The Republic of Cuba is located in the northern Caribbean at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The island of Cuba consists of island Cuba (largest) and Isla de la Juventud and other small islands. It is the 17th largest island in the world. Cuba’s neighbours are United States and The Bahamas in the north, Turks, Caicos Islands and Haiti in the east, Mexico in the west and Cayman Islands and Jamaica in the south. It is the most populous country of the Caribbean. Havana (23 07 N, 82 21 W) is the capital. Fidel Castro, one of the most popular communist leaders of the world belongs to the island.
HISTORY:- Cuba was inhabited by the Native American Taíno and Ciboney people. The Spanish Empire captured the island in 1511 and ruled until 1898. Under José Marti;s leadership independence movements set in. In 1898, US invaded the land but the US battle ship Maine sank in the harbour of Havana. With 1899 treaty Cuba became independent under US protection while US occupation ended in 1902. 1901 Platt Amendment was overthrown in 1934. In 1933 President Gerardo Machado was dethroned in favour of Fulgencio Batista in 1940. Ramón Grau took the president office after Batista. After Batista returned into power, Fidel Castro Ruz introduced a rebellion which was resulted into Batista’s exile and Castro’s coming into power in 1959. In 1961 after US-Cuba ally broke up, Castro joined with Soviet Union. After Osvaldo Dorticós Torrado, Castro again became President with a new constitution in 1976. Castro turned up to be the President of the Council of State, President of the Council of Ministers, First Secretary of the Cuban Communist Party and the commander in chief of the armed forces. Cuba introduced communist revolutions all over the world. The downfall of Soviet Union led to a massive economic depression for Cuba. In July 2006, Castro left the power for his physical ailments and his brother and First Vice President Raúl Castro took over.
GEOGRAPHY:- Cuba is located at 21 30 N, 80 00 W in the northern Caribbean, spanning through 110,860 sq km with no internal water source. The coastline is 3,735 km along with the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. The lowest point is Caribbean Sea (0 m) and the highest point is Pico Turquino (2,005 m). Cuba mostly is formed of flat to rolling plains, while the southeast region is hilly to mountainous.
CLIMATE:- The climate of Cuba is tropical which is moderated by trade winds. It has a dry season (November to April) and a rainy season (May to October).
GOVERNMENT:- Cuba is a communist state. The constitution was adopted on 24th February 1976 and was amended in July 1992 and again in June 2002. The legal system is based on Spanish civil law with influences of American legal concepts and Communist legal theory. The three branches of the government are:
Executive branch comprises the President (chief of state and head of government), and cabinet. Council of ministers is proposed by the President of the Council of State and appointed by the National Assembly. The President, vice president are elected by the National Assembly.
Legislative branch comprises the unicameral National Assembly of People's Power (614 seats).
Judicial branch comprises the People's Supreme Court. The judges are elected by the National Assembly.
In Cuba one party-system is accepted- the Cuban Communist Party (PCC). Suffrage is universal at 16.
Executive branch comprises the President (chief of state and head of government), and cabinet. Council of ministers is proposed by the President of the Council of State and appointed by the National Assembly. The President, vice president are elected by the National Assembly.
Legislative branch comprises the unicameral National Assembly of People's Power (614 seats).
Judicial branch comprises the People's Supreme Court. The judges are elected by the National Assembly.
In Cuba one party-system is accepted- the Cuban Communist Party (PCC). Suffrage is universal at 16.
President Raúl Castro
First Vice President José Ramón Machado Ventura
First Vice President José Ramón Machado Ventura
ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS:- Cuba is formed of 14 provinces and 1 special municipality (Isla de la Juventud).
CULTURE:- Spanish and African cultures are predominant in the nation. Baseball is the most popular sport while basketball, volleyball, cricket, amateur boxing and athletics are also widely practiced. Cuba has a rich heritage of music including Son, salsa, rumba and mambo, cha-cha-cha. Any bodily movements and provocative dances are prohibited. Maracas, güiro, marímba and various wooden drums are the famous Cuban musical instruments. Cuban cuisine is highly influenced by Spanish and Caribbean cuisines. Nicolás Guillén and Jose Z. Tallet, Reinaldo Arenas, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, Daína Chaviano, Pedro Juan Gutiérrez, Zoé Valdés, and Leonardo Padura are prominent writers of Cuba.
ECONOMY:- Cuba has a state-controlled planned economy.
GDP/PPP (2006 est.): $45.51 billion; per capita $4,000 .
Real growth rate: 9.5%.
Inflation: 5%.
Unemployment: 1.9%.
Arable land: 33%.
Agriculture: sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock.
Labor force: 4.82 million; note: state sector 78%, non-state sector 22% (2006 est.); agriculture 20%, industry 19.4%, services 60.6% (2006).
Industries: sugar, petroleum, tobacco, construction, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery, pharmaceuticals.
Natural resources: cobalt, nickel, iron ore, copper, manganese, salt, timber, silica, petroleum, arable land.
Budget:
Revenues: $41.84 billion
Expenditures: $43.9 billion (2007 est.)
Revenues: $41.84 billion
Expenditures: $43.9 billion (2007 est.)
Public debt: 36.8% of GDP (2007 est.)
Exports: $2.956 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.): sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee.
Imports: $9.51 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.): petroleum, food, machinery and equipment, chemicals.
Major trading partners: Netherlands, Canada, China, Russia, Spain, Venezuela, U.S., Italy, Mexico (2004).
Monetary unit: Cuban Peso
LANGUAGE:- Spanish is the official language.
CITIES:- Capital Havana is the larges city. Other large cities are Santiago de Cuba, Camaguey, Santa Clara, Holguin, Guantanamo, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Pinar del Rio.
POPULATION:- Cuba is populated by 11,423,952 (July 2008 est.) with a growth rate of 0.3%.
Density per sq mi: 267
Literacy rate: 97% (2003 est.)
Density per sq mi: 267
Literacy rate: 97% (2003 est.)
RACE:-
Mulatto 51%
White 37%
Black 11%
Chinese 1%
Mulatto 51%
White 37%
Black 11%
Chinese 1%
RELIGION:- Predominant religion is Roman Catholic and Santería (Afro-Cuban syncretic religion)
HEALTH:-
Birth rate: 11.27 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate: 7.19 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 5.93 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.27 years
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl $, 2005): 333
Birth rate: 11.27 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate: 7.19 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 5.93 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.27 years
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl $, 2005): 333
UNICEF:- UNICEF and the World Food Programme provide food and pure water to 200,000 women and 500,000 children, and provide refrigerators and water-conservation devices to increase food supply to over 6,000 children in Holguin province and over 3,000 children in Granma province. Measles, mumps and rubella vaccination is completed almost 98% and iron-fortified fruit puree is distributed among 300,000 children. UNICEF helped in eliminating iodine-deficiency disorders in Cuba. UNICEF with UN agencies trains individuals in nutrition, accident prevention and domestic affairs counseling. To improve education system UNICEF provides books in Cuba’s public libraries.
TRANSPORTATION:-
Railways: total: 4,226 km (2004).
Highways: total: 60,858 km; paved: 29,820 km; unpaved: 31,038 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 240 km (2004).
Ports and harbors: Cienfuegos, Cienfuegos, Havana, Matanza.
Airports: 170 (2006 est.).
Railways: total: 4,226 km (2004).
Highways: total: 60,858 km; paved: 29,820 km; unpaved: 31,038 km (1999 est.). Waterways: 240 km (2004).
Ports and harbors: Cienfuegos, Cienfuegos, Havana, Matanza.
Airports: 170 (2006 est.).
- Other steel articles
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