Education, an area seriously affected by the blockade. Image: MC

by María Josefina Arce

Children and young people have been incorporated this month to the different levels of education, a human right that Cuba guarantees, even in the midst of the difficult conditions that the country is experiencing today due to a sustained U.S. blockade that affects education with special force.

Cuban students suffer every day from the material limitations imposed by the hostile policy of the United States, which affects the good development of the academic year.

From March 2023 to February of this year, the inhumane siege continued to hinder access to international credits for the acquisition of raw materials and other resources necessary for the production of educational supplies.

Thus, more than 4 million pencils, more than 40 thousand units of glue and 279 thousand 924 sets of plasticine of 190 grams were not produced.

The updated report on the damage caused, presented in Havana last week by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, states that only 44 hours of blockade is equivalent to the financing needed to guarantee computers in the nation's educational centers.

Education in the early ages is also seriously affected.  Kindergartens lack of toys and teaching aids necessary for children's learning.

The genocidal nature of the blockade is strongly manifested in special education. The country faces multiple restrictions in the purchase of the necessary equipment to facilitate the life and education of children and adolescents with special needs.

The search for alternatives to make up for material shortages and the love and effort of educators have made it possible to continue this type of education, which prepares this segment of the population for integration into society.

The unilateral measure, which has been widely condemned throughout the world, also hinders academic exchanges and makes it impossible for Cuban professors and specialists to participate in numerous virtual events.

For more than six decades, Cuba has been subjected to a criminal blockade that has hindered its development. But the will and efforts of the authorities have made it possible for every child and young person to receive the education they need.