Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel announced a broad package of economic reforms on Friday, unveiling what he called the Economic and Social Program for 2026 in response to one of the worst crises in the island nation's recent history. The measures aim to decentralise and partially liberalise an economy battered by intensifying US sanctions, acute fuel shortages and the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. "These are times when we have to change," Díaz-Canel said, though he offered no specific timetable for implementation.

The centrepiece of the plan is an unprecedented decentralisation of state power. Cuban municipalities will be permitted to manage their own foreign-currency income, oversee local enterprises and conduct foreign trade without going through state intermediaries — a significant departure from decades of centralised control. State enterprises will gain the autonomy to set their own salary structures without government-imposed caps, reinvest profits, and participate directly in foreign exchange markets. The reforms also open more sectors to small and medium-sized private businesses, known locally as mipymes, and authorise Cubans living abroad to invest in the island on equal terms with domestic actors. The long-standing universal ration book system is set to be gradually replaced by targeted support for vulnerable households.

The structural changes extend further: the government plans to reduce the number of ministries from 27 to 20 in order to cut public spending and fund a future wage reform. In tourism — historically one of Cuba's main economic pillars — the government is seeking "new actors" and "new modalities" to fill the void left by the departure of major hotel chains such as Meliá and Iberostar, which pulled back from the island to avoid exposure to US sanctions. Agriculture will gain direct access to inputs and reduced bureaucratic hurdles, while state import monopolies, which previously acted as mandatory middlemen in foreign trade, will be scrapped. Vehicle imports will also be liberalised. Facing a severe fuel crisis — Díaz-Canel acknowledged that only a single oil tanker had docked in Cuba over the previous five months — the plan promotes a transition to renewable energy and the local assembly of electric vehicles.

Díaz-Canel framed the reforms as an act of resistance rather than concession. "The United States cannot forgive that, at this point, with all the maximum pressure they have exerted, the Revolution still exists and the country keeps functioning," he said. At the same time, he made clear that political control would remain unchanged, warning that "the enemy is lurking." Washington's pressure campaign has included restricting crude oil supplies, limiting Cuba's access to international banking — card operators Visa and Mastercard have both exited the island — and tightening sanctions against GAESA, the military conglomerate that dominates much of the Cuban economy, as well as against Díaz-Canel and former president Raúl Castro personally. President Donald Trump has even spoken of a "friendly takeover" of the island.

The reform package is expected to be reviewed by Cuba's political bodies in the coming weeks before receiving final approval, and no legal framework or entry-into-force date has yet been confirmed. Whether the measures represent a genuine structural opening or a tactical adaptation to crisis conditions is a question that analysts and investors will be watching closely — particularly given the government's insistence that the changes will not alter Cuba's one-party political system.