Education and health: the two spearheads of Cuba
Cuban education. Cuban schooling is compulsory until the age of 16, with children starting elementary school at the age of 5 and leaving at around 11. This is followed by three years of secondary school, and a further three years of pre-university education. At the end of lower secondary school, those who decide not to pursue the general curriculum up to the preuniversitario (baccalaureate) can choose a vocational field: agriculture, commerce, economics, foreign languages or tourism. Students with the preuniversitario must then sit an entrance exam, failure of which means compulsory military service for two years. Those who manage to get into university (faculties and pedagogical institutes can be found all over the island) generally stay there for five years, although technical schools offer three-year courses, notably in the hotel industry, IT, nursing and industrial design. At the same time, special education is provided for deaf, mute and motor-impaired children, each of whom receives free treatment adapted to his or her disability.
Cuban medicine. Cuba's other great pride is its healthcare system. Since the revolution in 1959, the development of medicine has been one of the regime's top priorities, placing Cuba at the forefront of health care: Fidel's island has the highest number of doctors per capita in the world. Studies are free of charge, provided by more than 40,000 professors in 24 faculties across the island, and, since 1999, open to foreign students. The regime's declared aim is to help underprivileged countries that are unable to care for their populations. Since 1963 (Algeria), Cuban doctors have been actively involved in humanitarian campaigns, and today there are an estimated 30,000 of them in some sixty underprivileged countries.
As far as the local healthcare system is concerned, Cubans can consult a doctor free of charge, and the medicines they may need are very affordable (which is not the case for foreigners passing through). However, some medicines are not available on the island, due to the US embargo, which discourages certain laboratories from working with Cuba. For example, you won't find the morning-after pill. Thanks to this high-performance healthcare system, Cuban life expectancy is particularly high - 80.1 years, compared with 80.9 years in the United States (2024) - and a very low infant mortality rate: 4 ‰, lower than that of the neighboring United States. These statistics place Cuba among the average of the most developed countries. As for hospital infrastructure, it's fairly well maintained and very clean, although equipment is often lacking, again due to the US embargo, which can pose serious problems in the event of major surgery.
Everyday difficulties
Housing. While Cubans are well off when it comes to education and health care, the same is not necessarily true of other aspects of daily life. Housing, for a start, can prove problematic. Havana's three million or so residents live in cramped conditions, often spanning several generations. This promiscuity can tend to create inconveniences, and even family conflicts. In fact, Cuba's divorce rate is close to 60%, the highest in the world. What's more, it's hard for a young couple to find intimacy when they're just starting out... Discretion is therefore the order of the day. To remedy this, establishments similar to casas particulares have sprung up: hospedajes welcome couples for a few hours and a handful of pesos.
Moving is no easy matter either. By law, Cubans are obliged to exchange their home for another. However, the new home must be identical. This action is called permutar, and it's not uncommon, particularly in Havana, to see "se permuta" signs hanging from downtown buildings. In the case of an unequal exchange, the person acquiring a larger dwelling usually pays the other a certain sum in coin.
Transportation. Getting around: another major daily concern for Cubans. The two main ways to get around are by bus (crowded!) and by hitchhiking. Cuban-style hitchhiking involves standing on the side of the road and waving your hand at drivers. Naturally, pretty girls are more successful in this maneuver, and the competition is pretty unfair all in all. While buying a car was forbidden until 2011, it is now possible. However, few Cubans can afford to take the plunge. It takes years of savings to get there. At the same time, the supply of petrol is a recurring problem, even more so now that friendly Venezuela is embroiled in a politico-economic stalemate. In the event of a fuel shortage, priority is given to the Viazul bus company, reserved for tourists.
Another option for long journeys across the island is... the train! In fact, Cuba was the1st country in Latin America, and the 6th in the world (before Spain), to equip itself with railroad lines! In all, more than 8,000 km of track (5,000 dedicated to passenger transport) link the country's main cities, from Occidente to Oriente. However, despite the arrival in 2019 of new trains ordered on a massive scale from China, the rail network's infrastructure is very old and in need of major renovation. Trains do run, but very slowly, and punctuality is not the strong point of Cuban rail services.
Food. As far as food is concerned, the libreta, a ration book available to every Cuban, continues to ensure that everyone has a decent diet. The libreta is used to buy basic foodstuffs at ridiculously low prices. For one month, every Cuban is entitled to a certain quantity of rice, beans, sugar, eggs, cooking oil, tobacco and so on. However, this amount of food really only covers 30% of the dietary needs of a normal man, or even less... Under these conditions, it's hard to feed an entire family. To make up for this, it becomes necessary to turn to the black market for a few bargains, albeit less and less good since the currency devaluation of 2021 and the consequent inflation. Cubans who can afford it, on the other hand, can go to the supermarkets, which are much more expensive, but where better-quality products can be found.
Communication. As far as communications are concerned, the Internet is neither free nor unrestricted in Cuba. However, things have been changing in recent years, and more and more Cuban homes are equipped with a sufficiently high-speed Internet connection. In addition, a public ETECSA wifi network has been in place since 2015, to which Cubans and tourists can connect from their smartphones or computers. People connect to the public network from certain urban areas: the outskirts of major hotels and ETECSA offices, but also the main city squares. Finally, 3G packages have been available for some years now, and are affordable for the vast majority of the Cuban population. In fact, the democratization of Internet use was one of the facilitating factors behind the major demonstrations on July 11, 2021.
Evolution of Cuban customs
Freedom of expression is not necessarily welcome in Cuba: the entire press is scrupulously controlled by the regime, to ensure that only the point of view of the single party is represented. Just take a look at the editorial in Granma. This can mean the outright imprisonment of any Cuban who clearly wishes to start a rebellion or dissident party. Although few confide in visiting tourists on the subject, the vast majority of Cubans feel a real fear of the state. In a way, everyone is watching everyone else in Cuba, and the CDRs (Committees of the Revolution that manage neighborhoods in the cities) ensure that this surveillance is carried out in an official manner.
As far as marriages and divorce are concerned, the Cuban case is rather singular. The promiscuity of Havana's apartments creates conflicts that often lead to divorce. Cuba leads the world, with a rate of 60%! Authorized 15 days after marriage, divorce costs 100 Cuban pesos. As a result, it's not uncommon to find young Cubans who have already had their third or fourth marital experience! This situation is partly explained by the difficulty newlyweds have in finding accommodation, and so are generally forced to move in with each other's parents. In addition, the emancipation of women combined with the loss of influence of the Catholic Church is another factor in family upheaval. For many Cubans, marriage to a foreigner represents a way out.
What is the position of the homosexual community in Cuba? 40 years ago, there was real discrimination against lesbians and gays. It wasn't until 1997 that the last homophobic references in Cuban legislation were abolished. Mariela Castro Espín, Raúl's daughter, was responsible for the law banning all discrimination against gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals in the fields of employment and housing. The same law authorizes gender reassignment surgery, accompanied by identity papers in line with the modified gender. These costs are even covered by the health service. Marriage and adoption are not possible for two people of the same sex, but civil partnerships are possible. Also, since 2015, the International Day Against Homophobia (May 17) has been celebrated in Cuba. Despite this official outpouring of tolerance, Latino machismo has a hard edge.
