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Communications

Airports [time series]

205 total, 176 usable; 75 with permanent-surface runways; 3 with runways over 3,659 m; 12 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 25 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air [time series]

59 major transport aircraft

Roadways (Highways) [time series]

26,477 km total; 14,477 km paved, 12,000 km gravel and earth surfaced (1989 est.)

Waterways (Inland waterways) [time series]

240 km

Merchant marine [time series]

87 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 638,462 GRT/925,380 DWT; includes 54 cargo, 9 refrigerated cargo, 2 cargo/training, 12 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 chemical tanker, 3 liquefied gas, 6 bulk; note--Cuba beneficially owns an additional 37 ships (1,000 GRT and over) totaling 512,346 DWT under the registry of Panama, Cyprus, and Malta

Ports [time series]

Cienfuegos, Havana, Mariel, Matanzas, Santiago de Cuba; 7 secondary, 35 minor

Railways (Railroads) [time series]

14,925 km total; Cuban National Railways operates 5,295 km of 1.435-meter gauge track; 199 km electrified; 9,630 km of sugar plantation lines of 0.914-1.435-meter gauge

Telecommunication systems (Telecommunications) [time series]

stations--150 AM, 5 FM, 58 TV; 1,530,000 TVs; 2,140,000 radios; 229,000 telephones; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Defense Forces

Military and security forces (Branches) [time series]

Revolutionary Armed Forces (including Ground Forces, Revolutionary Navy, Air and Air Defense Force), Ministry of Interior Special Troops, Border Guard Troops, Territorial Militia Troops, Youth Labor Army, Civil Defense, National Revolutionary Police

Military expenditures (Defense expenditures) [time series]

$1.2-$1.4 billion, 6% of GNP (1989 est.)

Manpower availability [time series]

eligible 15-49, 6,087,253; of the 3,054,158 males 15-49, 1,914,080 are fit for military service; of the 3,033,095 females 15-49, 1,896,449 are fit for military service; 89,194 males and 85,968 females reach military age (17) annually

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture) [time series]

accounts for 11% of GNP (including fishing and forestry); key commercial crops--sugarcane, tobacco, and citrus fruits; other products--coffee, rice, potatoes, meat, beans; world's largest sugar exporter; not self-sufficient in food (excluding sugar)

Budget [time series]

revenues $12.46 billion; expenditures $14.45 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.)

Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]

Cuban peso (plural--pesos); 1 Cuban peso (Cu$) = 100 centavos

Economic aid [time series]

Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $695 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $18.5 billion

Electricity [time series]

3,890,000 kW capacity; 16,267 million kWh produced, 1,530 kWh per capita (1990)

Exchange rates [time series]

Cuban pesos (Cu$) per US$1--1.0000 (linked to the US dollar)

Exports [time series]

$5.4 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities--sugar, nickel, shellfish, citrus, tobacco, coffee; partners--USSR 67%, GDR 6%, China 4% (1988)

Debt - external (External debt) [time series]

$6.8 billion (convertible currency, July 1989)

Fiscal year [time series]

calendar year

GNP [time series]

$20.9 billion, per capita $2,000; real growth rate - 3% (1990 est.)

Imports [time series]

$8.1 billion (c.i.f., 1989); commodities--capital goods, industrial raw materials, food, petroleum; partners--USSR 71%, other Communist countries 15% (1988)

Industrial production growth rate (Industrial production) [time series]

3% (1988); accounts for 45% of GDP

Industries [time series]

sugar milling, petroleum refining, food and tobacco processing, textiles, chemicals, paper and wood products, metals (particularly nickel), cement, fertilizers, consumer goods, agricultural machinery

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

NA%

Economic overview (Overview) [time series]

The economy, centrally planned and largely state owned, is highly dependent on the agricultural sector and foreign trade. Sugar provides about 75% of export revenues and over half is exported to the USSR. The economy has stagnated since 1985 under policies that have deemphasized material incentives in the workplace, abolished farmers' informal produce markets, and raised prices of government-supplied goods and services. In 1990 the economy probably fell 3%, largely as a result of declining trade with the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Recently the government has been trying to increase trade with Latin America and China. Cuba has had difficulty servicing its foreign debt since 1982. The government currently is encouraging foreign investment in tourist facilities. Other investment priorities include sugar, basic foods, and nickel. The annual $4 billion Soviet subsidy, a main prop to Cuba's threadbare economy, is likely to show a substantial decline over the next few years in view of the USSR's mounting economic problems. Instead of highly subsidized trade, Cuba will be shifting to trade at market prices in convertible currencies. In early 1991, the shortages of fuels, spare parts, and industrial products in general had become so severe as to amount to a deindustrialization process in the eyes of some observers.

