Cuentapropista
Cuentapropista (Spanish: kwen.t̪a.pɾo.ˈpis.t̪a) is a Cuban term for a person who lives from his own business and is a "non-state" worker.[1][2] The term is often used in Argentina and Uruguay as well, however, in most other Spanish-speaking countries, this would be referred to as a "trabajador por cuenta propia" and/or "trabajador autónomo". According to the Cuban Ministry of Labor and Social Security (MTSS) statistics, a total of 580,828 Cubans were self-employed at the end of 2018, representing 13 percent of the country's workforce.[3][4]
History and growth
[edit]Since 2010, during Raul Castro's leadership, the Cuban government legitimized and began to regulate the class of self-employed workers.[2] The class of Cuentapropistas was organized and registered economical reforms in 2010-2011, which were referred to by some as the "New Cuban Economy".[5][6][7]
Of the nearly 600,000 self-employed, 33% are women. The most represented sectors are restaurants (palates and cafes), with 9% of licenses; transportation (taxis, 9%) and private leasing of residences (6%), an increasingly popular tourist accommodation option.[8] 123 professions can be registered as Cuentapropista, most of which are low-skill jobs such as knife sharpener, purse knitter, palm tree trimmer, button upholsterer, and sheep shearer,[9][10][11] and none of which are in manufacturing or industry.[3]
During 2019, the MTSS announced that state actors will be permitted to sell excess produce to Cuentapropistas using either of the official currencies of Cuba.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ "Dictionary definition of cuentapropista". Dirae.es.
- ^ a b "International Republican Institute's 2018 Cuba survey" (PDF). International Republican Institute. 20 April 2018.
- ^ a b c "New Rules Consolidate Self-Employment in Cuba". CubaSí. 2019-05-12. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ "Nuevos requisitos para solicitar licencia de cuentapropista". adelante.cu. 12 July 2018.
- ^ "Cuba adopta nuevos lineamientos económicos para aumentar la producción". semanarioaqui.com. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ E. Feinberg, Richard (December 2012). "The New Cuban Economy" (PDF). The Brookings institution. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-07-30. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ Gonzalez, Joseph J. "Fidel's Cuba is long gone". The Conversation. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ Sánchez-Vallejo, María Antonia (2018-11-26). "Cuba pone freno al crecimiento de los trabajadores por cuenta propia". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ "One Year Later: Cuba's Cuentapropistas – World Policy". Archived from the original on 2022-01-27. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ "Cuban Entrepreneurial Fact Sheet" (PDF). Worldpolicy.org.
- ^ Cave, Damien (2014-12-19). "Crucible of Cuban Zeal Redefines Revolutionary". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-04-15.