After the approval, in 2017, of the Fisheries Policy, in correspondence with the transformations experienced in this area, and as part of the implementation of the country’s Economic and Social Policy Guidelines, it was essential to update the current legal framework and adjust it to the times.

Hence, the proposed law to “order fishery resources under the principles of conservation, sustainable use, a preventive approach, implementation of scientific-technological criteria, and protection of ecosystems, in line with national and international standards and food security and sovereignty precepts.”

According to the grounds of the draft bill, there are several political, economic, and social premises that support this regulation, which stemmed from a Council of Ministers proposal.

Noted is, for example, that the core current regulation in this field, Decree-law No. 164, Fisheries Regulation, 1996, “is obsolete in the face of current conditions, and insufficient for confronting illegal fishing and preserving fishery resources.”

As for the economic impact of the activity, telling data are provided.
IN CONTEXT:

- Annual per capita fish consumption reduced from 16kg in 1989, to 4.3kg in 2014.

- In the last five years, the 54 species that were fished have decreased by 44%. – Catches have fallen by 70% and imports of fish averaged 8,000 tons.

- Lobster and shrimp contribute $63 million dollars annually in exports, and catches have been reduced by 65 and 90% in the last five years,

- Fishery resources are used by 3,376 state commercial fishers and 245 self-consumption fishers.

- Some 18,638 people carry out private commercial fishing, and another 17,600 are recreational fishers.

- 2,329 fishers are linked to aquaculture.

- 10,843 workers are indirectly linked to state fishing.

- It is estimated that a thousand naval craft and some 2,500 people engage in illegal fishing.

- Added to this is the legal limbo in which the non-state sector associated with this activity has been to date. “The relationship with this management mode is limited to sales contracts. Private commercial fishers do not have a defined employment status, and are not linked to any social security regimen.”

- Nor can the complex socio-economic situation present in the 168 identified fishing communities be ignored. “In several, fishing activity is the main source of livelihood and there are few employment alternatives in other sectors.”
WITHIN THE DRAFT BILL

The proposed law is structured into chapters and sections and consists of 27 articles and seven final provisions. The “umbrella” objective focuses on the establishment of “regulations for the proper ordering, administration, and control of fishing, on the basis of the conservation and rational use of hydrobiological resources in sea, river, and lake waters of Cuba, in order to contribute to the food sovereignty of the nation.”

Hence emerge other more specific pronouncements that complement the scope of the regulations:

- Institute fishery resources management principles.

- Establish regulations on fishing authorizations (licenses, concessions and permits) as an organizational measure.

- Define the modalities of state and non-state commercial fishing, sports, recreational and research activities.

- Provide the bases for the operation of the consultative body on fisheries management.

- Create coordination mechanisms among Central State Administration agencies involved in this activity.

SPECIFICATIONS AND OTHER DETAILS

According to the proposed bill, “fishing can only be carried out by Cuban or foreign individuals or legal entities that possess the corresponding authorization for such purposes.” Excluded from this requirement is fishing that is practiced freely by national or foreign individuals from the coast or natural shores, using rods or reels, ropes and hooks, without the aid of water craft.

Regarding fishing authorizations, the proposed law specifies that “they are issued through licenses, concessions and permits, by the competent authority, based on previous state assessment of resources.” The holder is authorized to carry out a certain fishing activity under the conditions and requirements established for that purpose.

“The request to grant, renew, modify, and cancel any type of authorization is processed before the competent authority by the Minister of Food Industry (Minal),” and it is “an indispensable requirement, in the case of individuals, that the applicant be at least 17 years of age.”

As has already been stated, the bill dedicates a good part of its content to the definition, according to its purpose, of different fishing modalities:

- Sports

- Recreational

- Research

- Commercial (state, non-state, for social self-consumption, with purposes other than human consumption, for example, the capture of aquatic organisms for handicrafts, public exhibitions, the extraction of chemical substances and other purposes).

The draft bill also stipulates that “the requirements for undertaking fishing and the use of approved methods and tackle, as well as the provisions regarding the final destination of catches, and other requirements related to each fishing modality, are set out in the Regulation and in the resolutions dictated by the Minister of Minal.”

