In the midst of the food crisis facing Cuba, authorities and official media once again emphasized the role of women in agricultural work and called for expanding their participation in food production, as if that were the solution to a crisis that has been affecting the population for decades.
During activities related to the spring planting campaign in the municipality of Contramaestre, in Santiago de Cuba, the role of women was highlighted in the production center Máquina 12 of the agricultural company Laguna Blanca, where several female workers are involved in planting crops intended for local consumption.
According to statements gathered in the report, some of the participants mentioned that this is “a very important task at this time” and encouraged other women to join the agricultural work to help contribute to food production for the population.
The interventions also highlighted that the planting takes place on the eve of International Women's Day, a date when several women workers in the agricultural sector and producers who are involved in preparing the land for the current campaign were recognized.
Local authorities stated that, despite the difficulties, producers continue to work to extract "from Mother Earth the needed fruit," referring to efforts to increase production amid the food scarcity affecting the country.
According to data mentioned in the report, in February, the province of Santiago de Cuba prepared approximately 7,400 hectares of land, mostly using oxen yokes and a smaller proportion with machinery, as part of efforts to boost agricultural production in the region.
The fuel crisis in Cuba is already having a strong impact on the agricultural sector, and its effects are severe, as recently warned by René Orellana, the regional representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
In an interview with the agency EFE, the head of the FAO for Latin America and the Caribbean stated that the shortage of fuel is limiting the use of agricultural machinery, which jeopardizes the harvesting of various crops in different regions of the country.
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