A Cuban residing in Guyana and identified on TikTok as "La china Filiu" posted a 27-second video last Thursday in which she recommends that country as a migration destination for her fellow countrymen, describing living conditions that contrast sharply with the reality of the Island.
"If you're going to leave Cuba, I recommend Guyana, a country where more Spanish is spoken than English, where you can get a house just for yourself for $200, and I’m not talking about a shared room," the woman states in the clip.
The author emphasizes that food is inexpensive, that the local Cuban community is supportive, and that the cost of sending remittances to Cuba is affordable from that country.
"Currently, food is very cheap, and as soon as you land, you can find a job the same day," she points out, adding that "your fellow countrymen will be very welcoming and will extend a helping hand without expecting any benefit in return."
He concludes his message with a phrase that summarizes the appeal Guyana holds for many Cuban migrants: “It is the only country where Cubans currently face neither gossip nor struggle, and life is not chaotic.”
The testimony arrives at the height of the economic boom in Guyana, driven by the discovery and exploitation of deepwater oil since 2019. The country is projected to have an economic growth of up to 16.3% in 2026, the highest in Latin America, in an economy that, with just 955,000 inhabitants, cannot meet its own labor demand.
That gap has turned Guyana into a magnet for Cuban migrants. According to Bloomberg data, in 2024, legal status was granted to 135,000 Cubans in the country, compared to just 800 in 2020, an exponential jump that reflects the magnitude of this migration wave.
Cubans primarily work in construction, welding, masonry, hospitality, and services, with salaries ranging from 5,500 to 15,000 Guyanese dollars daily depending on the trade. The resident community is estimated to be between 5,000 and 7,000 people, although the actual figure may be higher.
Not everything is easy for those who arrive. In recent weeks, seven Cuban immigrants were detained crossing from Guyana into Brazil, and in April, a Cuban was fined and deported after admitting to illegal entry into the country.
Guyana simultaneously serves as a final destination and a transit point to Brazil, a route that entails considerable risks. However, the video "La china Filiu" points to a different narrative: that of Cubans who choose to stay, rather than just passing through.
The clip accumulated over 328,000 views and nearly 10,000 "likes," highlighting the interest it generates among Cubans seeking options for emigration in the face of the structural crisis caused by more than six decades of communist dictatorship on the Island.
The boom in construction in Guyana, which allocated US$3.7 billion to infrastructure in 2025 compared to just US$184 million in 2019, continues to attract thousands of Cuban migrants who see in that country an immediate job opportunity that Cuba, mired in collapse, cannot offer them.
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