Anicia García Álvarez and Dayma Echevarría León (University of Havana)

“Economic reforms and social innovation in Cuba: the self-employment sector”

abstract

Over the last twenty years, Cuban government has prompted moderate market-oriented reforms in order to confront the severe crisis caused by the collapse of Socialist Block in Eastern Europe. This seminar focuses on reforms on employment structure and its consequences on Cuban society and economy.

In particular, Anicia Garcia Álvarez presents the historical path of reforms on employment structure in order to debate the most recent guidelines discussed and approved by the VIs Congress of Cuban Party (2011).

Dayma Echevarría León instead focuses on the current pattern of participation of women in Cuban labor market. Moreover, she analyzes the challenges and opportunities that women entrepreneurs have to face today.