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The authorities in Camagüey have begun distributing five pounds of rice per consumer, sourced from China, free of charge. This has been described by the official press as a gesture of solidarity embracing the homes of Agramontinos.
The distribution, managed by the Wholesaler Food Company and coordinated by the Business Group of Commerce of Camagüey, is progressing steadily throughout all the municipalities of the province.
At the end of the report, deliveries were already being made in Nuevitas, Minas, Esmeralda, Vertientes, and the provincial capital.
In the city of Camagüey, the distribution covers Zone No. 1 of the Victoria de Girón (Lenin) neighborhood, Zone 2 in Puerto Príncipe, and Zone 12 in La Belén.
A total of around 1,600 tons of rice that recently arrived from China will be distributed, and delivery will continue to the other territories as the product is received.
Rice is part of an emergency assistance package approved by Chinese President Xi Jinping in January 2026, which includes 60,000 tons of rice and 80 million dollars in financial assistance for Cuba.
The first shipments began to arrive in March: 15,600 tons arrived at the port of Havana on the 26th of that month aboard the ship Loyalty Hong, and another 15,000 tons departed from Shanghai on March 27.
In Mayabeque, a similar distribution distributed four pounds of Chinese rice per person starting from April 4.
The director of the Wholesale Food Company of Camagüey, Odalys Rodríguez Haty, also reported on the status of other products in the regulated basket.
Regarding sugar, it was noted that delivery has been completed in seven territories, and it is still pending in Guáimaro, Sibanicú, Santa Cruz del Sur, Vertientes, and the completion in the provincial capital and Jimaguayú.
The marketing of sugar is at one pound per capita per consumer for the current month, with partial deliveries in Nuevitas and Vertientes, and completed in Florida and Céspedes.
Rodríguez Haty also detailed that he is currently in the process of receiving an allocation at the Port of Santiago de Cuba to initially ensure 30 ounces per consumer, in addition to the delivery of 10 ounces from Cienfuegos by coastal shipping for a total of 40 ounces to be delivered in April.
The distribution of free rice comes amid a severe food crisis that has prompted the regime to announce structural changes to the subsidized family basket: starting in April 2026, the subsidy will no longer be universal and will be focused on individuals deemed vulnerable.
Cuba has experienced a 15% economic contraction over the past five years, facing chronic food shortages, widespread blackouts, and general scarcity, a direct result of 67 years of communist dictatorship.
Opacity in the management of donations also generates distrust: the NGO Food Monitor Program reported last Monday that humanitarian donations sent from Mexico ended up for sale in state-run stores using freely convertible currency, an accusation that the Cuban government denied.
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