• Submitted by: manso
• Politics and Government
• 07 / 02 / 2011

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By: 10:41Havana, Jul 1 (Prensa Latina) Cutting spending is one of the main objectives of Cuba's economic strategy through 2016, according to a report published Friday on a Council of Ministers meeting.

During the three-day meeting held over the previous weekend, participants approved the economic guidelines for the 2012 plan, Granma newspaper reported.

Apart from spending cuts, priority was placed on the need to increase the production of food and related supplies, to step up exports, and to review imports.

Cuban President Raul Castro specifically addressed the need to eradicate spontaneity, superficiality, and a lack of thoroughness in feasibility studies, and the lack of a comprehensive approach to handling investments.

He noted that food imports cost Cuba more than one billion USD annually, a situation that is aggravated by higher food prices.

Raul Castro urged a return to the development of genetics and increasing artificial insemination for a bigger and better cattle population, which is still below the needs of sectors like tourism.

An error, no matter how small it might seem, could cause serious economic consequences, the Cuban president said. He called for "breaking the inertia, stepping up the fight against these problems, and demanding more from ourselves and others."