ECLAC says US blockade hinders Cuban Development

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, ECLAC, regretted that the US blockade on Cuba hinders the development of that island nation, though it stressed some advancements taking place in the Caribbean country.

ECLAC’s executive secretary Alicia Barcena said in Santiago de Chile that although some opening has taken place in sectors like tourism and trade, the truth is that the US blockade continues to increase financial costs for Cuba.

“We submitted a report to the UN General Assembly, and we did some calculations that revealed that the blockade inflicted Cuba damages estimated at about 117 million dollars in 2014,” said Barcena.

As to Cuba’s economic prospects she said that there is significant progress, but there is still the barrier of the blockade, and she added that some travel restrictions have been lifted, but we are talking about a very difficult issue, the blockade.