Development as an Unfinished Affair
Cuba After the "Great Adjustment" of the 1990s
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4500183 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Pedro Monreal (Center for Research on the International Economy at the University of Havana and teaches in the university's School of Economics, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2002 |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 75-90 |
| Publication date | 2002-05-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Latin American Perspectives (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0094-582X • E-ISSN: 1552-678X |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/0094582x0202900305 |
| OpenAlex | W1998406250 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 4 |
The Cuban economy endured the most profound crisis of its peacetime history during the first half of the 1990s, a crisis precipitated by the collapse of really existing socialism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. Approximately one-third of the total gross domestic product simply evaporated in just four years, and foreign trade contracted by almost three-fourths. At some point in that period, the economy was unequivocally in free fall. Levels of consumption were severely reduced, social programs were negatively impacted, and there was a very real danger of a massive reversal of the achievements recorded during the 30 years of the Cuban Revolution. Government policies to deal with the crisis were markedly different from the pattern of economic adjustment that other countries have adopted. Essential social services such as education and health care were provided universally and at no cost even in the worst moments of the crisis. Subsidized food-although in relatively reduced amounts-guaranteed a minimum level of nutrition, while other important social programs were designed to support particular social groups. Adherence to norms of fairness and social justice was the hallmark of Cuban adjustment policies during the 1990s. Resolving the crisis was a matter of survival, and various programs and policies were implemented to achieve that goal under severe time constraints and intense political pressure, including the tightening of the U.S. blockade. A crucial aspect of the Great Adjustment of the 1990s was the adaptation of the Cuban economy to a new international context in which it would have to evolve-for the first time in several decades-in the absence of the
Development economics · Economic history · Economics · Political economy · Political science · Sociology · Cuban History and Society · Gender Studies · History
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,16 |
| Citation span | 2007 - 2013 (7) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |