In charge of presenting the actions planned for 2024, during the Second Ordinary Period of Sessions of the National Assembly, the head of Government unfolded the good news about additional payments to workers in the Health and Education sectors, which has been well received by the citizenship.
The PM assured that, although it is not possible to raise wages of all the employees of these sectors, the intention is to raise their income, moral stimulation and improvement of working and living conditions.
In the case of Health, payment will be established for night shifts, additional remuneration for exposure and complexity, years of service and maximum effort. In education, they will receive additional payments for seniority and teaching overload.
Meanwhile, the decision to soar the price of fuel is one of the measures most discussed by the population, a transformation described by the authorities as necessary to organize the country’s internal imbalances.
Alberto, a candy seller in a corner of the capital’s Plaza de la Revolucion municipality, commented that the announcement of this provision could generate price surges in many services and the hoarding of products.
It could have several consequences because there is no sector of the economy that is not affected by fuel, he said.
There were several measures announced in search of solutions to national problems, but this is perhaps the one most followed by Cubans.
According to many specialists’ criteria, the impact could be felt more in a country with growing inflation, which is trying to put its economic system in order and is facing the economic, financial and commercial U.S. blockade, the largest and longest in history.
However, the Cuban leadership remains committed to prioritizing the sustainability of the main benefits for the entire population, especially among the most vulnerable sectors.
Addressing the Parliament, the Cuban Minister of Finance and Prices Vladimir Regueiro granted that the maximum total expenditure projection for 2024 is 4.8 billion pesos, which represents a 37% growth.
According to the estimates of that portfolio, such figure ensures the main social sectors and programs such as Public Health, Education, Culture, Sports, Assistance and Social Security, and includes financing demands from the business sector and expenses associated with the public debt.
Regueiro detailed that 63% of the total expenditures will be allocated next year to those prioritized areas, which, he said, reinforces the marked social character of the budget and the efforts made under very difficult conditions. At the Assembly, Marrero stressed the commitment to continue working to ram up the indicators of the national economy, and with them the quality of life.
On the street, many people comment on the eventual consequences of the changes planned for 2024, but at the same time they recognize that the measures seek to boost the necessary economic recovery.
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