The president Miguel Díaz-Canel visited the Zone Defense Council (CDZ) of Punta Brava this Friday, in the municipality of La Lisa in the capital, where he emphasized the preparation for defense while issues regarding water, electricity, and the use of agricultural land were discussed.
Fidel Alemán Calderón, president of the CDZ of Punta Brava, reported that there are approximately 16,000 people living in the territory within an area of about 10 square kilometers, as reported by the digital portal of the Presidency.
He also explained the tasks related to defense, the protection of the population, and the completion of more than 20 production and defense brigades, in addition to the Territorial Troops Militias and other forces.
But the exchange also highlighted everyday issues. Alemán referred to the difficulties with water supply and electrical service, as well as matters related to the care of retirees, elderly individuals living alone, pregnant women, women with three or more children, and people in vulnerable situations.
The production of food was another of the highlighted issues. Punta Brava has just over 400 hectares of agricultural land, but only half of it is cultivated.
Díaz-Canel acknowledged the existence of "many vacant lands" and directed to prioritize and expedite the allocation of land to those who request it.
The president of the National Defense Council also urged to maximize the use of land for agriculture and livestock, suggested exploring buffalo farming, and requested the use of the two hectares of water mirrors in the area.
The leader presented these issues as part of the integration between the structures responsible for defense and the management of economic and social problems.
In his opinion, the purpose is for the defense zones to also serve as leadership spaces to address the everyday needs of the population.
However, when referring to military preparation, Díaz-Canel once again focused on the external threat and stated that "amid the constant aggression of the empire," the work carried out in recent months is contributing to greater comprehensiveness.
He also emphasized the update of defense plans and the coordination of revolutionary forces at the local level.
Joined Díaz-Canel during the day's events were Esteban Lazo Hernández, President of the National Assembly, Army Corps General and Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) Álvaro López Miera, as well as Division General Amado Ricardo Guerra, Secretary of the Council of Ministers.
Lazo recalled that Punta Brava was a pioneering area of the Urban Agriculture Program promoted by the then minister of the FAR Raúl Castro, who "came here almost every week to check on the progress of the initiative."
The visit was part of the usual activities for National Defense Day, during a day dedicated to exercises and territorial plans within the so-called Year of Preparation for Defense.
In August, Díaz-Canel visited the CDZ Cubanacán in Playa with the same call to plant in every available space, while the president of that area reported blackouts, lack of water, and accumulation of waste.
In September, he reiterated the message at the CDZ Capdevila-Altahabana, in Boyeros, where also half of the arable land remained untapped.
During the Extraordinary Plenary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, held in June, Díaz-Canel declared food production "a matter of national security" and announced a package of 176 economic and social transformations.
Previously, when meeting with foreign communists in Havana in May, the head of state declared that Cuba should eat not what it imports, but "what we are capable of producing in the country".
Cuba, mired in a deep agricultural crisis, produces only 111,000 tons of rice per year against a demand of 600,000.
It also imports between 70% and 80% of the food it consumes, at a cost of nearly 2 billion dollars annually.
The Economist Intelligence Unit projects a contraction of the Cuban GDP by 7.2% in 2026, the largest among 27 economies in the region, with a cumulative decline of 23% since 2019.
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