A second shipment of humanitarian aid from the United States government arrived this Wednesday at the Ignacio Agramonte International Airport in Camagüey, bound for the Diocese of Ciego de Ávila, according to Cáritas Cuba on their official site.
The shipment includes 704 food kits and 705 hygiene product kits, intended for families in situations of special vulnerability in two areas of the province: the parish of Gaspar, in the municipality of Baraguá, and the pastoral zone of Majagua.
The reception of the shipment was handled by Roberto Armas Carbonell, diocesan director of Cáritas Ciego de Ávila, and Reverend Randol Pineda Muñoz, chancellor of the diocese of Ciego de Ávila.
The distribution will be handled by Cáritas staff, community volunteers, and the diocesan team, with special attention given to those who, due to health or mobility conditions, are unable to travel to the designated delivery points.
The selection criteria prioritize individuals over 60 years of age, people with disabilities or bedridden, pregnant women or those in the postpartum period, and children under five years old.
This is the second shipment for the Diocese of Ciego de Ávila. The first arrived on October 6 at Abel Santamaría Airport in Santa Clara, with 700 food modules and an equal number of hygiene items, also initially destined for the parish of Gaspar.
Both shipments are part of the 100 million dollars in humanitarian aid for Cuba announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in May 2026, after meeting with Pope Leo XIV in Rome. Of that amount, 60 million is funneled through Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and the Caritas Cuba network, and 40 million through other independent humanitarian organizations.
A central condition of the program is that assistance reaches families directly, without going through the Cuban government or the military conglomerate GAESA. CRS purchases the supplies in the United States, and Cáritas distributes them on the island.
On a national scale, the program has expanded to multiple provinces. This Tuesday, Varadero Airport received the third flight of aid for the Diocese of Matanzas, completing the delivery to 2,100 families from the Vicariate of Our Lady of Charity. On Monday, Cáritas Camagüey distributed its second shipment among families in Santa Cruz del Sur.
CRS estimates that the program could benefit nearly 200,000 households, which is equivalent to over 500,000 people throughout Cuba.
Cáritas Cuba acknowledged in its statement that "the existing needs exceed the coverage possibilities of the donation," but emphasized that the initiative "provides support for the beneficiary households and highlights the value of cooperation and solidarity commitment."
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