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China has resumed shipping rice to Cuba amid the supply crisis affecting the island, this time with a new shipment of 15,000 tons that departed from the port of Shanghai as part of a 60,000-ton emergency aid program approved by Beijing.
The announcement was made by the Chinese ambassador to Cuba, Hua Xin, who specified on X that the cargo departure occurred this Thursday afternoon, Beijing time.
In another message, Hua Xin reported that on the morning of March 26, the third shipment of 15,600 tons from China's emergency aid project to Cuba arrived at the port of Havana.
In total, there are two separate operations: one aid of 30,000 tons and another of 60,000 tons, which together would amount to 90,000 tons of rice committed by the Chinese government.
The arrival of the third shipment of 15,600 tons at the Havana port was presented as part of the fulfillment of the major donation announced in January.
That shipment was transported by the vessel Loyalty Hong and completed a key part of the food assistance pledged by Beijing.
The arrival comes against a backdrop of significant shortages of basic products in Cuba, where rice, an essential staple in the national diet, has become increasingly difficult to obtain or is being sold at prices that are unattainable for a large portion of the population.
The initial donation of 30,000 tons had been announced in January as part of the cooperation agreements between the two countries.
From the official narrative, that aid was presented as a demonstration of political and economic support from China to Cuba.
The recurrence of these shipments also reflects the increasing dependence of the island on external donations to sustain the consumption of basic food items.
The additional shipment of up to 60,000 tons is part of an assistance package approved by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The Cuban Embassy in China emphasized that the initial shipment "sets sail for Cuba" as a demonstration of "solidarity" and highlighted that "Cuba is not alone."
In the midst of the food crisis
Havana increasingly needs external support to address the internal food crisis.
Cuba allocates around 2 billion dollars annually for food imports, including basic basket products, amid a prolonged economic crisis, high inflation, and frequent blackouts.
This is compounded by the decline in national rice production and the general deterioration of agriculture, factors that have further weakened the country’s food security.
Chinese aid adds to other recent shipments of rice received by the island. At the end of December, South Korea donated 24,600 tons channeled through the UN World Food Programme, primarily aimed at vulnerable populations in the eastern part of the country.
In both cases, the shipments were officially presented as gestures of international solidarity.
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