds 6.4% of the global market for nickel,^[117] which constitutes about 25% of total Cuban exports.^[118] A 2005 US Geological Survey report estimates that the North Cuba Basin could contain 4.6 billion barrels of oil and 9.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.^[119]

In 2010^[update], Cubans were allowed to build their own houses. According to Raul Castro, they will be able to improve their houses with this new permission, but the government will not endorse these new houses or improvements.^[120]

On August 2, 2011, The New York Times reported Cuba as reaffirming their intent to legalize "buying and selling" of private property before the year ends. According to experts, the private sale of property could "transform Cuba more than any of the economic reforms announced by President Raúl Castro’s government".^[121] It will cut more than one million state jobs including party bureaucrats which resist the changes.^[122]

Taken from wikipedia