Similarly, everything related to fishing areas, “which are determined by the Council of Ministers,” is set out, while “the management and handling of fishery resources in these areas is the responsibility of the Minister of Food Industry.”

In addition, it is clarified that, within these zones, “the practice of fishing may be limited or totally prohibited in some places, due to state interests related to the defense of the country or the environment.”

RESPONSIBILITIES AND SUPPORTS

Together with other ordering elements and the structures responsible for implementing them, the draft bill establishes that the Advisory Committee on Fisheries will be Minal’s advisory body on the order and administration of the hydrobiological resources of sea, river, and lake waters.

It is up to this Committee to “analyze the state of exploitation of hydrobiological resources in areas where the state exercises its sovereignty, and propose the necessary regulations and measures to achieve sustainable economic exploitation, which includes fishing zones and quotas, closed seasons, the establishment of minimum and maximum sizes or weights, requirements, limitations or prohibitions of fishing tackle, and other provisions to that effect.”

Specifications regarding the sanitary protection of aquatic species, as well as fishery inspections to prevent and address violations of the planned regimen, are also included in the proposed law.

PARTICIPATION CHANNELS

The draft Fisheries Law, like that on National Symbols, is being debated in provinces with deputies and directors of competent bodies, March 27 through April 3. Citizens may also send their opinions to the email address: leydepesca@anpp.gob.cu

According to the report Food Perspectives, transmitted by the organization’s office in Havana, Brazil will replace the United States as the world’s third largest supplier of soybean oil and will continue to be the main global supplier of poultry and flour.

Regarding the projections in the production of milk and beef, FAO estimates an increase in the results in these areas.

According to the text, the expansion of wheat planting in Argentina allows estimating an increase of eight percent of production in that country of South America.

However, Mexico, one of the main Latin American producers of this cereal, recorded a decline in the level of plantations, which is expected to significantly reduce its production.

According to the FAO, wheat imports in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2018-2019 will approach 25 million tons, for an increase of close to one million tons, mainly due to the major acquisitions in Brazil and Mexico, the main ones buyers of that food in the area.

Regarding rice, prospects in the area are negative, and point to an annual reduction of 1.5 percent in total production, which will fall to 18.6 million tons.

Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, Uruguay and Venezuela will harvest less rice than in 2017, falls that will not be compensated by the increases foreseen in Bolivia, Chile, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Paraguay and Peru.

Total purchases of Latin America and the Caribbean cereal could decrease by five percent to 4.2 million tons, as a result of cuts in Brazil, Haiti, Mexico and Peru, due to sufficient local availability and higher international prices.

With respect to sugar, in South America the latest estimates point to a decrease in production in 2017/18, in generally unfavorable climatic conditions (Argentina) and a greater proportion of the sugarcane crop used for ethanol production (Brazil).

(Prensa Latina)

According to the 2017 Global Nutrition Report, two billion people lack key micronutrients like iron and vitamin A; 52 million children are wasted (low weight-for-height usually the result of acute significant food shortage and/or disease); 88% of countries face a serious burden of either two or three forms of malnutrition (childhood stunting, anemia in women of reproductive age and/or overweight in adult women); and “the world is off track to meet all global nutrition targets.”

In case these figures are not clear enough, more simply put, one in three people in the world is malnourished.

Obesity kills as many people every year as hunger. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) “at least 2.8 million people die each year as a result of being overweight or obese.” Obesity, defined as “abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health” fundamentally caused by “an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended,” has thus reached epidemic proportions.

Laura Melo, representative of the World Food Programme (WFP) in Cuba – an organization celebrating 55 years of cooperation with the island – told Granma that, according to the 2017 Report, Cuba is among the nations with the highest coverage rates of interventions and practices to address maternal and child malnutrition. “It is known, however, that iron deficiency anemia, overweight, and obesity are concerns and priorities on the state’s agenda,” she noted.

“This topic has a lot to do with eating habits, therefore the importance of nutrition education, what types of elements we consume. It is not only about access to food, but about diversifying our diet,” she added.

Photo: Global Nutrition Report 2016
But what do people prefer to eat? A simple glance at the data dispels any doubts regarding the danger posed by ultra-processed foods as a driving force of the global obesity epidemic. Sufficient indicators can be found in Cuba. According to the results of the Third National Survey of Risk Factors, carried out in 2010, more than 40.4% of the Cuban population aged 15 and over does not engage in sufficient physical activity, while 43.8% are overweight or obese, with unhealthy eating habits among determinants.

