Guide to Cuba Introduction Background: The native Amerindian population of Cuba began to decline after the European discovery of the island by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1492 and following its development as a Spanish colony during the next several centuries. Large numbers of African slaves were imported to work the coffee and sugar plantations and Havana became the launching point for the annual treasure fleets bound for Spain from Mexico and Peru. Spanish rule was severe and exploitative and occasional rebellions were harshly suppressed. It was US intervention during the Spanish-American War in 1898 that finally overthrew Spanish rule. The subsequent Treaty of Paris established Cuban independence, which was granted in 1902 after a three-year transition period. Fidel CASTRO led a rebel army to victory in 1959; his iron rule has held the regime together since then. Cuba's Communist revolution, with Soviet support, was exported throughout Latin America and Africa during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. The country is now slowly recovering from a severe economic recession in 1990, following the withdrawal of former Soviet subsidies, worth $4 billion to $6 billion annually. Cuba portrays its difficulties as the result of the US embargo in place since 1961. Illicit migration to the US - using homemade rafts, alien smugglers, air flights, or via the southwest border - is a continuing problem. The US Coast Guard intercepted 1,498 individuals attempting to cross the Straits of Florida in 2004.
Geography Location: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, 150 km south of Key West, Florida
Geographic coordinates: 21 30 N, 80 00 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area: total
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Pennsylvania
Land boundaries: total
Coastline: 3,735 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea
Climate: tropical; moderated by trade winds; dry season (November to April); rainy season (May to October)
Terrain: mostly flat to rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains in the southeast
Elevation extremes: lowest point
Natural resources: cobalt, nickel, iron ore, chromium, copper, salt, timber, silica, petroleum, arable land
Land use: arable land
Irrigated land: 870 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: the east coast is subject to hurricanes from August to November (in general, the country averages about one hurricane every other year); droughts are common
Environment - current issues: air and water pollution; biodiversity loss; deforestation
Environment - international agreements: party to
Geography - note: largest country in Caribbean and westernmost island of the Greater Antilles
People Population: 11,346,670 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years
Median age: total
Population growth rate: 0.33% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 12.03 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 7.19 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth
Infant mortality rate: total
Life expectancy at birth: total population
Total fertility rate: 1.66 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 3,300 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality: noun
Ethnic groups: mulatto 51%, white 37%, black 11%, Chinese 1%
Religions: nominally 85% Roman Catholic prior to CASTRO assuming power; Protestants, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, and Santeria are also represented
Languages: Spanish
Literacy: definition
People - note: illicit migration is a continuing problem; Cubans attempt to depart the island and enter the US using homemade rafts, alien smugglers, direct flights, or falsified visas; Cubans also use non-maritime routes to enter the US including direct flights to Miami and overland via the southwest border
Government Country name: conventional long form
Government type: Communist state
Capital: Havana
Administrative divisions: 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
Independence: 20 May 1902 (from Spain 10 December 1898; administered by the US from 1898 to 1902)
National holiday: Independence Day, 10 December (1898); note - 10 December 1898 is the date of independence from Spain, 20 May 1902 is the date of independence from US administration; Rebellion Day, 26 July (1953)
Constitution: 24 February 1976; amended July 1992 and June 2002
Legal system: based on Spanish and American law, with large elements of Communist legal theory; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 16 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly of People's Power or Asemblea Nacional del Poder Popular (609 seats, elected directly from slates approved by special candidacy commissions; members serve five-year terms) elections
Judicial branch: People's Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo Popular (president, vice president, and other judges are elected by the National Assembly)
Political parties and leaders: only party - Cuban Communist Party or PCC [Fidel CASTRO Ruz, first secretary]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ACP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, NAM, OAS (excluded from formal participation since 1962), OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: none; note - Cuba has an Interests Section in the Swiss Embassy, headed by Principal Officer Dagoberto RODRIGUEZ Barrera; address
Diplomatic representation from the US: none; note - the US has an Interests Section in the Swiss Embassy, headed by Principal Officer James C. CASON; address
Flag description: 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; design influenced by the US flag
Economy Economy - overview: The government continues to balance the need for economic loosening against a desire for firm political control. It has undertaken limited reforms to increase enterprise efficiency and alleviate serious shortages of food, consumer goods, and services. A major feature of the economy is the dichotomy between relatively efficient export enclaves and inefficient domestic sectors. The average Cuban's standard of living remains at a lower level than before the depression of the 1990s, which was caused by the loss of Soviet aid and domestic inefficiencies. The government in 2004 strengthened its controls over dollars coming into the economy from tourism, remittances, and trade.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $33.92 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture
Labor force: 4.55 million note
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 24%, industry 25%, services 51% (1999)
Unemployment rate: 2.5% (2004 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.1% (2004 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 11.2% of GDP (2004 est.)
Budget: revenues
Agriculture - products: sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock
Industries: sugar, petroleum, tobacco, construction, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery, pharmaceuticals
Industrial production growth rate: 1.4% (2004 est.)
Electricity - production: 14.41 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel
Electricity - consumption: 13.4 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 77,900 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption: 163,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Oil - proved reserves: 532 million bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production: 600 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 600 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 42.62 billion cu m (1 January 2002)
Current account balance: $-185.1 million (2004 est.)
Exports: $2.104 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee
Exports - partners: Netherlands 22.7%, Canada 20.6%, China 7.7%, Russia 7.5%, Spain 6.4%, Venezuela 4.4% (2004)
Imports: $5.296 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: petroleum, food, machinery and equipment, chemicals
Imports - partners: Spain 14.7%, Venezuela 13.5%, US 11%, China 8.9%, Canada 6.4%, Italy 6.2%, Mexico 4.9% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $738.6 million (2004 est.)
Debt - external: $12.09 billion (convertible currency); another $15-20 billion owed to Russia (2004 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $68.2 million (1997 est.)
Currency (code): Cuban peso (CUP) and Convertible peso (CUC)
Currency code: CUP (nonconvertible Cuban peso) and CUC (convertible Cuban peso)
Exchange rates: Convertible pesos per US dollar - 0.93 note
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Telephones - main lines in use: 574,400 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 17,900 (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment
Radio broadcast stations: AM 169, FM 55, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 3.9 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 58 (1997)
Televisions: 2.64 million (1997)
Internet country code: .cu
Internet hosts: 1,529 (2003)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 5 (2001)
Internet users: 120,000 note
Transportation Railways: total
Highways: total
Waterways: 240 km (2004)
Pipelines: gas 49 km; oil 230 km (2004)
Ports and harbors: Cienfuegos, Havana, Matanzas
Merchant marine: total
Airports: 170 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total
Airports - with unpaved runways: total
Military Military branches: Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR)
Military service age and obligation: 17 years of age; both sexes are eligible for military service (2004)
Manpower available for military service: males age 17-49
Manpower fit for military service: males age 17-49
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $572.3 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.8% (2003)
Military - note: Moscow, for decades the key military supporter and supplier of Cuba, cut off almost all military aid by 1993
Transnational Issues Disputes - international: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased to US and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease
Illicit drugs: territorial waters and air space serve as transshipment zone primarily for marijuana bound for North America; established the death penalty for certain drug-related crimes in 1999
Last updated: 20 October, 2005
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