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The Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz announced this Monday that 12 new municipalities have been added to the group of territories authorized to approve private micro, small, and medium enterprises (mipymes) and Non-Agricultural Cooperatives (CNA), bringing the total to 77 out of the 168 municipalities that exist in Cuba.
"Continues the decentralization of competencies, aimed at strengthening autonomy and territorial management. Under this principle, 12 municipalities have been incorporated with the authority to approve private SMEs and CNA, bringing the total to 77," wrote Marrero Cruz on the social network X.
In March, the Prime Minister to more regions of the country, as part of a decentralization policy that the Cuban government has presented as one of its economic priorities.
By the end of 2025, only 65 municipalities had that authority, which demonstrates a gradual progress in the expansion of local powers for the approval of non-state management models.
The announcement comes days after the Decree-Law 114 went into effect on April 2, which regulates the partnerships between state and private companies in Cuba. However, the legislation explicitly prohibits partnerships in sectors such as health, education, and defense, among others.
Economists and analysts have expressed reservations about these measures. A critical voice pointed out that no micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise should celebrate Decree-Law 114, warning that the real conditions of the Cuban business environment limit the practical scope of these reforms.
Another analysis criticized the framework of centralization and bureaucracy maintained by the regulation, emphasizing that, despite formal advancements in decentralization, state control over the Cuban economy remains structurally intact.
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