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The Cuban government announced that the implementation of the 176 proposed economic and social transformations will require one of the largest regulatory reforms in recent decades, involving the modification of more than 148 legal provisions, the repeal of existing regulations, and the approval of 32 new regulations of higher status, including laws, legislative decrees, and decrees.
The magnitude of the changes was presented by Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz during the Third Extraordinary Session of the National Assembly of People's Power (ANPP), where he explained that the implementation process will require a deep adjustment of the legal framework to make the economic, financial, labor, business, and administrative transformations outlined in the government program feasible.
As part of the measures, the Government proposes to reform the National Statistical System to adapt it to the new economic conditions of the country.
Among the planned actions is the design of a statistical system adapted to economic and social transformations, the completion of the base year change for the National Accounts, and the recovery of indicators that had ceased to be produced, such as the producer price index and the foreign trade index, while also maintaining the consumer price index.
At the same time, the Executive proposes a comprehensive review of control and inspection mechanisms through the creation of a working group led by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC).
This body will be comprised of representatives from the National Assembly, the Attorney General's Office, the General Comptroller's Office, the Supreme People's Court, the Council of Ministers, the Ministry of the Interior, and the Ministry of Justice, among other institutions. Its mission will be to analyze the current system of state control and formulate new proposals for transformation.
According to the document presented to Parliament, a preliminary evaluation determined that the implementation of the reforms will directly impact more than 148 regulations of the Cuban legal framework.
Of these, 15 will need to be completely repealed, 22 will require total modifications and 79 will undergo partial changes.
Additionally, it will be necessary to update more than 50 supplementary provisions of lower rank, mainly administrative resolutions.
The legislative process also includes the development of 32 new higher-ranking regulations. Among them are 10 laws, 14 decree-laws, and eight decrees, which will serve as the legal basis for the implementation of the approved transformations.
Marrero Cruz explained that the economic and social transformations align with the Government Program for 2026.
According to what was specified, 76% of the measures fully align with this program, while the remainder expands its scope through reforms related to the opening up to private and foreign capital, the banking modernization, currency and tax transformations, territorial decentralization, and the resizing of state administration.
The Prime Minister acknowledged that the implementation of the reforms will face significant challenges, including defining an appropriate timeline, strengthening institutional capabilities, ensuring social protection for vulnerable sectors, legal legitimization of the changes, and promoting citizen participation throughout the process.
It also warned about potential contradictions arising from the partial dollarization of the economy, the elimination of subsidies, and the decentralization of responsibilities to the municipalities.
According to Marrero Cruz, the implementation of the measures will be flexible and subject to constant reviews, corrections, and adjustments as the process progresses.
The Government plans to develop specific mechanisms to solidify each transformation and define its legal and institutional scopes.
At the close of the parliamentary debate, the head of Government announced that the proposals presented represent only the general framework for the transformations and that the next phase will focus on designing the specific mechanisms for their implementation.
He also noted that the management of the process will rest directly with the Government, while the National Assembly will take on the legal support of the reforms, and the Communist Party will ensure their political backing.
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