Raul Castro Calls for More Discipline, Efficiency

At the expanded Council of Ministers meeting held in Havana, Cuban President Raul Castro called for continuing to work with discipline and efficiency to achieve sustainable development, according to reports published by national press today.

“We must be systematic in confronting problems and controlling them before they arise, when they first begin to be noticed so they do not proliferate with impunity before our eyes,” the statesman said.

Held on Friday, March 15, and presided over by Raul Castro, the meeting discussed several issues of vital importance for improved economic development, such as institutional organization, recovery and development of the railway system, and the 2013 economic plan, Granma newspaper reported.

Leonardo Andollo, deputy chief of the Standing Commission for Implementation and Development, outlined the main results from a study on the structural organization of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in consonance with the effort to improve the agencies within the State’s Central Administration.

According to Andollo, the proposed changes contribute to a more precise definition of the functions of this body and facilitate their compliance, causing greater integration and coordination of activities within that entity.

Minister of Industry Salvador Pardo Cruz, referred to the defined policy for the development of packaging industries, a sector whose domestic production covers only 36 percent of demand, obliging the rest to be imported.

Another issue analyzed during the Council of Ministers meeting was the recovery and development of the railway system, in which Raul Castro stated that despite some progress, there are still plenty of problems to overcome due to lack of demanding oversight.

Transport Minister Cesar Arocha Macid said that railway cargo transportation exceeded plans by 4 percent and passenger transport reached 97 percent of the plan, with around 352.6 kilometers of railroad track having been repaired, representing 104 percent of the scheduled plan.

Since the creation of the Import Distribution Chain, costs due to delays in the operation of ships and containers have decreased significantly, from more than 37 million in 2005 to just over one million in 2012.

As for changes in the Economic Plan for 2013, Minister Adel Izquierdo emphasized that these are being undertaken with the premise of attending to the investments that have guaranteed technical preparation, certified reconciliation from builders, guaranteed financing and the real possibility of receiving imports within the year.