Tourism authorities in Cuba today strongly criticized the obstacle that the United States blockade against the island represents for the travel industry.
A report published in the Granma newspaper this Wednesday indicates that this is a limitation that exists. They mention that the Cuban tourism industry, as a driving force of other sectors, has a fundamental impact on the implementation of the National Economic and Social Development Plan and the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and its objectives.
However, the message insists, external factors such as the economic, commercial and financial blockade by the US Government have a negative impact on its growth and development.
The general director of Marketing of the Cuban Ministry of Tourism (Mintur), Pilar Álvarez, exemplified that, as a consequence, exchanges with businessmen of that nationality interested in participating in the development of investment projects in the field ceased.
Regarding the impact of this policy on commercial, banking and financial operations, the official pointed out that Cuban companies and hotel groups cannot access investment funds and lines of credit of American origin or other countries that comply with the actions of the laws of the northern nation, and their extraterritorial application.
He stated that the cumulative effect of unilateral sanctions from the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury (OFAC), the inclusion of Cuba on the list of State sponsors of terrorism, and the update in two occasions on the list of restricted Cuban entities, has a direct impact on the development of the sector.
The official said that these relationships included almost all the hotel facilities in the country.
Álvarez commented that there is an impediment in access to different leading sites in the world in the distribution of tourism products, such as the main Global Distribution Systems (GDS) Galileo Worldspan and Sabre, in addition to the elimination of Cuban hotel facilities on platforms such as Trivago, Expedia and Booking.com.
On the other hand, it meant that cruise tourism suffers a significant decrease, due to the number of cruise passengers who cannot reach Cuba due to the blockade, generating estimated losses that exceed 70 million dollars per year.
He emphasized that in the historic center of Old Havana, the elimination of cruise ships negatively affects local businesses that provided services to tourists, resulting in a reduction in staff and the closure of establishments.
The Mintur board explained that among the obstacles that threaten the growth of the tourism sector are the prohibitions on the use of the dollar as a payment currency by US citizens staying in hotels of the Cuban State.
Despite this, Álvarez highlighted some alternatives that the sector uses to move forward, even with these limitations that, if they do not eliminate the impact, at least minimize it, the publication concluded.
