US blockade causes obsolescence of Cuba’s telecommunications network

The U.S. blockade against Cuba has caused 85 percent of Cuba's telecommunications network to become technologically obsolete, the Cuban Telecommunications Company (Etecsa) denounced today.

Etecsa’s commercial vice-president, Lidia Esther Hidalgo, told Granma newspaper that the effect of the unjust and genocidal U.S. blockade conditions higher prices for the company’s purchases, in a range of between 30 and 40 percent.

In contrast, revenues in foreign currency, throughout this year, decreased by 30 percent compared to 2023.

So it is impossible to make the corresponding development investments in the network. It also causes complexity in the purchase of resources for the scheduled maintenance of the equipment and the actions to be taken in the event of any problems that may arise.

There are more than 16 thousand reports of interrupted telephones, three quarters of which are concentrated in Havana, she said.

The official also pointed out the low availability of sim cards for mobile telephones and terminal equipment (Nauta Hogar modem) and Alternative Fixed Telephony (TFA).

She argued that as a consequence of the effects of the national electricity situation, around 450 radio bases are interrupted daily due to the lack of energy backup.