Non-agricultural cooperatives slowly grow in Cuba

Cuba only approved 22 non agricultural cooperatives in 2015 in compliance with the strategy announced by the country's leaders aimed at gradually advancing in the creation of this type of management in order to improve mistakes.

According to the National Statistics and Information Office (ONEI), there were 367 new cooperatives at the end of 2015, more than the previous year with 345.

The growth rate is less since the country began the non-state sector in 2013 with the approval of 198 collective organizations and another 147 the following year.

In the expanded meeting of the Council of Ministers of May of last year, 205 new proposals were reported and evaluated by the Permanent Commission for the Implementation and Development of the economic guidelines.

However, Cuban President Raul Castro stressed "not to generalize the creation of the cooperatives; the priority should be to consolidate those that exist and advance gradually otherwise we would spread the problems that might come up".

There have been benefits like quality, variety of offers, favorable productive outcome, economic and financial and better earnings for the partners.

Another well-known issue has also been access to supplies and the tendency to increase the prices of its products and services above all in the markets and in the restaurants and cafeteria.

According to the Minister of Economy and Planning, Marino Murillo there has been bureaucratic management that generate dispersals and delays.

A study carried out in Havana and Artemisa by researchers from the Center of Cuban Economy and the National Association of Economists and Accountants revealed that the business executives lack an adequate education on cooperatives, training that according to experts constitute a must in this sector.

Up until today, the majority of the emerging cooperatives constituted on the island are of state origin reinforcing the need for training in the sector.

The Council of Ministers approved in 2015 a group of measures aimed at strengthening and improving work in these entities although in order to implement them, the country needs to modify certain laws that rule the cooperatives outside the agricultural sector.

The ONEI report adds that the cooperatives will continue increasing gradually in favor of the national economy, necessary to exonerate the Cuban State in certain activities in order to concentrate in the country's development.