Cuba faces deep economic crisis as experts propose transformation plan

Cuban authorities have announced a package of 176 socio‑economic measures to address the island’s worst economic and social crisis in decades. In response, five independent Cuban economists – Mauricio de Miranda Parrondo, Pedro Monreal González, Omar Everleny Pérez Villanueva, Ricardo Torres Pérez and Pavel Vidal Alejandro – released a 109‑page document titled *Cuba Transformación*. The proposal offers an analytical framework aimed at stabilising the economy, restoring growth and expanding freedoms, and is intended to spark a broad public debate.

At the same time, ordinary Cubans are coping with daily hardships. Power outages, water shortages, food scarcity and deteriorating housing have forced people like 44‑year‑old Mayumis Núñez to sleep on the streets after her building partially collapsed. The prolonged strain is taking a heavy psychological toll, with clinics reporting “stress on stress” and residents describing constant exhaustion and uncertainty. The situation has worsened since the United States imposed an oil embargo on Havana in January, further deepening the crisis.