This week, numerous elderly individuals gathered outside the Banco Popular de Ahorro in Santiago de Cuba's Plaza de Dolores, forming extensive queues in an attempt to collect their monthly pensions. The scene was captured in a video shared by the "Nuestro Santiago de Cuba / Ayer y Hoy" Facebook page on Saturday.
The video, which has garnered over 7,300 views, depicts a large group of retirees waiting under the shade of a tree in the plaza, a monthly sight that highlights the ongoing social security crisis on the island.
The Strain on Limited Resources
According to reports, the BPA branch at this location can only serve approximately 50 retirees a day with prioritized service, a capacity far below the overwhelming demand.
Many of the pensioners, some as old as 80, begin lining up as early as six in the evening the previous day, spending the night on the sidewalks to secure their spot. These waits can range from four to eight hours.
Financial Struggles and Insufficient Pensions
At the end of this long wait, the retirees receive a meager pension of 4,000 Cuban pesos, amounting to about seven to eight dollars at the current informal exchange rate, a sum grossly insufficient to meet the basic needs, estimated at between 12,000 and 30,000 pesos per person.
A March 2026 survey by ASIC revealed that 99% of Cuban retirees claim their pension fails to cover food, housing, or medication.
Banking Challenges Exacerbate the Crisis
The cash shortage in the banking system worsens the situation: over 50% of the country's ATMs are either out of order or empty, and power outages further limit banking hours.
This collapse is not limited to Santiago. On the same Saturday, Iraida Calzadilla, a retired journalist from the state-run Granma newspaper, reported on Facebook spending eight hours sitting on the curb of the Ministry of Transport's bank in Havana to withdraw up to 5,000 pesos—less than nine dollars—labeling the system as "inhumane."
Government's Inadequate Response
In June, the Granma provincial government admitted to lacking the 400 million pesos needed to pay its 111,000 retirees and has resorted to staggered payments based on each branch's daily availability.
Cuba has 1,774,310 retirees according to the National Office of Statistics and Information, with the purchasing power of this group dropping nearly 30% from September 2025 to June 2026 due to inflation and the peso's depreciation.
As an emergency measure, the Central Bank announced on Saturday the nationwide extension of the "Caja Extra" scheme, requiring local businesses and private microenterprises to pay pensions directly to retirees in their area using daily sales cash.
This plan had been piloted since April in four Havana municipalities and since May in Holguín, benefiting around 5,000 pensioners.
Critics view the measure as an admission of the State's failure to ensure social security, shifting responsibility to private entities that should rest with the government.
The state newspaper Venceremos acknowledged on July 3 that the retirees' predicament is a "social problem," not merely a banking issue, as Cuban elders continue to question whether 4,000 pesos is enough to sustain them for a month.
Understanding Cuba's Pension Crisis
Why are Cuban retirees facing long waits to collect their pensions?
Cuban retirees endure long waits due to limited banking resources and high demand, with branches only able to serve a small fraction of the retirees daily.
How much do Cuban retirees receive in pensions?
Retirees receive a minimal pension of 4,000 Cuban pesos, equivalent to about seven to eight dollars, which is insufficient to cover basic living expenses.
What is the "Caja Extra" scheme?
The "Caja Extra" scheme requires local businesses and private microenterprises to pay pensions directly to retirees using cash from daily sales, as an emergency measure to address the pension distribution crisis.