Highlights this issue: 20 February 2017, Issue 905

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1 20 February 2017, Issue 905 Highlights this issue: Debate underway on role of the young in the media and its management Trump says his Cuba thinking similar to Rubio Cuba seeking to increase crude oil production Joint US - Cuba biotech venture hoping to begin work in April Jamaica discussing new cruise links China says its interest in Cuba is not at US s expense The Chinese government has said that its increased investments interest in Cuba is neither intended to anticipate nor prevent the presence of US companies, but is an element of its widely-shared belief in the positive prospects for Cuba's development. The comments, in answer to a question put to the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Geng Shuang, on February 14, follow reports in the Chinese and Cuban media suggesting that China may become Cuba s most significant long-term trade and investment partner, particularly if US President Trump were to overturn some of the reforms under his predecessor, and make future engagement with Cuba more transactional. As Cuba Briefing has been reporting on an almost weekly basis for the last twelve months, Chinese companies are now engaged on a direct investment or joint venture basis in projects relating to telecommunications, the internet, computer assembly, manufacturing, renewable energy, biotechnology, and the provision of buses, tractors and trucks, domestic appliances. There have also been recent reports of a renewed interest in tourism and golf course projects. In contrast, little has been heard about several earlier reported projects relating to nickel processing, oil refining, and car assembly in the Mariel Special Development Zone. Most recently, during a February 16 visit to Beijing, Cuba s Deputy Minister for Construction, Angel Vilaragut, highlighted the importance of strengthening economic relations with China, especially in housing, urban planning, and construction technologies. According to official statistics, Cuban imports from China reached US$1.8 billion in 2016, much of it on the basis of export credits on soft terms, making it Cuba s second largest import partner after Venezuela, which until recently met all of Cuba s oil requirements. On 4 September 2016, Chinese Prime Minister, Li Keqiang met with Cuban President Raul Castro at which time the two leaders oversaw the signing of around 30 agreements on economic cooperation in various sectors (Cuba Briefing October 3, 2016). In early January, Granma reported that Cuba and China see their relationship as being mutually beneficial, and closely tied to the progress of various emerging and developing countries, including those in Latin America and the Caribbean. Debate on the role of the young in the media A three-day national meeting of young journalists convened by the Union of Journalists of Cuba (UPEC) has discussed the future direction and management of the Cuban media. The February 6-8 event was attended by senior members of the Cuban Communist Party including the First Vice President, Miguel Díaz-Canel. 1

2 According to Granma, among the issues discussed were the management of the media; the role of young people within it; journalism and citizen participation; and the nature of the future communication of Cuba s changing socio-economic model. Granma observed that participants at the meeting stressed the need to transform the management and approach of Cuban media, increase the role of young people, promote and reward talent, hold a national debate on the ethics of the profession, and consider how best to address the ideological subversion of young people. The report also suggested that there had been an extensive debate on the legal regulations that govern Cuban journalism, in which it was observed that changes within Cuban society were moving more rapidly than the situation that prevailed in the media. In addition, concerns were expressed that what had previously been agreed had not always been implemented. Granma quoted the First Vice-President as saying that the presence of young people in the management of the media was important, because it is the most direct way to involve them in change. He said that there was the political will to improve (perfect) the work of the media and a need for it to act with greater audacity. He was reported to have also called for the development of the skills required to create multimedia spaces. The Caribbean Council is able to provide further detail about all of the stories in our Cuba Briefing publication. If you would like a more detailed insight into any of the content of today s issue, please get in touch with a member of our team here. Cuba Cuba Seeking to increase crude oil production. Quoting an unnamed advisor to Manuel Marrero, the Minister of Energy and Mining, Prensa Latina has reported that Cuba's believes that crude oil discovery is most likely in water at depths of 3000 to 4000 metres in its Exclusive Economic Zone. Noting that the Cuban state does not have the resources to drill at such depths, the official said that the cost would be between US$250m and US$300m per well. Cuba is currently encouraging foreign investment in the sector with a new bidding round for offshore blocks expected later this year. At present Cuba produces less than half of its hydrocarbon needs. New marine tourist attraction. Marlin SA, the Cuban Marinas and Nautical company, and Logisprint from Spain, have said that they will soon be operating a Havana maritime coastal tour using the 100-person catamaran, Cayetana. The tourist attraction will operate five times a day with a bilingual commentary in English and Spanish. At times of bad weather, it will only sail in Havana harbour. Marlin, a quasi-autonomous enterprise related to the Ministry of Tourism (Mintur), also provides other marine services for tourism. It is branding the Cayetana s sailings under the name Los Albatros de La Habana. 2

