Regulations for private sector focus on legality, Cuban minister asserts

HAVANA, Cuba, Aug 30 (ACN) Joaquin Alonso Vazquez, Cuban Minister of Economy and Planning (MEP), ratified on Thursday that the new rules aimed at non-state economic actors are part of the Cuban state's actions to restore and respect legality, which is why they are against indiscipline, bungling and corruption.

Alonso and the heads Martha Elena Feito, of Labor and Social Security, and Vladimir Regueiro Ale, of Finance and Prices, gave details on the decree-laws, decrees and resolutions recently published in the Official Gazette and which will come into force after 30 days, that is, on September 18.

He stressed that they are aimed at correcting distortions or gaps in the performance of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), non-agricultural cooperatives (CNA) and self-employment (CPT), and that this sector constitutes a complement within the Cuban business network.

The minister also recalled that the updating of the norms began in March 2023, and involved a broad consultation process with agencies, provincial governments, academia and more than 500 economic actors until the final approval by the country's leadership.

He specified that there is no campaign against MSMEs, as the enemies of the Revolution are trying to show through the media and social networks; in any case, there is an effort to ensure that order and legality prevail in all forms of management, including state management.

Among the distortions to be corrected, he mentioned that MSMEs, CNAs and TPCs were not fully included in the Territorial Development Strategies, that the necessary linkage with the state enterprise was not achieved and that many of these actors deviated from their main social purpose to engage in commerce.

For this reason, in their updating the regulations have a group of modifications, one of them is the decentralization of their approval by the Municipal Administration Councils, in accordance with the interests and needs of the territory, and not by the MEP, as has been the case in the past.

What has been prioritized is the attention to the private sector through the new National Institute of Non-State Economic Actors, subordinated to the Council of Ministers and which is called to not only control but also to see their needs and channel concerns or worries to the agencies.

In the interest of greater transparency in the performance of these forms of management, one of the modifications included in the regulations refers to the bidding process of a local or state-owned company, so that any interested economic actor may opt for that property or equipment, he continued.

There is also the issue of social responsibility, which means that they must contribute to the economic and social development of the municipality, care for the environment and help people in vulnerable situations, Alonso Vazquez concluded.