Cargando...“The presence of all of you reaffirms the growing interest of the international business community in the Cuban market, a market that is rapidly transforming to offer an increasingly competitive, attractive, modern, and agile environment for investors,” said Manuel Marrero Cruz, member of the Political Bureau of the Party and Prime Minister, to the entrepreneurs who participated in the 41st Havana International Fair (Fihav 2025).
“It was an honor to have you here,” assured the Prime Minister during the closing ceremony held this Friday at Expocuba, which was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, who also serves as President of the Fihav Organizing Committee; Antonio Luis Carricarte Corona, President of the Chamber of Commerce of the Republic of Cuba; and Eduardo Correa González, President of Grupo Palco.
In his closing speech, Marrero Cruz emphasized that this edition was marked by “decisions that open a real horizon of opportunities, seek to streamline the evaluation and approval of businesses, expand spaces for foreign capital, and promote more flexible and efficient alliances with national entities.”
“The immediate challenge is to turn those decisions into concrete operations (…) today we can affirm that Cuba offers a renewed scenario for those who choose to work here,” he acknowledged.
The Cuban leader assured that he has instructed ministers to promptly update the current regulatory framework and simplify procedures so that investors find “a more agile, more transparent ecosystem with greater guarantees.”
“The political will is clear: we want doing business in Cuba to be increasingly simple, fast, and safe,” he emphasized. He also announced that further measures will be introduced before the end of the year and that the Government Program is advancing toward a profound process of perfecting its economic model, with the active participation of both national and foreign actors.
He further reported that the country will relax rules and open new spaces for investment in industry, energy, tourism, finance, technology, services, and other sectors, with the aim of inserting Cuba into global production chains and generating “real conditions for each partner to find stability, opportunities, and confidence in the future.”
“The opportunities are identified; the decisions are made; and we have the determination to move quickly to turn each project into a shared success,” he assured, inviting entrepreneurs to view Cuba as a long-term strategic partner.
Marrero Cruz also invited Cubans living abroad to contribute to the development of their homeland so that, together with the entrepreneurs already present in the economic life, they can be part of the nation’s development plans, taking into account mutual benefit.
The Prime Minister recalled that the updated portfolio of opportunities includes 426 projects in 13 strategic sectors, distributed across all provinces of the country, with initiatives aimed at generating real impact in the territories and sustainable development in Cuba.
As concrete results of the 41st edition of Fihav, three new businesses with foreign capital were signed (two for food production and one for lighting), and more than 30 meetings were reported with potential investors from eight countries, interested in a dozen sectors. In terms of foreign trade, 14 letters of intent, four commercial contracts, one agreement, and one memorandum of understanding were signed. These advances are related to sectors such as medical services, agriculture, communications, and industry.
The Chamber of Commerce of Cuba, for its part, signed three agreements with counterpart institutions from three different countries.
The Prime Minister stressed that the Havana International Fair 2025 continues to consolidate itself as an essential space to attract investment, diversify alliances, and stimulate production and exports.
Over five days, entrepreneurs, foreign delegations, diplomatic representatives, and specialists from multiple sectors took part in an event that seeks to strengthen foreign investment, trade, and international cooperation.
Awards and Recognitions
As happens every year, Fihav 2025 granted awards and recognitions to the most innovative proposals and to products and entities with the greatest social and commercial impact.
The Made in Cuba Contest, for example, awarded a Relevant Prize to Cuba Ron S.A. for its Eminente rum; and two Outstanding Prizes: one to the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, for its flagship product Heberprot-P; and another to the Educational Scientific Exchange Company, for the program Yo Sí Puedo.
Likewise, the Contest for the Gold Medal for Product Quality evaluated 69 products from five countries. The deliberation process, led by the National Standardization Office, awarded 11 gold medals to proposals from Cuba, Spain, Germany, and the Republic of Korea. Highlights included Chorizo Dough (Bravo S.A., Cuba); Cured Manchego Cheese (Entrepinares, Spain); Fine Cane Alcohols (Alficsa Plus, S.A., Cuba); Multi-purpose Powder Detergent STB (Suchel TBV, S.A., Cuba); Bolero Cologne (Suchel S.A., Cuba), a tribute to the Cuban musical genre declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity; and the Gran Habana Premium Mattress (KONFORT Industria del Descanso S.A., Cuba).
In the field of communication, the Cuban Association of Social Communicators (ACCS) recognized companies for excellence in communication strategies. The awardees were Coralac S.A. (Graphics), Cuba Única (Audiovisual), Cerveza Parranda S.A. (Digital Media), Vima Caribe S.A. (Public Relations), Havana Club International S.A. (Marketing), and Los Portales S.A. (Advertising).
The Product Design Contest, coordinated by the National Design Office (ONDi), awarded prizes for high functional and aesthetic impact in categories such as machinery, miscellaneous items, and visual communication. Meanwhile, the Organizing Committee recognized the exhibition space proposal and conceptual coherence of the Made in Cuba Stand (special mention); KIMO Corporation S.A., Panama (Best Modular Stand Award); Ministry of Tourism of Cuba (Best Free Design Stand Award); and the Venezuela Pavilion (Grand Prize), for its thematic comprehensiveness.
The Grand Prize for Social Communication and the Grand Prize for Stand were awarded to IA_CUBA, an entity recognized for its innovative integration of artificial intelligence and communication in the context of the informatization of society.
