Cuba Food
Cuba (08/04)
Trade: Exports--$1.467 billion (2003 est.): nickel/cobalt, sugar and its byproducts, tobacco, seafood, pharmaceuticals, citrus, tropical fruits, coffee. Major markets--Netherlands $480 million (this figure includes goods shipped to the Netherlands for onward shipment to EU countries); Canada $265 million; Russia $185 million; Venezuela $150 million (est.); Spain $125 million. Imports--$4.531 billion: petroleum, food, machinery, chemicals. Major supplier ... [Read More]
Zenith and Eclipse: A Comparative Look at Socio-Economic Conditions in Pre-Castro and Present Day Cuba
TABLE 2 LATIN AMERICAN LITERACY RATES [Read More]
Cuba
Information on vaccinations and other health precautions, such as safe food and water precautions and insect bite protection, may be obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's hotline for international travelers at 1-877-FYI-TRIP (1-877-394-8747); fax 1-888-CDC-FAXX (1-888-232-3299), or via the CDC's Internet site at http://www.cdc.gov/travel . For information about outbreaks of infectious diseases abroad consult the World Health Organization's (WHO) website at http://www.who.int/en . Further health information for travelers is available at http://www.who.int/ith . ... [Read More]
Cuba: Comparative Socio-Economic Conditions
Rationing has been a staple of Cuban life since the early 1960's. During the early1990's, Cuba's food consumption deteriorated sharply, when massive amounts of Soviet aidwere withdrawn. On its own without Soviet largesse and abundant food imports, Cubanagriculture was paralyzed by a scarcity of inputs and poor production incentives resultingfrom collectivism and the lack of appropriate price signals. In pre-Castro Cuba, bycontrast, food supplies were abundant. The 1960 UN Statistical yearbook rankedpre-Revolutionary Cuba third out of 11 Latin American countries in per capita dailycaloric consumption. This was in spite of the fact that the latest available foodconsumption data for Cuba at the time was from 1948-49, almost a decade before the otherLatin American countries' data being used in the comparison. Looking at the same group of11 countries today, Cuba ranks last in per capita daily caloric consumption, according tothe most recent data available from the UN FAO. Indeed, the data s ... [Read More]
U.S.- Cuba Relations
Support for the Cuban people is the central theme of our policy. New measures will increase this support without strengthening the government. These measures (broadening remittances, expanding people-to-people contacts, increasing direct flights, authorizing food sales to independent entities, and establishing direct mail service) respond to Pope John Paul II’s call to open up to Cuba. ... The 1990s witnessed another migration crisis that set back U.S.-Cuban relations. When demonstrations fueled by food shortages and prolonged unannounced blackouts erupted in Havana in August 1994, the Cuban Government responded by allowing some 30,000 Cubans to set sail for the United States, many in unsafe boats and rafts, which resulted in a number of deaths at sea. The two countries in September 1994 and May 1995 signed migration accords with the goal of cooperating to ensure safe, legal, and orderly migration. ... [Read More]
Humanitarian Assistance to Cuba
The Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 encourages the donation of humanitarian goods to the people of Cuba, including medicine, food, and clothing. Since 1992, the U.S. has been the largest donor of humanitarian assistance to Cuba. Between 1999 and 2000, the U.S. Government authorized $873.4 million (licensed value) in humanitarian donations and $107.2 million in medicines or medical equipment. Humanitarian assistance has been distributed throughout the island, including to medical clinics and hospitals. This does not include the millions in dollars in medicines and other items sent or carried to Cuba in gift parcels to individuals and families from their friends and relatives living in the United States. ... [Read More]
United States Rejects U.N. Resolution on Cuba Embargo - US Department of State
Explaining his vote against the resolution, Garza said arguments that the United States is denying Cuba access to food and water are baseless. ... Arguments that the United States is denying Cuba access to food and medicine are baseless. Since 1992, the United States has licensed over $1.1 billion dollars in the sales and donations of medicine and medical equipment - 80 percent in the form of donations. Moreover, since 2001, the U.S. government has licensed the export of over $5 billion worth of agricultural commodities. In that same period, over $700 million in agricultural commodities have actually been exported to Cuba. Let us remember that the United States is the single largest source of humanitarian assistance to Cuba. Remittances from U.S. persons to Cuba have been estimated at close to $1 billion annually. It is also manifestly true that Cuba can and does buy everything it needs - an estimated $4.3 billion in imports annually - from nations other than the United States. ... [Read More]
Cuba
The minimum wage varies by occupation and is set by the CETSS. For example, the minimum monthly wage for a maid is $8.25 (165 pesos); for a bilingual office clerk, $9.50 (190 pesos); and for a gardener $10.75 (216 pesos). The Government supplements the minimum wage with free education and subsidized medical care (but reduces daily pay by 40 percent after the third day of being admitted to a hospital), housing, and some food (this subsidized food is enough for about 1 week per month). However, even with these subsidies, the minimum wage does not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Corruption and black market activities are pervasive. The Government rations most basic necessities such as food, medicine, clothing, and cooking gas, which are in very short supply. ... [Read More]
CHRONOLOGY OF CUBAN AFFAIRS 1958-1998
15 Oct 1992 -- Congress passes the Cuban Democracy Act, which prohibits foreign-basedsubsidiaries of U.S. companies from trading with Cuba, travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens,and family remittances to Cuba. The law allows private groups to deliver food and medicineto Cuba. ... 19 Oct 1960 -- U.S. imposes economic embargo on Cuba, except food and medicine. ... [Read More]
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