SUGARS IN YOUR DIET: BAD COMPANY

High consumption of sugars is associated with various conditions such as overweight, obesity, liver disorders, behavioral disorders, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular disease, various types of cancer and tooth decay, among other diseases, warns the Boletín bibliográfico de la Biblioteca Médica Nacional (Bibliographic Bulletin of the National Medical Library), in issue 10, volume 24, October 2017.

According to WHO: “Consumption of free sugars, including products like sugary drinks, is a major factor in the global increase of people suffering from obesity and diabetes.”

In this sense, it is worth clarifying that the main sources of added sugars – which manufacturers add to food or beverages during their processing or preparation – include soft drinks, cakes, cookies, sugary fruit juices, dairy and chocolate desserts, among other products.

“WHO recommends adults and children reduce their daily intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total calorie intake, while to obtain greater benefits it is ideally recommended to reduce consumption to less than 5% of total caloric intake, which would provide additional health benefits,” the Bulletin adds.

Likewise, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) urges countries to adopt measures such as restricting the marketing of ultra-processed foods and beverages to children, increasing the costs of these foods through taxes, increasing the production and access to healthy fresh foods, as well as the formulation of new guidelines for school and preschool food programs.

“Within the dietary habits and attitudes of Cubans is the excessive consumption of foods which contain refined sugars, often in combination with fats,” the Bulletin continues.

According to studies conducted in Cuba, among the most important risk factors for diabetes are a sedentary lifestyle and obesity. The 2010 Third National Survey of Risk Factors determined that the country’s prevalence of known diabetes was 6.1%, while according to the dispensarization of 2015, 5.7% of the population suffers from diabetes, which indicates continued underreporting of the disease and a group of people who are unaware they are diabetic.

The common factor of all these diseases: diet. As such, the most effective way to deal with this growing epidemic is to work on prevention from the earliest ages, encourage healthy lifestyles and the practice of physical exercise, as well as implementing public policies that make these elements viable.

GLOBAL STATISTICS PUBLISHED IN THE 2017 GLOBAL NUTRITION REPORT

SODIUM INTAKE

Mean intake in 2010 of 4g/day

Recommended intake is 2g/day

CHILDHOOD STUNTING

Under 5 years in 2016

155 million

23%

CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT

Under 5 years in 2016

41 million

6%

CHILDHOOD WASTING

Under 5 years in 2016

52 million

8%

LOW BIRTH WEIGHT

Newborns in 2014

20 million

15%

ADULT HYPERTENSION

Raised blood pressure

Aged 18+ in 2015

TOTAL

1.126 billion adults

Men

597 million

Women

529 million

ADULT OBESITY

Body mass index of 30 or above

Aged 18+ in 2014

TOTAL

641 million adults

Men

266 million

Women

375 million

ADULT DIABETES

Raised blood glucose

Aged 18+ in 2014

TOTAL

422 million adults

Men

218 million

Women

204 million

ADULT OVERWEIGHT

Body mass index ­of 25 or above

Aged 18+ in 2014

TOTAL

1.929 billion adults

Men

947 million

Women

982 million

ANAEMIA

Women of reproductive age 15–49 years in 2016

TOTAL

613 million women

Non-pregnant women

578 million

Pregnant women

35.3 million

A measure of obesity is determined by body mass index (BMI), which is calculated by dividing an individual’s weight in kilograms by the square of his/her height in meters (BMI= weight [kg]/ height [m2]).

Example:

BMI = 76kg/1.80 m2 = 23.45

In the case of adults, WHO defines overweight and obesity as follows:

Overweight: BMI greater than or equal to 25

Obese: BMI greater than or equal to 30

(Granma)

During a national meeting to evaluate the sector’s 2017 performance, accepting the distinction was José Ramón Machado Ventura, second secretary of the Party Central Committee and a vice president of the Councils of State and Ministers, who also conveyed Raúl’s congratulations to agricultural workers and encouraged them to aspire for greater productivity and better use of the soil, rotating crops to maintain regular availability of produce for the urban population.

