The crisis does not distinguish species
October 05 of 2022
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Argarita is a 72-year-old lady residing in the municipality
San Cristóbal, in the Artemisa province. 15 years ago he was diagnosed with diabetes, news that came along with his retirement from work and the well-known violation of his economic income. Margarita lives with her grandson, a pre-university student, in the so-called cuarterías in front of the municipal park. The total income of the household does not greatly exceed Margarita's retirement, the result of her entire economic life's work in a sugar mill.
In San Cristóbal it has been more than two years since the stores in national currency disappeared and it has been approximately a year since the municipality of Artemisa did not receive the special diet of milk and meat for people with diabetes. In this way, Margarita and her grandson feed on the products available through the supply book and the sporadic sales of chicken or hash in national currency, which is done at least once a month in San Cristóbal.
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- I remember that in previous cyclones there were sales in the square, where you could buy food at low prices, because logically we were going to be several days without electricity or water services. I remember that we bought bread and cookies for several days and spending the savings we bought some canned goods in the stores in CUC, but none of that is left.
Margarita tells us.
The urban area of San Cristóbal was partially affected by the passage of Hurricane Ian, the external winds and heavy rains felled some trees that slightly affected the power lines, this has resulted in the suspension of electricity as a measure to facilitate repairs relevant. In the same way, the water supply service has been suspended "because there is no electricity to pump the water" according to the municipal authorities. In this way, after the passage of the hurricane, in the town of Artemisathere is no water or electricity.
The suspension of these services does not take Margarita by surprise, since she has been suffering the calls for several monthsalumbrones, with power cuts of up to 15 hours a day and with this the consequent stoppage of aqueduct services. This is why, despite the fact that Margarita has several household appliances for cooking, some time ago she rescued her old stove, repurposed into an electric stove casing. This rustic kitchen that he feeds with fuel bought on the black market, since they have not received fuel regulated by the supply book for a long time, serves to illuminate his house and cook the little food that is left of the monthly quota received in the month of Septemberandin the winery.
Daisy flower:
-In October they have not distributed any of the errands because there is no fuel to bring them, I don't even expect chicken anymore and there is nothing to buy on the street either, everyone is saving what they have for their house. The mincemeat raised its price the day before the hurricane, from 180 to 250 pesos and I can't afford that. It has been more than 5 days in a row that we have not had electricity and my refrigerator is very old, everything that I have been able to save in these months was rotting.
Cambiar la narrativa triunfalista y reconocer el problema
Cuba es alabada desde hace más de una década por ser “único país de América Latina y el Caribe que ha eliminado la desnutrición infantil severa”. Aunque los continuos informes Progreso para la Infancia, Un balance sobre la nutrición tuvieron su última mención al respecto en el 2006, la isla continúa posicionándose como un país con 0% de desnutrición infantil.
Según el último reporte anual del PMA para Cuba (2021), los grupos nutricionalmente vulnerables, incluidos niños en edad escolar, habían mejorado su estado nutricional y recibido más dietas diversificadas y nutritivas para ese año. A la vez, el programa admite haber seleccionado varios municipios de la provincia de Villa Clara y Guantánamo para promover el consumo estable de una dieta más diversificada.[3] Para este objetivo, existen cooperaciones entre el PMA y el Ministerio de Educación, así como con la Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Agricultura y la Alimentación (FAO), el Fondo Internacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (FIDA), el Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo (PNUD), el Fondo Internacional de Emergencia para la Infancia de las Naciones Unidas (UNICEF) y otros socios. Entre sus principales objetivos se encuentra fomentar la producción de alimentos de los pequeños agricultores dirigida a escuelas y centros preescolares, instituciones que puedan recibir hortalizas de producción local proporcionadas por cooperativas locales.
Más allá de conclusiones triunfalistas y de programas cosméticos, urge revisar los estándares y variables con los que se evalúa la inseguridad alimentaria en el país. Food Monitor Program alerta que no basta con tener alimentos disponibles para saciarse, sino con acceder a aquellos que se necesitan para mantenerse saludable. Aunque el hambre crónica no aparezca en cifras en estos reportes, la ausencia de componentes vitamínicos y minerales necesarios, conocida como “hambre oculta” [4], afecta la capacidad física e intelectual de los estudiantes en diferentes niveles de enseñanza. El estado de la alimentación en las instituciones educativas, tal y como lo hemos descrito, no solamente incide en los niveles nutricionales de jóvenes dentro del desabastecimiento general que sufre el país, sino que afecta directamente la adaptación de los más pequeños a estas instituciones, así como la motivación de los mayores a asistir a la escuela. En general, este problema extendido en el tiempo puede tener consecuencias significativas en la depauperación de la sociedad cubana, a diferentes niveles.
[1] 'Sancocho para puercos': lo que han comido los niños cubanos en las escuelas este año (julio, 2022), en: https://diariodecuba.com/cuba/1658514275_41115.html
[2] Denuncian que esto es lo que comen los niños cubanos en sus escuelas (julio, 2022); en: https://actualidadcuba.com/cuba/lo-que-comen-los-ninos-cubanos-en-las-escuelas/
[3] PMA (2021). Cuba Annual Country Report 2021, en: https://docs.wfp.org/api/documents/WFP-0000137961/download/?_ga=2.156125691.1762527357.1679684915-1372979350.1676823955
[4] ttps://www.fao.org/about/meetings/icn2/news/news-detail/es/c/265244/