3 TripAdvisor praised. An article has appeared in Granma praising TripAdvisor. Noting that it is a measure of quality that Cuba has gained an increasing presence on its site, the report concluded by observing that Cuba is seeking to raise standards and exhaustively classify its tourist establishments, so as to differentiate its products. The report also said that steady hotel growth could allow for future annual capacity to potentially accommodate up to 5.4m visitors a year. Change in drought frequency reported. The President of the National Institute of Water Resources (INRH), Ines Maria Chapman, has said that droughts in Cuba are becoming more frequent and lasting longer. She said that in the past they appeared every five years on average, but this had now reduced to every three years, with each event being of a longer duration. She said that the INRH had reduced the loss of water from 58% to 45%, but that much more needed to be done to encourage more rational use of water. New IT products reflect Cuban identity and culture. The Youth Computer and Electronics Club (JCCE), which is tasked with extending the use of IT, largely in relation to young people (Background Cuba Briefing January 25, 2015), is now developing new informatics products to satisfy the interests of a wider public. In line with recent discussions at the highest levels of the Cuban Communist Party, its products aim to strengthen national culture and identity. Quoting, Alexander Díaz, an Institutional Communication s specialist for the JCCE, Granma said that among the several new products is La Mochila which is intended to promote art, literature and universal culture, taking into account the principles and values of Cuban society. The new site can be found at mochilablog.cubava.cu. Other developments mentioned include: o the now six-year-old Cuban version of Wikipedia, EcuRed, accessible to Cubans from the national Intranet and sometimes referred to as the Cuban Collaborative Encyclopaedia; o Reflejos a platform that enables Cubans and foreigners to post blogs on the national network providing a platform for social debate; o Estanquillo, a site that enables access to more than 300 Cuban magazines, tabloids and newspapers; o and Cubava.cu which provides access to a wide range of other Cuban blogs. o No mention was made of an application similar to Twitter previously reported to be under development. New approach to rural teaching. Cuba's Ministry of Education has said that it is now focussing on improving education in rural areas. According to Dr Humberto Marrero from the University of Holguín, this will involve a single class approach being extended throughout the country with teachers trained to be able to teach pupils at different grades simultaneously. Dr Marrero said that while this required greater effort by the teacher, it achieved results on a par with those achieved in other areas of the country. Workplace deaths up but injuries down. Juventud Rebelde, quoting the Cuba's National Bureau of Statistics and Information (ONEI), has said that the number of workers killed in work related accidents in 2016 was 89, or 20 more than in However, registered accidents in the workplace between January and September 2016 declined to 2,674, compared to 3,484 in Expertise in directional drilling continues to improve. An article in Granma has said that Cuba has developed a special expertise in the directional drilling of oil wells to recover offshore deposits. Granma noted that wells such as those in the West Varadero area are technologically challenging to drill because they are either horizontal or change direction. However, the Central Cuban Drilling and Extraction Company has completed a total of nine such wells, with another underway, which will be the longest yet to be drilled in Cuba, at eight kilometres. Cuba has reportedly contracted specialised international service providers from China to help further develop its capacity. Digitisation of broadcasting proceeding. Justo Moreno, the Director General of the Radio Cuba Company, has said on the nightly Mesa Redonda TV programme that the country is making progress in digitising TV and radio transmissions. He said that since 2015, the company has added 23 digital transmitters, 19 of which are for standard definition and 4 for high definition. Overall, he said, 83 transmitters were able to cover 60% of the 3

