A Reuters report attributed to “business sources” in Cuba says that the Ministry of Sugar is to be dissolved and replaced by a state enterprise, one that will reportedly seek partnerships with foreign investors to boost productivity.
If this pans out, it would be the first major move on the part of the Raul Castro government to fulfill its aim of increasing foreign investment in Cuba – apart from ventures with Venezuela.
And it would also make economic sense for Cuba. As I noted last week, the price of sugar is about four times higher than in 2002 when the Cuban industry was downsized. My 2003 report on the downsizing is here (pdf).
Reuters also published a timeline of major events in Cuba’s sugar industry.
2 comments:
Two thoughts...
1- The Reuters timeline understated the significance of the failure of the 10 million ton harvest in 1970. It was a major turning point in the Cuban economy under Castro.
2- The state of the Cuban sugar industry right now is a telling statement on the ECONOMIC failure of the revolution. There was a historical tie to sugar in Cuba and that has now been completely broken.
agreed
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