Cuban Telecommunications Company continues redesigning its service portfolio

The main concerns about the measures announced by the Cuban Telecommunications Company S.A. (ETECSA by its Spanish acronym) and the alternatives being worked on to prioritize sectors of society were discussed on Monday by the television program Mesa Redonda.

Ernesto Rodriguez Hernandez, acting minister of Communications, said that according to several concerns received, strategies are being defined to favor different sectors of society that, due to their particular characteristics, require greater connectivity, which is in line with the digital transformation policy implemented since the introduction of the Internet in the country.

Rodriguez Hernandez reviewed the growth in infrastructure and the provision of services in recent years, which has meant a sustained increase in consumption, with more than 7 million of the 8 million lines in the nation enabled for connection to the network.

He explained that this development has had a higher than average cost, with the additional technological challenge of the extraterritorial measures of the economic blockade imposed by the U.S. government, which has discouraged suppliers from doing business with Cuba due to the risks they run, a reason that threatens sustainability over time for the constant investments required by telecommunications in order to meet the increase in demand and users.

Although it is not the desired step, it is necessary to revitalize financing schemes that will result in a gradual improvement in the quality of service and to have the necessary economic resources to be able to undertake the necessary investments, Rodriguez Hernandez pointed out.

For her part, Tania Velazquez Rodriguez, executive president of ETECSA, referred to another problem that threatens foreign revenues, such as the issue of fraud with international recharges that prevents the flow of foreign currency, an issue that also hinders the payment of creditors and suppliers.

She pointed out that these funds, which in 2021 represented around 80 % of the Company's total income in foreign currency, have been contracted by elements that supplant the recharge offers from outside the country and so far this year they represent 25% of those received in the same period of 2021, which has meant a decapitalization with an impact on the financing schemes and the deterioration of the service.

Regarding the amount of the extra plans, she said that the feasibility of an intermediate level is being considered at some point, but on the basis of tariffs that should protect international recharges.

Velazquez Rodriguez also announced other alternatives to be implemented, such as enabling the possibility for university students to purchase a second plan of six gigabytes (GB) for 360 CUP, which will allow them to access 12 GB for 720 CUP, and enabling free access through the mobile network to about 40 educational and information sites, including the development of public health activities, as well as science.

Ricardo Rodriguez Gonzalez, national president of the Federation of University Students (FEU), was also present at the event, highlighting the multiple spaces in which the university community has mobilized for exchange and dialogue to share their concerns and be addressed.