The Telecommunications Company of Cuba S.A. (ETECSA), the only telecommunications service provider on the island, has been at the center of controversy following the recent
The president of the company, Tania Velázquez Rodríguez, appeared on state television the following day to justify the increase, .
However, the question that many Cubans are asking is: what has ETECSA done with the millions in dollars earned over the years from the export of telecommunications services?
The doubts and suspicions of the public stem from the absolute opacity with which ETECSA operates, a characteristic it shares with the other institutions of the Cuban state.
The company, being a government-controlled monopoly, does not provide public accountability nor presents detailed reports on its financial management, investments, or budget priorities.
This lack of transparency fuels public distrust and leaves room for speculation about the true destination of foreign currency revenues, especially in a context of acute state disinvestment, deteriorating services, unaffordable prices for the majority, and poor connectivity that does not match the resources collected over the years.
Million-dollar revenues and minimal expenses
Between 2005 and 2019, Cuba generated more than 21 billion dollars from communication, computing, and information services, according to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) cited by elTOQUE based on research from YucaByte. This represents an average of 1.438 billion dollars per year.
However, during that same period, the Cuban government spent only 1.975 billion dollars on communication equipment, which is less than 10% of the revenue generated.
On his part, as noted by the economist Pedro Monreal, the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI) reported that in 2020, 807 million dollars were generated from telecommunications service exports. Since then, revenues have dropped dramatically: 159 million in 2021, 128 million in 2022, and 112 million in 2023.
This 86% drop in exports has severely impacted ETECSA's investment capacity. The company has publicly acknowledged that it no longer has foreign currency to maintain the pace of technological investments it was able to sustain until 2022.
Investments in infrastructure: Submarine cables and radio bases
ETECSA has mentioned that the foreign currency revenue from recent years has enabled the construction of the current telecommunications network, including two submarine cables, 8 million mobile phones, and over 5,600 radio bases.
The first cable, ALBA-1 was deployed in 2011 and became operational in 2013, with a cost of 70 million dollars, financed 60% by Venezuela and 40% by Cuba, according to Wikipedia.
The second cable, ARIMAO, began its deployment in December 2022 in collaboration with the French company Orange S.A. Although no official figures have been released regarding its total cost, a dossier cited by elTOQUE estimated that the installation on the French island of Martinique cost 1.2 million euros.
Regarding the radio bases, in May 2024, the government-affiliated newspaper Juventud Rebelde established the installation price for one at $100,000. With 5,600 radio bases, the total investment would be approximately $560 million.
Diversion of income to other sectors and covert dollarization
During his appearance, Velázquez Rodríguez admitted that ETECSA does not determine the allocation of a portion of its income, as these typically go to other sectors. However, he did not specify what those sectors are or how the money is spent.
This lack of transparency has generated criticism and suspicion regarding the use of the millions in revenue obtained by the company. Although the company denies that there is a dollarization of services, these measures primarily affect Cubans who do not have access to foreign currency.
The Commercial Vice President of ETECSA, Lidia Esther Hidalgo Rodríguez, confirmed that almost half of the users will be affected by these new measures, which deepens economic inequality and limits connectivity for a large portion of the population.
Despite generating millions in revenue from telecommunications service exports, ETECSA is facing a financial crisis that has impacted service quality and led to the implementation of unpopular measures.
The lack of transparency regarding the allocation of revenues and the prioritization of currency acquisition over the well-being of citizens have generated discontent and raised questions about the management of the state-owned company.
The question remains unanswered: what did ETECSA do with its millions in dollar revenue?
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