Díaz-Canel: It's time to look for ways out, innovate and break the circle

HAVANA, Cuba, Dec 14 (ACN) Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel, in his speech to the Parliament this Wednesday, said that the complex economic situation the country is facing won’t be solved by acknowledging the causes, but by finding ways out, innovate and break the circle.

Closing the 10th Ordinary Session of the National Assembly of People's Power (ANPP) in its 9th Legislature at the Havana Convention Palace, the president gave an account of his administration before the supreme body of the State, and referred to the adverse scenario in which he has carried out his responsibilities, which does not mean justification or complaint.

I feel an enormous dissatisfaction for not having been able to achieve, from the leadership, the results that the Cuban people need to reach the longed and expected prosperity, but I believe in the collective leadership and I have acted and will act as dictated in the VIII Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba (2021), he told the deputies.

He acknowledged that in recent years there have been significant macroeconomic imbalances as a result of the loss of foreign currency income, high fiscal deficits, the increase in the income of natural persons without productive backing, the partial dollarization of the economy and the productive response to generate supply of goods and services.

These imbalances are mainly reflected in the levels of inflation, shortages of supplies and convertibility of the national currency, phenomena that have produced a substantial deterioration of the purchasing power of the income of workers and pensioners, and of the living conditions of the population, said Díaz-Canel.

The improvement in the welfare of the people requires the reactivation of the national productive capacities and the attraction of foreign currency to guarantee a gradual but sustained increase in the supply of goods and services, which will not be possible without the correction within certain limits of the macroeconomic imbalances mentioned above.

He added that it is necessary to continue implementing measures to ensure that the state-owned company fulfills its corresponding role, while other tasks such as attention to the vulnerable, subsidies to people and not to products, are part of the necessary improvement of society.

It is also essential to achieve the exports projected in the plan to be able to support the minimum imports required by the economy, in order to reach the planned production levels, which are the fundamental source of the growth of retail trade circulation, he said.

He stressed that in every visit to the territories and meetings with sectors of society, the people must be listened to and acted upon.

For the Cuban President, popular participation is essential and without it, socialism is not possible, which is why greater levels of participation have been encouraged in the policy-making processes in recent years.

I refuse to accept the demonization of socialism, particularly on the issue of human rights, because socialism by essence is aimed at achieving the greatest possible social justice, he said.

In spite of the problems, he said, lessons are learned, growth is achieved and experiences are gained to overcome the difficult moments with decision, with the necessary equanimity for each step and each action.

He considered that the strength and confidence of victory is also multiplied, we have a huge history pushing these steps and a heroic people giving and demanding peace.

The year 2023 must be better, but achieving it demands not only a comprehensive plan, but also the elimination of bureaucracy, the removal of obstacles and overcoming complacency.

If we have learned the hardest lessons of 2022, we can prepare ourselves to face the year we are about to begin in better conditions, he concluded.