A leader of the Young Communists Union (UJC) in Guantánamo was presented by Cuban state television as an example of food production, although she herself admitted that she can only tend to her agricultural plot during the weekends and in the few free moments left by her political duties.
Kenia Durand Soria, a member of the provincial bureau of the UJC, was featured in a report by Canal Caribe issued on the occasion of the 66th anniversary of the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC), celebrated on August 23rd.
The space portrays her as a "young empowered woman" and highlights her work on a family plot located in the community of Los Cahuiranes, in the municipality of Manuel Tames.
"I am a political leader and a member of the bureau responsible for managing education, health, and sports for youth at the provincial level. However, I alternate my work on weekends, and during the little free time I have, I spend my afternoons tending to the plot of land we have here," explained Durand Soria in front of the cameras.
In the family plot, as the report showed, they cultivate bananas, papayas, avocados, coconuts, cassava, sugarcane, vegetables, medicinal and aromatic plants, among other products.
The piece from Canal Caribe, written by journalist Mejías Osorio, showcases the experience as an example of effort and self-sufficiency and concludes with a quote from Fidel Castro: "Women are a revolution within the revolution."
The history, however, emerges amid a deep crisis of access to food in Cuba, particularly severe in the eastern provinces.
Guantánamo ranks among the five Cuban provinces with critical levels of food insecurity, according to a report by independent organizations released in April 2026.
The investment in small plots and available land has also become a recurring message from the authorities in response to the scarcity.
On August 21, Miguel Díaz-Canel urged to "plant in every empty space" during a tour of the Playa municipality in Havana.
Days earlier, Salvador Valdés Mesa and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz had once again called for an increase in food production during a visit to Boyeros.
In Guantánamo, authorities are also promoting small-scale agriculture initiatives such as "From the Neighborhood, Grow Your Piece," launched in July in the Niceto Pérez municipality.
The report on Durand Soria thus aligns with the official discourse that promotes self-sufficiency and the utilization of any available land as a response to the food shortages faced daily by Cuban families.
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