Cubans line up to buy bread at a government store in Havana, April 3. Photo: Ramon Espinosa/Associated Press
…. medicine, housing and fuel are in short supply. Inflation is galloping. Parents find it hard to feed their children. In September the government cut back bread rations to 60 grams a day from 80 grams. In December, after more than six decades, it finally said it will eliminate the ration book, admitting that it cannot provide even a skimpy list of staples.
Reuters reported last month that “transportation by ground, sea and air in Cuba” fell by 19% in 2024, reaching a level not seen in 20 years, according to American University economist Ricardo Torres. The infrastructure, from roads to electricity, has collapsed. One demographer estimates 18% of the population emigrated between 2022 and 2023. Those left behind stare into an abyss of hopelessness. Beneath the surface, there’s hunger for change. The island is a powder keg.