Culture and Human Development in Cuba - Essay Example

Culture and Human Development in Cuba There are 11.4 million residents in Cuba and one million additional Cubans living in the of Florida (CultureGrams, 2007). The Cubans in Florida escaped the nation in search for a better standard of living in the United States. Despite the poverty in Cuba the people are enthusiastic friendly people who love to have fun and enjoy every moment in life. The official language of Cuba is Spanish. Sports deeply ingrained in the blood of Cubans. The small Caribbean island has had tremendous success in the past in the Olympic Games. The official sport of Cuba is baseball. Cubans has produced many excellent boxers, including world champion Joel Casamayor. Music is treasured by the Cuban people who enjoy jazz, mambo and bolero genres. The family institution is highly value in Cuba, a place where family values and obligation comes first. When the son finds a suitable partner and gets marry it is not uncommon for the wife to move in and live with the husbands parents until a home is found for them. There is shortage of housing in Cuba. On a yearly basis the country only produces and builds half of the required demand for housing in the state (CultureGrams, 2007). The socialism reality of Cuba has made its residents a bit hesitant to fully cultivate religion. The Catholic Church has invested a lot of effort trying to open the minds of the people toward their cult which has worked towards a certain extend. Other types of religion practiced in Cuba include Spiritualism, Brujería and Santería. Santeria is a fusion of Roman Catholicism and a West African religion of an African (CountryWatch, 2007). Cuba is very well educated nation primary schooling is mandatory and majority of people complete secondary school. The literacy rate of Cuba is 97% and the country enjoys a higher educational system of 50 university institutions around the island (CultureGrams, 2007). Despite the poverty and restriction on liberties the Cuban people are very similar to Latin cultures as free as being free spirited work people who enjoy classical Salsa music and nightlife and “festivals” are part of the social life of Cuban adults. The Cubans eat a lot at home and the most important meal of the day is dinner a time for the family to reflect on their day and communicate with each other. Typical meal includes rice and beans, “viandas” and the prefer meat because of its lower price and local production is chicken. The favorite and most consumed tropical fruits eaten by the Cuban people are: mangos, avocados, oranges, lemons, pineapples and guayavas (CultureGrams, 2007). Since Cuba is an island, thus seafood is very common in the Cuban kitchen. Fishery represents a way for Cubans to self-sustain their nutritional needs for the Cubans living in the coastal areas. Shrimps and Lobster are the preferred seafood plates are Cuban restaurants which mostly depend on business from tourist, since the typical Cuban residents can not afford such luxuries. Respect for the elderly is important and if a family member dies the entire extended family, friends and neighbors are expected to go to the funeral and pay their respects. Cubans growing up are given are taken care of by their families so they become productive member is society. Raising the child is the responsibility of the mother and the father is the one that is suppose to bring the money into the household. As they become teenagers and are near adulthood most Cuban boys consider military life as an option since it is a sure governmental salary and a career path that despite not being lucrative brings economic stability to a household. The country is ranked 52 of 176 in countries in the world in terms of the HDI human development (CountryWatch, 2007). The ranked is quite impressive position for the socialist nation, the greatest socialist nation, China, is ranked 85 in the world and the country does not have the massive overpopulation crisis China is facing. The infant rate is 6.3 deaths for every 1000 births a rate which ranks the country first in the Caribbean region with the exception of the American owned territories of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The urban to rural population spit is 7:3 and the country’s capital is mainly urban with over 2 million inhabitants in the city of Havana (Country Insight, 2007). The life expectancy of the nation is outstanding due to Cuba’s exceptional healthcare system. Cuba has one of the highest amounts of certified doctors in the world per capita. The life expectancy of men is 75 years of age and 80 for women (Country Insight, 2007). Cuba- Physical Environment The island of Cuba positioned around three bodies of water. The three seas surrounding the mystical island are The Gulf of Mexico, The North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Appendix