4 country. He said that the company was investing in improving signal transmission, and exploring the possibility of transmitting from regional TV centres. Cuba s terrestrial television digitisation programme that began in 2012 is expected to conclude in 2021 with an analogue blackout. United States Trump says his Cuba thinking similar to Rubio. Speaking during a chaotic press conference on February 16, President Trump has said that he has similar ideas on Cuba to those of the US Senator, Marco Rubio (R- Florida) who is of Cuban American heritage. He told reporters that over dinner with the Senator and his wife, he had held a very good discussion about Cuba, because we have very similar ideas about Cuba. He also said in reference to the Cuban American vote: "Cuba was very good to me, you know in the Florida general election, the Cuban people, Americans". If borne out in practice, his comments would imply a significant change in US policy towards Cuba. Senator Rubio is a vehement critic of engagement and détente with Cuba. In a separate development, Senator Rubio and Senator Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) have introduced a bill seeking changes to the human trafficking report that the State Department drafts annually. If approved as drafted, the bill would likely result in Cuba being re-graded as being among the worst offenders. The US administration is reviewing its policy on Cuba (Cuba Briefing February 13, 2017). Joint biotech venture hoping to begin work in April. It is hoped that a joint venture between the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York, and the Cuba Centre for Molecular Immunology in Havana will be formally incorporated in Cuba by April 1, according to the US body. The joint venture is to be based in the Mariel Special Development Zone to produce vaccines to fight cancer. If it proceeds it will be the first using Cuban biotechnological research to seek US investors. The joint venture involves the creation of a joint research and development facility to enable US and Cuba scientists to collaborate. It could also see Cuban biotech products entering the US market and applying for US FDA approval. Among the products that could be commercialised in the US market is the Cuba-produced CIMAvax vaccine against lung cancer, for which clinical trials began in the US in January. However, uncertainty remains as to whether the Trump Administration will halt such co-operation which was introduced and encouraged by the Obama Administration. Europe Ireland s President makes controversial visit. Ireland s President, Michael Higgins, has paid an official visit to Cuba, the first ever by an Irish President, during which he met with President Castro and other senior Cuban Ministers. Although the visit was considered controversial in some Irish circles, Higgins and an accompanying team of Ministers held discussions on closer relations and economic cooperation. In an address at the University of Havana, the Irish President said that neither the collectivised, authoritarian state systems of the 20th century nor the financialised version of global capitalism that prevailed after the fall of the Berlin Wall was capable of meeting people s needs. Noting that the free market, as an inexorable endpoint of individual and social happiness was misguided, President Higgins said that the Cuban people should not be required to conform to a predefined model of development. Scientific agreement with France signed. Cuba and France have agreed to create a joint scientific cooperation programme. The agreement will enable jointly selected research projects, scientific and technological exchanges, and the creation of structured and durable high-level research networks. 4

5 The Americas Jamaica discussing new cruise links. Jamaica s Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett, has said that he has been engaged in discussions with the objective of developing cruise ship routes linking Cuba and Kingston. The Minister reportedly told a Kingston and St Andrew Corporation council meeting that the development of cruise ship infrastructure, and possible home porting in Kingston using Norman Manley International Airport, will bring visitors to the city. He said that he was not worried that the opening of the Cuban market to the US would affect Jamaica's tourism. "It s an opportunity that can broaden market size, he said. More details emerge on trade agreement with CARICOM. Cuba s ambassador to Guyana, Julio Cesar Gonzalez, has provided more details on the recent agreement to widen and deepen Cuba s partial scope free trade agreement with CARICOM (Cuba Briefing February 13, 2016). Speaking in Georgetown he said that the mutual concessions on products and tariff preferences will enable the export of 349 Caribbean products duty free into the Cuban market, while CARICOM will allow preferential entry for 86 Cuban products. He said that both sides saw trade and services opportunity in each other s markets. The agreement is expected to be signed at a meeting of Caribbean foreign ministers in Havana in March. Over the horizon Reports suggest that an expansion of bilateral relations with Iran is likely following a meeting between the Cuban President, Raul Castro, and the Iranian Minister of Health and Medical Education, Hassan Qazizadeh Hashemi. Earlier, the Minister had signed on behalf of Iran, twelve cooperation agreements in the areas of agriculture, hydraulics, higher education, pharmaceuticals, radio and television, and on diplomatic visas and exemptions so as to facilitate cooperation. The content of the agreements and the outcome of discussions held during an Intergovernmental Commission were not disclosed. It was not clear whether the supply of oil was discussed. The Archbishop of Havana, Juan de la Caridad García Rodríguez, for the first time since being appointed 10 months ago to the highest Roman Catholic post in Cuba, has met privately with two representatives of the dissident Ladies in White movement. At the meeting, Berta Soler and María Cristina Labrada asked the Archbishop to issue a public statement of solidarity on behalf of the Catholic Church. Mrs Soler said she was hopeful because the Archbishop was very receptive and said he would transmit the information to the Cuban government 5

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