By Roberto Morejón

In a war economy, Cuba maintains the priority of the state enterprise, even when its work is affected by shortages of inputs and fuel as well as foreign currency in the public coffers.

It is these shortages, together with others caused by the U.S. blockade, international tensions, macroeconomic imbalances and internal errors, which impacted the management of Cuban state-owned enterprises during 2023.

Considered the bastion of the country's growth and development, these entities were not able to contribute as expected and caused Cuba to end the year with a lower-than-planned increase in the Gross Domestic Product.

However, in the macroeconomic stabilization plan designed by the government to be implemented in 2024, the state-owned industry must play a role in the growth of decisive activities that allow for a two percent increase in the Gross Domestic Product.

For that next calendar, the Caribbean nation will have to work essentially with what is generated internally, since production deficits cannot be covered with imports.

Cuba intends to boost production for export, unfulfilled in 2023 by more than 700 million dollars, hence agriculture and industry must make significant contributions.

In that direction, in the most recent session of parliament, it was explained that Cuba will implement measures to advance in the integral transformation of the socialist state enterprise.

In search of its consolidation as the main actor of the domestic economy, the government will gradually undertake the improvement of the structures and operation of the Superior Organizations of Entrepreneurial Management, known by their acronym OSDE.
 
The Prime Minister, Manuel Marrero, informed about the forthcoming approval of the Enterprise Law, aimed, among other purposes, at classifying the entities according to their particularities, with emphasis on their autonomy.According to that line of intention, the largest of the Antilles will strengthen the creation of micro, small and medium-sized state-owned enterprises, without renouncing to the strengthening of private ones.The nation also intends to better exploit the idle capacities of local industry.
 
Cuba will work in 2024 to provide more security to the operation of state-owned enterprises so that, as the Prime Minister said, their interests are not put at risk.