Minister: Cuba will continue to protect its population despite inflation

Havana, February 21 (RHC)-- Cuba's Minister of Finance and Prices, Meisi Bolaños Weiss, said that amid the island's inflation,  the State would continue to protect the population from price hikes by subsidizing the most sensitive and essential goods and services, including food and medicines.

Speaking at Monday's Round Table TV program, the official explained that despite the increase in the cost of food, medicines, raw materials, fuel, and other imported items, freight, and the intensified U.S. blockade, the prices of such goods had remained the same since the beginning of the Ordering Task in early 2021.

She mentioned the products of the regulated family basket, whose retail prices remain unchanged. The same occurs with electricity, water, gas, and public transportation.

The Minister stressed the intervention of the State has been aimed at not transferring the real price of a product or service to the price it would have in the retail trade, to the detriment of the population.

Bolaños highlighted that despite objective difficulties, the country continues to develop investments in the hydraulic sector, water transfers, and energy sector with the maintenance of thermoelectric plants.

She pointed out that, as it happens with the products of the regulated family basket, medicines for the treatment of chronic diseases raw materials for health are also subsidized despite the increase in cost.