Cuba’s urban and suburban agriculture program was formally organized in 1997, with a traditional that goes back to 1987 when Raúl, then Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, proposed the planting of organic gardens across the nation’s cities.

(Granma)

Accompanied by José Ramón Monteagudo Ruiz, Party Central Committee member and first secretary in Sancti Spíritus, and Teresita Romero Rodríguez, president of the Provincial Assembly of People’s Power, Machado Ventura learned of work underway at the Managuaco Livestock Enterprise, to raise calves and ensure the future of their herd.

At the site, one of the most important of its kind in the region, visitors toured an area opened three years ago to care for calves who are separated from their mothers and fed artificially to allow for their early incorporation as reproducers, within a period which can be reduced to 24 months this way, instead of the traditional 32.

Machado Ventura also visited the Angel Montejo rice mill which is undergoing a capital renovation to expand its capacity to 40 tons a day and improve quality.

He likewise met with farmers Eliécer Pérez and Yoandry Rodríguez who have achieved outstanding yields on idle land they were granted in usufruct, during which a variety of issues were discussed including use of the soil and water.

(Granma)

José Ramón Machado Ventura, second secretary of the Party Central Committee visited areas under cultivation around the province to review efforts being made to increase food production, rice in particular, as well as sugar cane.

He began his tour at the José Martí Credit and Services Cooperative (CCS), in the municipality of Perico, one of the largest cooperative producers in the country.

In a dialogue with campesinos, Machado Ventura commended the work done to increase yields, and the fact that practically all food produced is sold to the state distributor. A priority he emphasized was the need to increase deliveries to the nearby tourist resort of Varadero.

He also visited the Eladio Hernández Basic Unit of Cooperative production (UBPC), dedicated to the production of seeds, and El Sordo, in the municipality of Martí, which is committed to producing 10,000 tons of food this year.

At the July 26 CPA (Agricultural Production Cooperative) in the municipality of Colón, and the La Vega UBPC, in Calimete, Machado Ventura discussed the multiple factors which led to unmet goals in this past sugar harvest, insisting on the need to adequately prepare for the next season, which should begin in early November, to prevent similar problems.

Although the province fell 20,000 tons short of its annual goal, more sugar was produced than in the last 11 harvests.

He took note of a novel practice being used at La Vega in sugar cane cultivation, known as broad furrow planting, which makes optimal use of resources and increases yields.

Accompanied by Teresa Rojas Monzón, first party secretary in Matanzas, Machado evaluated progress in the province’s rice program, expected to produce 20,000 tons this year, approximately 45% of the total needed to meet demand.

He congratulated and conversed with rice farmer Adalberto González, who has achieved yields of over eight tons per hectare.

(Granma)

The commendable efforts are reinforced by the fact that Cuba is one of the few states both to have met the Millennium Development Goals and the goal set at the World Food Summit held in Rome in 1996, an event at which Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro – in a speech described as impressive – called for more serious goals regarding hunger and poverty.

In the lead up to the celebrations for World Food Day and the 70th anniversary of the founding of FAO this October 16, Friedrich emphasized that major projects are underway in Cuba, in collaboration with the agency he represents, , including support for national initiatives for agricultural development, food security, fisheries, forestry and nutrition.

He recalled that the island is one of the 42 founding nations of the FAO, and is very receptive to its work, as well as being an active collaborator across different platforms and conventions.

In the year in which an agenda geared toward 17 Sustainable Development Goals is underway, and in a world where 80% of the poor live in rural areas with agriculture as a fundamental means of subsistence, measures to achieve a Zero Hunger Generation and the eradication of extreme poverty must continue to be implemented. “We have already embarked on the path toward the new development agenda,” Friedrich stated, which was recently approved by 193 states at the United Nations.

He also noted that the last three director generals of the FAO have visited Cuba, reflecting the recognition of national efforts in this field.

After seven decades of ties between Cuba and the FAO, Friedrich recalled that the most important aspect is not the amount of money invested, but the opportunities and capacities created to complete his mission here, including the support, technical assistance and dissemination of information to the professional food and agriculture sector, among others. He also highlighted the aims of the Country Programming Framework (CPF) 2014 – 2018 and the impact of South-South cooperation.

