ECLAC Praises Cuban Opening-up to Foreign Investment

HAVANA, Cuba, Apr 29 (acn) The case of Cuba must be distinguished because it opens to foreign investment but selects important items for the country and protects national jobs, highlighted on Tuesday in Havana Alicia Barcena, executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).
The health of the economy in the West Indies and Central America is something that the country should take into account, because in that area competitors in terms of attracting foreign capital are located, she told ACN, while participating in the First International Seminar on Opportunities and Challenges for the development of Latin America and Cuba, under way until Wednesday at the Melia Cohiba Hotel.
Although for 2015 Latin America's Gross Domestic Product as a whole should not increase by more than 1%, in the Caribbean area it could grow to 1.9%, she announced.
That situation should be used so that, rather than opponents, these nations become allies, she clarified, because simultaneous investment may occur, where every economy contributes its best, especially in nautical tourism and maritime transport, which are lines that are likely to be exploited given the natural conditions of the region.
I think that the Special Development Zone of Mariel is an example of the use of competitive advantages in the process of foreign investment, because distance makes the export of Latin American products to other continents becomes more expensive, but the Cuban port could be used as stopover and platform for shipments, she predicted.
Parallel to the injection of foreign capital, I consider it to be an appropriate strategy to continue promoting the export of health services and cultural consultancy, she said.
Even in the future, when the country's infrastructure problems are resolved, Cuba could also export products related to Information Technology and Communications, stressed Barcena, because it has the staff with the training and qualifications necessary to create them.