Cuba has warned that it faces food shortages for the next six months after the devastating damage caused by hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
The government is introducing emergency measures after almost one-third of the country’s crops were destroyed.
The twin storms caused the worst damage in the island’s history.
“There have been very serious effects, but I can say no Cuban is going to die of hunger or be abandoned to their fate,” Alcides Lopez, the vice-minister of agriculture, said.
“We face six hard months … but we can’t lament, we have to plant,” he added, outlining more than 80 measures designed to speed up production and the distribution of food.
The government is also taking steps to stop food speculators driving up prices.
Gustav hit western Cuba on August 30, with Ike striking seven days later. Heavy rains and high winds devastated thousands of acres of agricultural land.
Cuba, which spends up to $2bn annually on food imports, was already struggling to increase its domestic production when the storms hit staples such as rice, beans, plantains and sweet potatoes.
Around 1.2m eggs were destroyed and 500,000 chickens killed.
The authorities said they were trying to salvage as much of the damaged crops as possible, repair farm equipment and restore power to food processing plants.
The Cuban government has also hit out at the US over the shortages, saying its trade sanctions were the biggest obstacle to Cuba’s recovery.
The embargo prevents Cuba from buying supplies directly from the US, and prevents the island from purchasing any US goods on credit.
“The economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed during 50 years by the United States is the main obstacle to Cuba’s development,” Felipe Perez Roque, the Cuban foreign minister, said.
Every year for the past 16 years, the UN general assembly has approved Cuba’s resolution calling for the embargo to be lifted. The next vote is next month.
No way this is the worst hurricane ever in Cuba. There was one called Castro 1959 and that one has caused more devastation to the cuban agriculture than any of the other 100 hurricanes until today
“The Cuban government has also hit out at the US over the shortages, saying its trade sanctions were the biggest obstacle to Cuba’s recovery.
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This is a complete rubish. How can they say that when they are refusing the American aid of 6.0 million dollars.
cmon give some credit to Castro. Look at the statistics of people dead after these 2 hurricanes in other countries compared to Cuba. This shows the Cuban goverment does care about its people. It is true there have been shortages all these years in Cuba but noone has ever died of starvation. You do not see people in Cuba with malnutrition. I admit Cuba has a lot of negative things but when it comes to disasters like this they do care about everybody.
Yes it is true there is no starvation in Cuba but it is not because of the goverment good policies but because of the money people get from their relatives living abroad, because of all the corruption and steeling of goods that then are sold in the black market. there is a pararel underground economy in Cuba and that one is which puts a plate in everybody’s table in Cuba. The number of subsidised products given through this famous Libreta has reduced dramatically and there are rumors that the Goverment is going to eliminate this Libreta. Yet the prices are as high as probably they are first world countries.
I am due to go to Cuba (Playa Pesquero) next month (December 2008) will it be safe from Hurricane?
Thanks