LatinNews Daily - 19 June 2026

*Cuba’s 470-member national assembly (ANPP) which, like all institutions in Cuba, is controlled by Cuba’s Partido Comunista de Cuba (PCC), has approved the drastic economic reforms proposed by President Miguel Díaz-Canel, and approved by the PCC politburo in response to unprecedented US pressure aimed at forcing Cuba’s economic and political opening. Comprising 23 fundamental pillars and 176 proposals, the reforms give municipalities and state-run institutions greater autonomy and allow for far greater private sector participation in the Cuban economy. Under the reforms, private enterprises of more than 100 employees (the previous limit) are permitted, Cuban and foreign investors are allowed to acquire stakes in state companies, state-owned businesses may be transformed into private commercial ventures, subsidies for consumer goods and enterprises will be phased out, and the state salary scale replaced by company-level agreements, among many other changes. The reform package also includes provisions aimed at spurring growth in crucial sectors such as agriculture and energy. For instance, farmers would be permitted to import their own raw supplies without state intermediaries and granted access to foreign currency. As regards energy, the reforms scrap taxes and tariffs on solar energy technology, and allow foreign firms to supply panels, batteries, and inverters directly to the market, without intermediaries. Daniel Torralbas, a London-based Cuban economist, told French news agency Agence France Presse (AFP) that the measures are “the most profound” economic reform programme since the 1959 Revolution led by Fidel Castro (1959-2008).

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