Spain: Cuba's Top Commercial and Tourism Partner
THE HONORABLE JUAN FERNANDEZ TRIGO, AMBASSADOR OF SPAIN TO CUBA, SAT DOWN WITH EXCELENCIAS MAGAZINE TO TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES
In its 39th edition this year, Cuba's International Tourism Fair, FITCuba 2019, has picked the island nation's capital as the setting of choice, taking as a special motivation the upcoming celebration (November 16) of its fifth centennial. The most significant event for the local and regional travel industry, this time around dedicated to MICE travel and featuring Spain as the guest country of honor, is no doubt something that will serve to strengthen relations between both nations.
Regarding this and other topics associa-ted with the current state, development, business opportunities and future of the ties between Spain and Cuba, the Hon. Mr. Juan Fernandez Trigo, ambassador of Spain to Cuba, sat down with Excelencias magazine, a publication from the Excelencias Group he claims to be familiar very with and being a regular reader of some of its issues, as well as a follower of the Caribbean News Digital news service that -he admits- keeps him posted in the latest developments related to the travel industry.
Suffice to say that we cannot talk about the progress of Cuban tourism without referring to the role played by Spain. Important data support this statement: it is the island nation's first European commercial partner and a very important supplier, while numerous Spanish tourism companies and prestigious hotel chains are betting on setting up shop in the country. What's more, visits by Spaniards have ramped up. At what point is the commercial exchange and, in the long term, how is the behavior of the business between the two countries?
If cooperation in tourism is quite large, commercial exchange is also very remarkable. Spain is Cuba's top exporter from the European Union (EU), accounting for nearly half of the sales coming out of Europe, but it is also by far the top importer of Cuban products in Europe. Although we are not going through an easy time, the year 2018 set new record highs of Spanish exports to Cuba with €970 million worth of exports, up 8 percent from the previous year. We do not yet have the complete figures for 2018 for all the countries of the world, but I think Spain can be considered Cuba's great commercial partner -in addition to tourism- due to the volume of its sales, due to the increasing evolution of the figures and, very important, due to the great diversity of products that make up its offer, which implies that it exerts a positive influence on production, consumption, technology, research and, ultimately, on all aspects of the Island's economic life.
It is not by chance that Spain will be featured as the guest country of honor at FitCuba 2019. How important is that?
It is a great satisfaction that Spain is the guest country of honor at this prestigious fair, precisely the same year that marks the 500th anniversary of the founding of Havana. I think that, in this sense, the Cuban government has shown great sensitivity towards Spain. A gesture that we undoubtedly appreciate and recognize.
Cuba's Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero has said that Spaniards are precisely the ones who invest the most in Cuban tourism. What do you make of this assertion in terms of opportunities for both countries?
Indeed, Minister Marrero is well aware of the importance that the Spanish tourism industry has played and continues to play in the advance of Cuba's travel sector. A large chunk of the existing 4- and 5-star guestrooms in the country is managed by Spanish companies. They contribute their knowledge and knowhow, piled up over decades and that chips in decisively to the growth of a sector destined to play a key role in the evolution of the Cuban economy.
Spain wants to be present in the largest number possible of economic sectors within the country and make its very best to increase the economic level of the island. But it is precisely in the tourism sector where most headway has been made and where it is inevitable to underscore that opportunities continue to pop up for our companies because of their reliability, their experience and their desire to be here in the long term, even in adverse moments that, as you know, there have been.
What are the most pressing challenges that we must cope with in these cooperation alliances?
An evolution as powerful as the one our tight bilateral economic relations have had cannot come to pass without facing drawbacks or setbacks along the way, such as delays in payments that some Spanish companies have faced in recent years. It is essential that we address this issue by means of a fluent dialogue that inspires confidence about the future of the Cuban economy for both our companies and our authorities. It is important that our companies could know how to look ahead without being intimidated by temporary drawbacks, much less by external pressures. It is also important that Cuban authorities could be able to assess the loyalty and perseverance of our companies, which in many cases show that they are linked to Cuba through ties that go beyond the purely economic bonds.
The ongoing year has had other major motivations for both Cuba and Spain: the visit of Spanish President Pedro Sanchez -the first to come to Cuba in more than 30 years- in late 2018 and the 500th anniversary of Havana. How important can those two developments be when referring to diplomatic relations and the twinning between both peoples?
Without a doubt, we are going through a moment of special significance for our bilateral relations, which goes beyond the mere political and economic linkage -which it's very important, as you know. We share the roots of a common past, a history and a joint culture, things that make Spain and Cuba emotionally very close.
In this sense, the visit of the President of the Spanish Government, the first by a Spanish President in 32 years, has marked a turning point in our relations, which undoubtedly will be buttressed in the course of 2019, a year in which the 500th anniversary of Havana will be celebrated. A few cases in point of Spain's hefty engagement in the commemorative events of this celebration are its attendance of FITCuba as the Guest Country of Honor, the remarkable presence of Spain's arts and culture during the Havana Biennial, or the upcoming visit of the Juan Sebastián Elcano School Ship, just to mention a few.
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