Unemployment rate (Unemployment) [time series]

6% overall, 10% for women (1989)

Geography

Climate [time series]

tropical; moderated by trade winds; dry season (November to April); rainy season (May to October)

Coastline [time series]

3,735 km Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; Territorial sea: 12 nm

Area - comparative (Comparative area) [time series]

slightly smaller than Pennsylvania

Disputes - international (Disputes) [time series]

US Naval Base at Guantanamo is leased to US and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease

Environment - current issues (Environment) [time series]

averages one hurricane every other year

Land boundaries (Land boundary) [time series]

29.1 km with US Naval Base at Guantanamo; note--Guantanamo is leased and as such remains part of Cuba

Land use [time series]

arable land 23%; permanent crops 6%; meadows and pastures 23%; forest and woodland 17%; other 31%; includes irrigated 10%

Natural resources [time series]

cobalt, nickel, iron ore, copper, manganese, salt, timber, silica

Note [time series]

largest country in Caribbean; 145 km south of Florida

Terrain [time series]

mostly flat to rolling plains with rugged hills and mountains in the southeast

Area (Total area) [time series]

110,860 km2; land area: 110,860 km2

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

14 provinces (provincias, singular--provincia) and 1 special municipality* (municipio especial); Camaguey, Ciego de Avila, Cienfuegos, Ciudad de La Habana, Granma, Guantanamo, Holguin, Isla de la Juventud*, La Habana, Las Tunas, Matanzas, Pinar del Rio, Sancti Spiritus, Santiago de Cuba, Villa Clara

Capital [time series]

Havana

Political parties (Communists) [time series]

about 600,000 full and candidate members

Constitution [time series]

24 February 1976

Diplomatic representation in the US (Diplomatic representation) [time series]

none; protecting power in the US is Switzerland--Cuban Interests Section; Counselor Jose Antonio ARBESU Fraga; 2630 and 2639 16th Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 797-8518 or 8519, 8520, 8609, 8610; US--protecting power in Cuba is Switzerland--US Interests Section; Principal Officer Alan H. FLANIGAN; Calzada entre L y M, Vedado Seccion, Havana (mailing address is USINT, c/o International Purchasing Group, 2052 NW 93rd Avenue, Miami, FL 33172); telephone 329-700

Executive branch [time series]

president of the Council of State, first vice president of the Council of State, Council of State, president of the Council of Ministers, first vice president of the Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers

Flag [time series]

five equal horizontal bands of blue (top and bottom) alternating with white; a red equilateral triangle based on the hoist side bears a white five-pointed star in the center

Independence [time series]

20 May 1902 (from Spain 10 December 1898; administered by the US from 1898 to 1902)

Judicial branch [time series]

People's Supreme Court Chief of State and Head of Government--President of the Council of State and President of the Council of Ministers Fidel CASTRO Ruz (became Prime Minister in February 1959 and President since 2 December 1976); First Vice President of the Council of State and First Vice President of the Council of Ministers Gen. Raul CASTRO Ruz (since 2 December 1976)

Legal system [time series]

based on Spanish and American law, with large elements of Communist legal theory; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch [time series]

unicameral National Assembly of the People's Power (Asamblea Nacional del Poder Popular)

Country name (Long-form name) [time series]

Republic of Cuba

International organization participation (Member of) [time series]

CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBEC, ICAO, IFAD, IIB, ILO, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), LORCS, NAM, OAS (excluded from formal participation since 1962), OPANAL (observer), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday [time series]

Revolution Day, 1 January (1959)

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

only party--Cuban Communist Party (PCC), Fidel CASTRO Ruz, first secretary

Suffrage [time series]

universal at age 16 National Assembly of the People's Power--last held NA December 1986 (next to be held December 1991); results--PCC is the only party; seats--(510 total) PCC 510 (indirectly elected)

Government type (Type) [time series]

Communist state

People

Birth rate [time series]

18 births/1,000 population (1991)

Death rate [time series]

7 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

Ethnic groups (Ethnic divisions) [time series]

mulatto 51%, white 37%, black 11%, Chinese 1%

Infant mortality rate [time series]

12 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Labor force [time series]

3,578,800 in state sector; services and government 30%, industry 22%, agriculture 20%, commerce 11%, construction 10%, transportation and communications 7% (June 1990); economically active population 4,620,800 (1988)

Languages (Language) [time series]

Spanish

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

73 years male, 78 years female (1991)

Literacy [time series]

94% (male 95%, female 93%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun--Cuban(s); adjective--Cuban

Net migration rate [time series]

- 1 migrant/1,000 population (1991)

Organized labor [time series]

Workers Central Union of Cuba (CTC), only labor federation approved by government; 2,910,000 members; the CTC is an umbrella organization composed of 17 member unions

Population [time series]

10,732,037 (July 1991), growth rate 1.0% (1991)

Religions (Religion) [time series]

85% nominally Roman Catholic before Castro assumed power

Total fertility rate [time series]

1.9 children born/woman (1991)