The small and medium-sized enterprise Almaley S.R.L. has formally begun the contracting process to collect and manage solid waste in the Historic Center of Camagüey, due to the difficulties faced by state communal services, local official sources confirmed this Friday.
The private company, specialized in sanitization, will offer its services to state-owned enterprises, budgeted units, other small and medium-sized enterprises, self-employed workers, and residents of the heritage area.
The broadcaster Radio Cadena Agramonte acknowledged that the "acute fuel shortage" is limiting the operation of collection trucks, while the accumulation of rubble and household waste due to "social indiscipline" further complicates the situation.
Almaley had been collaborating since the beginning of the year with Comunales Services and the Office of the Historian on cleaning days in the popular councils of Centro, San Juan de Dios, and América Latina, working on streets such as San Esteban, Verges, and Jesús María.
The company is now seeking to expand that collaboration through a contracted service and is preparing the recovery of three collection trucks destined for prioritized areas. It also plans to install roll-off containers at strategic points to facilitate waste disposal.
The new scheme includes differentiated services for the state and public sector, for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (mipymes) and self-employed workers, as well as for individuals, the source specified.
The initiative is supported by Law 150/2022 of the Natural Resources and Environment System, Decree-Law 88/2024 on incentives for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, and recent provisions from the Official Gazette that update the procurement procedures between state entities and non-state actors.
The case of Almaley is part of a trend that is repeating across the island, as the state is unable to ensure garbage collection, leading private companies to take over the service for a fee. An example is the case of the mipyme Belmary, which started charging 100 pesos monthly per household in the Isle of Youth.
At the beginning of September, a viral video showed a huge garbage dump in front of a bodega in the heart of Camagüey. Days earlier, a resident reported that Camujiro Street had not been serviced for two months, with waste occupying the entire roadway.
At the same time, in April, the authorities in Agramonte recognized a notable increase in cases of hepatitis A in the municipal capital, while the Ministry of Public Health warned about the risk of a nationwide dengue epidemic.
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