Cuban Government's "Experimental" Budget Moves: Ambulance Services and Hidden Privatization of Public Services

The Cuban government has unveiled an "experimental project" introducing a novel management model for ambulance services in Havana, featuring 15 ambulances equipped with advanced technology. A report by journalist Bernardo Espinoza for the National Television News highlighted the agreement between the Ministries of Transport and Public Health, Communist Party authorities, the Havana government, and the joint venture MCV Comercial S.A.

This "experimental project" emerged from negotiations during the International Transport and Logistics Fair held in April 2024 in the capital. At the conclusion of the report, where Espinoza interviewed project authorities, the state journalist noted, "The payment for services to the joint venture owning the equipment will be covered by the State Budget."

This implies that Cubans are witnessing a covert privatization of essential public services, without any public tender or detailed information on the financial burden it imposes on the State's coffers, funded by taxpayers. Moreover, there is no accessible information on MCV Comercial S.A., its members, its founding capital, or its proposal for this "experimental project" announced by the communist regime.

These uncertainties were encapsulated in a recent tweet by Cuban economist Pedro Monreal, who criticized the agreement, highlighting the concealed privatization of essential public services initiated by the Cuban regime with its notorious economic "package" aimed at "correcting distortions and reviving the economy."

Over the years, government figures like Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz and leader Miguel Díaz-Canel have reiterated that privatization is not the path for Cuba, defending the socialist model of centralized management.

In a Council of Ministers meeting in December 2019, Díaz-Canel stated that in 2020, they would "remove obstacles to enhance state enterprises," implementing "everything necessary to unleash productive forces," but none of this should be confused "with privatization, as that is not our path."

Marrero recently declared that "state enterprises will not be allowed to fail" and that the government has the responsibility to strengthen them, while Díaz-Canel insisted that the economic measures aim to preserve the socialist model, rejecting criticisms of an alleged dismantling of the public sector.

The decision to allocate state resources to the joint venture MCV Comercial S.A. raises concerns about the government's priorities and its commitment to efficient public spending.

From the public's perspective, this management model raises questions about equity and access to health services. It is unclear if this collaboration will eventually introduce fees or additional payments by citizens, or if the "experimental project" will be implemented uniformly across all health areas in the country.

Minister of Transport Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila told the NTV that the plan is to launch this initial project with the first 15 ambulances and, as the year progresses, design its expansion and establish the joint venture's infrastructure in other provinces to provide service there as well.

Despite official assertions that the measure does not involve privatization, the lack of clarity about the joint venture's role in managing ambulances continues to breed distrust among experts and the public.

The absence of a transparent regulatory framework and the government's refusal to publicly acknowledge a potential structural change in public service management foster the perception of a hidden privatization.

This new ambulance management scheme marks a turning point in the public service policy defended by the Cuban regime for over 60 years. Despite the government's claims of "continuity" against privatization, actions suggest otherwise. The lack of transparency, manipulated narrative, and absence of concrete figures only reinforce the notion that the regime is adopting measures contrary to its own discourse... and the suspicion that new "elites" connected to regime power and decision-making will benefit from this deceptive hidden privatization.