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The Cuban government announced a series of reforms that represent one of the most significant economic shifts in recent decades by significantly expanding the operational scope of the private sector, a space that had been subjected to strict ideological, regulatory, and administrative limitations for many years.
The measures, presented by Prime Minister Manuel Marrero before the National Assembly of People's Power, include the authorization of private enterprises with more than 100 employees, the possibility for an individual to own multiple businesses, the creation of joint-stock companies, shareholder participation in various ventures, and the opening of activities that were previously prohibited for non-state economic actors.
The announcements represent an implicit acknowledgment of the failure of the economic strategy that for decades relied on the supremacy of the socialist state enterprise and viewed any form of private capital accumulation with suspicion.
Among the most significant decisions is the approval of non-agricultural micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises and cooperatives, whose applications had been stalled on the Economic Actors Platform.
The measure comes after more than a year of stagnation in approvals and following numerous complaints from entrepreneurs about the discretion and opacity of the approval processes.
According to official data, the number of authorized mipymes had remained practically frozen at around 11,300 since 2025, in a context where numerous projects remained unanswered while the economy continued to deteriorate.
The package also includes the reduction of bureaucratic procedures for starting and operating private businesses, one of the main complaints of the emerging business sector.
For years, entrepreneurs have reported the existence of administrative obstacles that made it difficult to establish a business as well as to obtain licenses, permits, and imports.
One of the most significant changes is the authorization of private companies with more than 100 employees. Until now, Cuban small and medium-sized enterprises (mipymes) faced limitations that hindered the expansion of larger-scale businesses. Starting from this figure, they will be officially recognized as private companies, a concept that the official discourse avoided for decades due to its perceived incompatibility with socialist principles.
Furthermore, the Government will allow an individual to be the owner of more than one private company and hold shares in multiple corporations.
New forms of companies will also be authorized, including stock corporations, a common tool in market economies but historically absent from the Cuban business framework.
The reform represents a break from years of restrictions specifically designed to prevent the concentration of capital and limit the growth of independent businesses outside of the State.
Another significant development is the granting of usufruct and surface rights to private companies and cooperatives to undertake productive investments.
Until now, the difficulties in legally accessing land and properties have been one of the main barriers to expanding productive capacities.
The regime also announced that it will allow non-state economic actors to deposit cash in foreign currency into bank accounts in the same currency, as long as they declare the legal source of the funds.
The measure represents a significant relaxation in a country where financial and exchange restrictions have been a constant for years.
In parallel, the authorities will reduce the list of prohibited activities for the private sector and will allow non-state management forms to develop new activities without abandoning their primary social purpose.
Perhaps one of the most symbolic changes is the opening of the agricultural sector to private enterprises. For decades, Cuban agriculture has been characterized by state controls, restrictions on private ownership, and production models that have contributed to the collapse of national food production.
The decision implies acknowledging, even if partially, that the current system has not succeeded in guaranteeing the supply for the population.
The government also announced the creation of supply markets that will involve state, private, and foreign participation, as well as a National Platform for Productive Linkages that will require state-owned companies to publish their purchasing and subcontracting needs.
These measures come amid an economic crisis that has led the regime to adopt proposals that, until a few years ago, were considered unacceptable concessions to capitalism.
Although the authorities insist that the reforms aim to preserve socialism, the extent of the changes clearly demonstrates how much the economic reality has forced the Government to abandon old dogmas and accept market mechanisms that it fought against for decades.
For many analysts, the issue lies not only in the slow pace at which these reforms are implemented but also in the fact that many of them address obstacles created by the state itself.
The authorization of larger private companies, the expansion of corporate forms, and the opening of the agricultural sector are measures that could have been adopted years ago when the economy still had greater leeway.
Now, with a cumulative GDP decline of nearly 26% since 2020, persistent inflation, significant emigration, and a widespread deterioration of living conditions, the regime is compelled to relax an economic model whose limitations have become increasingly apparent due to the crisis.
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