With the starting in Cuba of a new category of “Working for Oneself” and other non-state forms of production, Cubans, always an enterprising and hard-working people, are applying their knowledge and creative capacities to meet the growing popular demand for consumer services and products. As a result, new business realities are being developed by those who have taken this path. As of December 2018, more than 500,000 commercial and industrial initiatives had been created, of which 30% were the creation of young people and 34% had been started by women.
All through this time, and to contribute to the success of these efforts, with all that they represent in terms of human and economic progress, the Office of the Archbishop of Havana, within the structure of the Father Felix Varela Cultural Center, has established several entrepreneurial training programs linked to the ongoing work of the different religious orders.
Of these programs, the best-known is “Cuba Emprende” (“Cuba Undertakes”), which already has been functioning for seven years, and which has made possible the formation of more than three thousand entrepreneurs who have started or upgraded their businesses. This has been accomplished through basic training, specialized consultations, and providing the space for the ongoing formation they receive in this program. The training that is offered includes:
- Courses for starting a business,
- Workshops for provision of basic skills such as accounting, administration and sales;
- Specialized advice according to the concrete needs of the entrepreneurs;
- Room for conferences and spaces for dialogue;
- Fairs; and
- Hands-on practice for professors and graduates outside of Cuba.