Cuba Council of Ministers Holds Last Meeting of the Year

The last meeting of the Council of Ministers of the year 2019 was held Tuesday at the Palace of the Revolution, headed by Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, president of the Republic of Cuba, and led by Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz.

The encounter discussed significant economic and social issues that impact on the national reality and from which strategic lines for the performance of the Government in 2020 are defined.

Granma newspaper reported that In the closing remarks of the meeting, President Díaz-Canel listed four main priorities. They are: the ideological battle, in the light of the current colonizing platform and the attempts of the U.S. government to discredit the Revolution; the defense of the country; the intense legislative exercise underway to support the Constitution of the Republic; and the economic battle.

Referring to the island’s economic situation, he said that 2020 must be the year in which everything that needs to be implemented to unleash the productive forces is proposed. He noted that in no way should this effort be confused with privatization.

Therefore, he insisted on a detailed analysis of what to unlock from the state and what needs to be opened from the private sector for the Cuban economy to be more harmonious and dynamic.

Next year —he stressed— we are going to continue working to make room for all the forms of management and ownership endorsed in the Conceptualization of the Cuban Economic and Social Model and also in the Magna Carta.

“We are going to remove obstacles to enhance the state-owned enterprise and make the business redesign that the country needs,” he stressed.

After an extensive evaluation of the current scenario in Cuba, Díaz-Canel provided some guidelines for the performance of the Government in 2020.

Among them, he highlighted the fight for efficiency; the improvement of the work of the Government in all its levels; the quality of penal processes; the updating and modernization of the financial banking system and the strengthening of foreign investment.

He emphasized that it is necessary to continue working tirelessly to ensure the quality of services in tourism; to break the chains of non-payment in domestic trade; to achieve higher production of food and medicines, and to replace imports.

Likewise, he mentioned the importance of advancing in the computerization of society and compliance with the National Housing Policy; to stimulate the production of green energy, as well as to continue confronting corruption and illegalities.

The President of the Republic called upon the Council of Ministers to start next year with the good rhythm that the country needs.   “We must create conditions to start January well, by finishing houses, exporting, supporting the economy,” he stressed.