U.S. blockade causes heavy losses in the construction sector

HAVANA, Cuba, May 12 (ACN) In the period from April to December 2020 alone, the U.S. economic, commercial and financial blockade of Cuba caused an approximate loss of 18.1 million dollars in the construction sector.

According to report of the Ministry of Construction (MICONS), the greatest harm is noticeable in housing construction, which represents almost 70% of the total damage. Were Cuba free to access more efficient, lighter and higher performance construction technologies, the country would have saved around 12.2 million dollars’ worth of structural repairs and other related works.

This hostile policy, in place for more than six decades, prevented MICONS from making some 5.4 million dollars in exports, one of Cuba’s main sources of foreign currency for development.

Likewise, the company DINVAI Construcciones S.A., which provides engineering, design and construction services for highly complex works, reported losses due to the variation of the currency exchange rate in banking operations, in light of its inability to use U.S. dollars in transactions abroad.

The blockade also increased the freight costs for entities such as the Export and Import Company of Construction Equipment (CONSTRUIMPORT), forced to reach for more distant markets to purchase high-demand products and raw materials used in housing programs and the materials industry.

This strategic branch for the country is not spared by the effects of the blockade, described as the greatest obstacle to Cuba’s development and the Cuban people’s quality of life, as well as to the implementation of strategies such as the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development in the country.