Cuban PM attends Provincial Government Council meeting in western province

HAVANA, Cuba, Dec 1 (ACN) The volumes of agricultural products that the province of Artemisa exhibits are still insufficient, especially access to meat and milk, said Manuel Marrero Cruz, Prime Minister of the Republic, speaking at the Provincial Government Council of the territory.

On Thursday, after Ricardo Concepcion Rodriguez, governor of Artemisa, gave an account of the province's importance in vital issues for the future of the population and the country, as reported today on the Presidency's website.

As part of the governmental visit to the territory, which concludes Friday, Concepcion Rodriguez updated on his performance since late 2022 until November 2023, focusing on seven recommendations, among them, food production and commercialization, the functioning of the Government Council, the Mother and Child Program and the attention to the population's concerns.

According to the Governor, the agricultural, livestock and harvesting programs are systematically checked.

The report points out that the number of hectares to be planted during the cold season (19,302) increased by more than 3,000 hectares compared to the previous year; however, it still does not satisfy the demand for self-sufficiency in Bauta, Mariel and Guanajay.

Livestock recovery, the completion of livestock modules, the creation of new productive poles, the capture of fish and the sugar industry are not complied with, which affects Artemisa's commitments with its population and that of the capital.

This strategic issue was one of the recommendations of the opinion of the Temporary Committee created before the rendering of account.

Regarding the Mother and Child Program, Yamile Lorenzo Rodriguez, vice-president of the Municipal Assembly of People's Power in Guanajay, highlighted the rising results, since the province has the second lowest infant mortality rate in the country with 4.1 % for every thousand live births; while several municipalities remain at zero.

Likewise, more than 700 proposals were included in this year's Plan for the Economy and 80 % of the total number of proposals corresponding to the 17th Mandate Period of the Municipal Assemblies have been solved.

In the presence of the also member of the Political Bureau Gladys Martinez Verdecia, first secretary of the Party in Artemisa and the deputy prime minister Alejandro Gil Fernandez, head of economy and planning, Marrero Cruz urged to design 2024 in a different way, based on the decentralization of competences, the increase of the autonomy of the municipalities, the functioning of the structures and the updating of work systems.