Furthermore, he reiterated the progress of the island in several strategic areas, compared to other countries. However, this does not mean that the FAO has completed its mission in the country. There is still some way to go in terms of conservation agriculture, for example, and ways to better prepare for the increasing impact of climate change. On sustainable production, the FAO representative explained that this is a present and future global challenge, in a world that continues to grow at breakneck speed.

The world has not yet reached the point which, in my view, is an essential condition for the survival of our human species: access by all the peoples to the material resources of this planet. There is no other in the Solar System that we know that has the most elemental conditions for life.

The United States itself always tried to be a melting pot of all races, all beliefs and all nations: white, black, yellow, the Indians and mixed races, with no other differences than those between the masters and slaves, the rich and poor; but all within its borders: To its North was Canada; to the South, Mexico; to the East, the Atlantic Ocean and to the West, the Pacific Ocean. Alaska, Puerto Rico and Hawaii were simple historical accidents.

What makes the issue complicated is that it does not imply the noble wish of those fighting for a better world, which deserves as much respect as the peoples’ religious beliefs do. It would only take some kind of radioactive isotopes that stemmed from the enriched uranium used by thermonuclear plants in relatively small amounts—since they do not exist in nature—to put an end to the fragile existence of our species. Keeping those wastes in increasing volumes, under reinforced concrete and steel coffins, is one of the major challenges for technology.

Events like the Chernobyl accident or the earthquake in Japan have revealed those mortal risks.

This is not the issue I’d like to address today, but how amazed I was yesterday to see, on Walter Martinez’s show “Dossier” on Venezuelan television, the filmed images of the meeting between the chief of the US Department of Defense Robert Gates and the U.K. Defense Minister, Liam Fox, who visited the United States to discuss the criminal war unleashed by NATO against Libya. It was something difficult to believe, the British minister won an “Oscar”; he was a bundle of nerves, he was tense and spoke like crazy; and he gave the impression that he was just spitting out the words.

Of course, he first got to the entrance of the Pentangon, where Gates was awaiting him with a smile. The flags of both countries, the one of the ancient British colonial empire and that of its stepson, the United States Empire, flew high on both sides as the two national anthems were played. Right hand on chest, the rigorous and solemn military salute of the ceremony given by the host country. This was the initial act. Later, the two ministers stepped into the US Defense building. They are supposed to have spoken for a long time, given the images I saw, as each of them returned with a speech in hand, undoubtedly prepared in advance.

The context of this entire scenario was made up by personnel in uniform. On the left I could see a tall, slim young soldier, who seemed to have a shaved redhead, wearing a cap with the black peak pulled nearly down to his throat, presenting his bayoneted rifle. He did not blink nor seem to breathe, like the figure of a soldier ready to shoot a rifle bullet or a nuclear rocket with a destructive capacity of 100 thousand tons of TNT. Gates spoke showing the smile and natural manners of a host. The British man, however, did so in the way I explained.

I have not often seen anything more horrifying than this; he was releasing hatred, frustration, fury and using threatening language against the Libyan leader and urging his unconditional surrender. He looked indignant because the powerful NATO warplanes had not been able to crush the Libyan resistance in 72 hours.

He was only missing the exclamation: “blood, sweat and tears,” just like Winston Churchill when he calculated the price to be paid by his country in the fight against the Nazi warplanes. But in this case, the Nazi-fascist role is being played by NATO with its thousands of bombing missions by the most modern aircraft ever known by the world.

To cap it all came the decision by the US administration to authorize the use of drones to kill Libyan men, women and children, like in Afghanistan, thousands of kilometers from Western Europe, but this time against an Arab and African country, before the eyes of hundreds of millions of Europeans and no less than in the name of the United Nations Organization.

Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin yesterday said that these acts of war were illegal and they are outside the framework of the accords adopted by the UN Security Council.

The crude attacks against the Libyan people, which have taken on a Nazi-fascist character, may be used against any Third World nation.

I am really amazed at the resistance posed by Libya.

The belligerent organization now depends on Gaddafi. If he resists and does not yield to their demands, he will enter history as one of the great figures of the Arab nations.

NATO is poking a fire that could burn everyone!

Fidel Castro Ruz

April 27, 2011

7: 34 p.m.