• Submitted by: Juana
• Havana
• Business and Economy
• 11 / 03 / 2016

---

 Cuban Foreign Trade and Investment Minister Rodrigo Malmierca said that, since the passing of the Law 118 for Foreign Investment in March 2014, 83 projects were approved under it.
Minister Malmierca explained that, out of that number, 14 were reinvestments, 15 within the Mariel Special Development Zone, and the rest throughout the country.
He added that the total volume of direct investment was of some 1.3 billion dollars in two years, far from the "expectations and needs" of Cuba, which requires some 2 billion a year to meet its development quota.
The Cuban Minister ratified the willingness of the country to continue working to make of direct foreign investment (DFI) an essential element for its socio-economic development.
He noted that Cuba is giving priority to the training of negotiating and sponsor groups to expedite the approval processes, along creating a favorable environment for investors.
National savings are not enough to face the challenges of Cuban economy, therefore DFI is much needed, Malmierca said.