Population census in Cuba postponed until 2025 due to the crisis in the country.

The Cuban Government postponed the population census until 2025, arguing that the current economic situation does not allow for the task to be carried out at this time.

This population census in Cuba was scheduled to be carried out two years ago, but the lack of resources is serious on the island.

The Deputy Chief of the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI), Juan Carlos Alfonso, acknowledged to the international press the negative impact of the economic situation on his department, but assured that the Cuban State has "very strong records."

The official also confirmed the deterioration of well-being indicators on the island, positioning it at an intermediate level in Latin America.

Furthermore, he justified that the ONEI elaborates statistics that are not published, such as migration estimates and inequality indicators, for political reasons.

Cuba has gone twelve years without conducting a population census, and it would be very useful to know the current data in the country, especially following the recent migration crisis, as it is estimated that more than half a million Cubans have left the island, mainly young people of working age.

"Obviously, all of that has a cost, there is no doubt about it, a cost in the country's reproductive capacity, a cost in the country's productive capacity," acknowledged the leader.

"We are working to make the pre-registration of the census this year 2024 and evaluate the real possibility of carrying it out in 2025, depending on the country's availabilities," Alfonso declared.

The delay of this macro survey affects the availability of data necessary for the development of public policies and other government accounts. However, the official took the opportunity to blame the economic embargo of the United States for the delay.

He added to the list of issues to address in the census, the effects of the pandemic in the country, the sanctions imposed under the mandate of Donald Trump, and the distortions in the Cuban economy since 2020.

In their view, all these factors have led to shortages, inflation, frequent blackouts, and an unprecedented wave of migration.

Juan Carlos Alfonso acknowledged the increase in vulnerability and inequality in the population, as well as the deterioration of the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) designed by the UN.

He also indicated that inequality measured by the Gini Coefficient has increased, suggesting that it currently stands between 0.4 and 0.5, an intermediate figure compared to other countries in Latin America.