B is a map the seas surrounding Cuba. The internal topography of the largest island in the Caribbean is two-thirds plain and the other third mountains. The total amount of internal water bodies are 200 bays and 289 beaches (Mapsoftheworld, 2007). The total area of land of Cuba is 110,860 square miles which means that the landmass of the island is suitable for agriculture since 74,276 square miles are flat. Even though there is fair amount of water systems the Cuban’s rivers are shallow. Water is scarce in Cuba and both the people and infrastructure can not grow adequately due to this natural occurrence. The highest mountain in Cuba is over 8,000 feet high. Cuba land area is the envy of all Caribbean Countries because is far the largest island in the region. Natural resources are abundant and it is one of the closest islands to the United States mainland. Its precise location is tremendous and the government’s policy of saving the land for future use will reap lots of benefits in the future. The large unused chuck of space can be utilized for industrial projects in the emerging field such as biotechnology or nanotechnology. The nation has the educated human capital to make these types of project that utilize the land for industrial reform a reality. The Climate in Cuba Cuba is a tropical island with a humid and warm general climate. The island is extremely susceptible during Hurricane season because of its proximity to the equator line and its location in the Caribbean since the normal route of the hurricane includes a passage throughout that region towards the Florida or the Gulf of Mexico. The Cuban Archipelago region is composed of two main islands, Isla de la Juventud and Cuba. The average temperature of the tropical island of Cuba is 75 degrees Fahrenheit (CultureGrams, 2007). There two weather seasons in Cuba, the dry winter season which starts in November and ends in April and the humid warm summer season which extends form May to October. Humidity is high because of the tropical climate which causes a high heat index about 10 grades than the actual temperate in the environment. Economy – Cuba Cuba’s economy is driven by two main factors: its sugar production and tourism. The socialist country relied heavily on the former Russian empire as its main location for exports during the 2nd half of the 20th century. Since the demise and breakup of Russia Cuba lost a lot of economic stability and new reforms have taken place. The economy of Cuba has never been stable or solid nor has it been able to ever fulfill the expectations of its residents. The country is considered the highest credit risk location and investment location in the world because of political instability and its horrendous relations with the United States. United States imposed a trade embargo on Cuba since the current president of Cuba, Fidel Castro, took control of Cuba in 1959. This has hurt Cuba tremendously since the proximity of Cuba to the US makes the United a logical trading partner. The entire world needs the support of the US since they their economy is one of the strongest in the world their imports surpass the trillion dollar mark on a yearly basis. The gross domestic product per capita in Cuba is $5,700 (Economic Intelligence Unit, 2007). Tourism is the fastest growing segment of the economy in Cuba which has been growing at a rate above 10% yearly and enjoys high profit margins of 25% on sales during the 21st century (CountryInsight, 2007). The impact of the loss of the USSR as a trading partner led to reduction in economic growth in the early 1990. The tough economic times helped the Russian economy in the long run. Cuba was forced to diversity and the lack of cash inflows required a reduction in outflows, thus Cuba emphasized in reducing its overall debt levels. In 1993 Cuba’s fiscal deficit represented 30.4% percent of its yearly gross domestic product, five years later the government shredded the debt to 2.2% of gross domestic product in 1998 (CountryWatch, 2007). The national currency of Cuba is the Cuban Peso (CUP), a currency that even though it does not incur in trade exchanges with the US it very stable due to the low inflation levels in Cuba which fluctuate at a around the 3% level. The European Community, China and Latin America, Mexico and Canada have become the biggest economic allies of Cuba. Mexico and Canada are Cuba’s biggest trading partners (CountryGrams, 2007). The country has received foreign direct investments from these regions to build better infrastructure to attract more tourism into Cuba. China has invested a lot in Cuba’s nickel industry (CountryWatch, 2007). Venezuela who is a huge player in the energy industry worldwide due to its abundant petroleum reserves supplies Cuba with its energy needs. There is scientific proof that Cuba owns deep oil reserves of nearly 0.6 billion barrels of