International
Cuba’s population in 2024 falls to less than 10 million and will “continue to decrease”
The population of Cuba in 2024 fell below 10 million inhabitants – significantly lower than the 11.1 million in 2021 – and “must continue to decrease,” the Government of the island confirmed on Friday.
This is the first official population figure released since the 2021 census.
As reported to parliament by Juan Carlos Alfonso, first deputy head of the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI), this is a “calculation”, which took into account the unprecedented migration of the last three years, as well as deaths.
Alfonso assured that if Cubans who emigrated but who have maintained their residence are considered, either because they spend part of the year on the island or because they have requested an extension from abroad, the figure rises to just over 10.05 million Cubans until 2023.
However, this figure represents a drop of 10.1% compared to residents in 2020 and is a figure similar to the one in Cuba in 1985, the official warned.
Alfonso also lamented that almost 80% of the ages of emigrants between 2021 and 2023 range between 15 and 59 years old, that is, in their “reproductive and productive” stages.
According to the official figures released this Friday, there are just over 1.2 million Cubans who “remain outside” the country – he did not clarify if they are all migrants and from what period – and 75% are no longer residents of the island.
In addition, he stated that the province of Havana, the most populous, is the one in which there has been a greater population decrease between 2021 and 2023: 15.3%.
In an interview with EFE, last June, Juan Carlos Alfonso himself said that the country will delay at least until 2025 the population census that it had planned to carry out two years ago due to the lack of resources.
According to an independent study by the Cuban economist and demographer Juan Carlos Albizu-Campos, the population of Cuba fell by 18% between 2022 and 2023, to 8.62 million people.
The calculation is based on the figures of Cubans who have arrived in the United States between October 2021 and April 2024, amounting to 738,680 people, according to information from the US authorities that combine visas, paroles and irregular arrivals.
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
International
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating two explosions that occurred early Wednesday, one on a road in the southern part of the country and another under a bridge in Guayas province. These incidents follow the car bomb explosion in the coastal city of Guayaquil, also in Guayas, which occurred the day before and left one person dead and 30 injured.
Press reports indicate that one person was injured and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion on the Cuenca-Girón-Pasaje road in the south.
“Besides yesterday’s explosion in Guayaquil, we have received reports of explosives placed on bridges along the Guayaquil-Machala and Machala-Cuenca routes to disrupt traffic,” said Roberto Luque, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
On his X social media account, Luque reported that authorities have been deployed to the sites to assess the damage and determine the current condition of the structures.
“What they haven’t achieved with their call for a strike, some are trying to achieve through terrorism,” he stated, referring to the 24 days of protests organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) against rising diesel prices and other demands.
The protests, called at a national level, have Imbabura province as their epicenter. Roadblocks have also been reported in the northern part of Pichincha province, whose capital is Quito, while activities in the rest of the country continue normally.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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