crude, but exploration efforts have not paid dividend yet and it is estimated that the country needs to invest $1.5 billion and make a five year commitment to located and extract that petroleum (CountryInsight, 2007). The deep root problems of the Cuban economy are shortages of power, water supply and the trade embargo with the United States. The changes in the Cuban economy early in the 21st century provided a boost to the country’s economic growth. In 2005 the country’s economic growth rate was 11.8% (Country Insight, 2007). Agriculture has always been the cash cow of Cuba, particularly sugar cane. The country’s underdevelopment water system is hampering the industry, but there is plenty of fertile land. The natural resources in the island of Cuba are abundant. The lack of housing construction growth which is half the demand of the population is helping the island ensure future growth in many commodity markets. It is been indirectly reserved for better uses than more urbanization. The residents are suffering due to insufficient construction production, but the suffering will pay dividends for the future generations. The agricultural production of the country is not sufficient to meet the internal demand of the Cuban residents. The strategic option of concentrated growth in the sugar sector has sustained the nation for decades. The best aspect of the economy is tourism, the communication industry has become a key growth variable. Communication and technological growth will allow greater exporting of services and full access to alternative business frameworks such as ecommerce. The accumulative knowledge of the residents has a great value, thus exporting services is a logical solution. The model use by China of transitioning from a close to an open market is vital for Cuba. The political conflict with the Unite States must be resolved for this economy to achieve potential very high growth rates. Considering the approximate 12% economic growth in 2005, 15-25% yearly growth is not out of the realm of possibility with an end to the US trade embargo. Political condition – Cuba The government type of Cuba is a communist state. Fidel Castro is the head of state of Cuba. The internal Cuba governmental structure is divided into 14 districts and the Juventud Isle. The people of Cuba do not enjoy a lot of the things democratic residents such as the British people take for granted. For example there is no freedom of speech in the press in Cuba, no public acts of religion are allowed, protest are not permitted, people can not leave the island at free will and the communication have been restricted for long time but the country is making good progress in the communication area. President Castro is ill and has not made a public appearance in many months. His brother is currently leading the nation, a position he may get accustomed to since he is the apparent inherit ant of the thrown after Fidel passes away. The nation has bad relations with its closest neighbor the USA, Cuba is locate 90 miles off the coast of Florida. A movement away from the socialist regime into democracy is what the US and other democratic nation want for Cuba for its people who are the victims of many human rights violations from the Castro regime. Conclusion Cuba is located in an advantageous position in the Caribbean placed with a series of treasure islands of abundance of beauty and natural resources. The Spaniard and African descendant race is rich in cultural and ethnic background. The people are extremely well educated. The country of Cuba is a socialist regime. The rise of Castro over 45 years ago led to the biggest economic obstacle for the 11 million current residents of the Cuba. The country has many positive geographical attributes such as its over two-thirds characteristic of flat land, many of it is still unused. The country has the potential to become the central focus of the Caribbean region. The intellectual property of talented humans can convert this economy in to a new reality of prosperity. The government has to instill true liberalization of its markets which can not depend anymore in state owned enterprises. Spiritualism and Christianism bring hope and faith to the people that liberation and full integration with the world is coming soon for the people of Cuba. References CultureGrams (2007). Profile-Cuba. Retrieved November 20, 2007 from CultureGrams database. Country Insight (2007). Cuba. Retrieved November 20, 2007 from Country Insight Database. CountryWatch (2007). Cuba. Retrieved November 20, 2007 from CountryWatch database. Economic Intelligence Unit (2007). Cuba. Retrieved November 19, 2007 from EIU database. Mapsoftheworld.com (2007). Cuba. Retrieved November 20, 2007 from http://www.mapsoftheworld.com Appendix A: Map of Cuba (Mapsoftheworld, 2007) Appendix B: Seas surrounding Cuba (Mapsoftheworld, 2007) Read More