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He Qin: Updating the Cuban Socialist Model: A Path Toward Prosperous, Democratic, and Sustainable Development

Book Reviews

He Qin, Updating the Cuban Socialist Model: A Path Toward Prosperous, Democratic, and Sustainable Development, Social Sciences Academic Press, June 2024. * This book is the concluding result of the National Social Science Fund of China (NSSFC) General Project "Research on the Updating of the Cuban Socialist Economic Model" (15BKS067).

Abstract Since the beginning of the 21st century, having withstood the historical ordeal of the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the drastic changes in Eastern Europe [1], Cuban socialism has entered a new historical stage of independent exploration into updating its socialist model. Since the 6th National Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) in 2011, the updating of the Cuban socio-economic model has progressed steadily. The 8th National Congress of the PCC, convened in 2021, conducted in-depth discussions and comprehensive deployments regarding the "periodic tasks and problems of the model update," and achieved the intergenerational transition of the PCC Central Committee’s collective leadership. Despite facing numerous trials, the new generation of leaders—the "Children of the Revolution" centered around Díaz-Canel—will inherit the Cuban revolutionary tradition. They seek development through updating, maintain stability through development, and plan for the future through stability, struggling tirelessly and forging ahead [2] to build a prosperous, democratic, and sustainable Cuban socialism.

By tracing the historical process of the Cuban model update, this book systematically discusses its top-level design and institutional construction, while providing thematic research on issues such as housing, population aging, and environmental governance. The book argues that, as a multi-dimensional, enduring, and systematic project of social innovation, the model update is a choice of the era made by Cuba to respond to the challenges of economic globalization. It marks a new historical stage in the self-perfection of the Cuban socialist system. The historical experience of the Cuban model update demonstrates that for socialist countries in the era of globalization, only by grounding themselves in their national conditions, adhering to principled incremental reform and peaceful development with a "bottom line," and continuously exploring socialist models that conform to the fundamental interests of their people, can they maximize the institutional advantages of socialism to realize national prosperity and people's happiness.

Author Profile He Qin is the Director and Research Fellow of the Department of Contemporary World Socialism at the Institute of Marxism Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), and a Master’s supervisor at the School of Marxism, University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Her primary research interests include world socialist trends of thought, movements, and systems. She is the author of the monographs Persistence and Update: Cuban Socialism After the Drastic Changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe and Alternative Integration Movements in Latin America, and has co-authored seven other volumes. She has published over 40 academic papers, including "On the Epochal Requirements and Essential Characteristics of Socialist Modernization," "The Essence and Value of Fidel Castro's Thought," and "Experience and Reflections on Cuba's Response to Population Aging." She has presided over two key and general projects of the National Social Science Fund, and participated in over ten projects including major NSSFC projects and the CASS Innovation Program. Her major achievements have won the CASS Award for Excellent Information Policy Reports, the Institute of Marxism Studies Excellence Award, and several second and third-class prizes for excellent papers from various professional academic societies. She has been a visiting scholar in the United States and has visited more than ten countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Oceania for academic exchanges.

Table of Contents Introduction I. Research Background and Significance II. Literature Review of Research on the Cuban Model Update III. Main Content of this Book

Chapter 1: The Historical Starting Point of the Model Update Section 1: The Establishment and Development of the Socialist System

  1. The Victory and Consolidation of the National Democratic Revolution
  2. The Opening and Adherence to the Socialist Path Section 2: Crisis and Adjustment After the Drastic Changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe
  3. The Party Congress Establishes the Emergency Adjustment Strategy for the "Special Period" [3]
  4. The Arduous Recovery of the National Economy
  5. The Continuous Expansion of Multi-dimensional Diplomacy

Chapter 2: The Political Foundation of the Model Update Section 1: Party Leadership and the Development of Democratic Politics

  1. The Communist Party of Cuba Strengthens Party Leadership and Building
  2. The Process and Characteristics of Cuba's Democratic Political Construction Section 2: Constitutional Revision and the Update of the Political System
  3. Constitutional Revision Provides Safeguards for the Update of the Socialist Model
  4. Updates to Political Leadership and Administrative Systems

Chapter 3: The Agenda and Outline of the Model Update Section 1: The Agenda and Stages of the Model Update

  1. The Convening of the 6th PCC Congress and the Initiation of the Model Update
  2. The Convening of the 7th PCC Congress and the Advancement of the Model Update
  3. The Convening of the 8th PCC Congress and the Deepening of the Model Update Section 2: Goals and Principles of the Model Update
  4. Strengthening Education and Stabilizing Employment as the Social Foundation for Smoothly Advancing the Model Update
  5. Improving Income Distribution and Social Security as Necessary Requirements for Deepening the Model Update
  6. Balancing Efficiency and Fairness as an Important Principle Followed by the Model Update

Chapter 4: The Layout and Key Challenges of the Economic Model Update Section 1: The Dominance and Evolution of the Planned Economic System

  1. Development and Update of the Cuban Planned Economic System
  2. Adjustment and Improvement of Cuban Socialist Ownership Section 2: Adjustment and Update of Macroeconomic Policies
  3. The Macroeconomic Situation Under the Background of the Model Update
  4. Adjustment and Evaluation of Macroeconomic Policies Section 3: Reorganization and Innovation of Strategic Economic Sectors
  5. Food and Agricultural Security and the Exploration of Sustainable Agriculture
  6. Energy Shortages and the Development of Green Energy Alternatives
  7. Reorganization and Update of the Tourism Industry
  8. Development and Innovation of the Knowledge Economy

Chapter 5: Ideological and Cultural Construction and Strengthening the Nation Through Science and Education Section 1: Ideological Theory and Ideological Construction

  1. Development and Innovation in the Theory of the Sinicization [4] of Marxism (as applied to local context)
  2. Ideological Warfare and Ideological Construction
  3. Cyber-Ideological Warfare and the Quelling of the July 11 Counter-revolutionary Rebellion Section 2: Cultural Institutional Construction and Strengthening the Nation Through Science and Education
  4. Cultural Institutional Construction and Achievements in Cultural Development
  5. Implementation and Impact of the Strategy of Strengthening the Nation Through Science and Education

Chapter 6: Guaranteeing People’s Livelihood and Social Governance Section 1: The Origin of and Solutions to the Housing Problem

  1. Housing Issues Before the Cuban Revolution
  2. The Historical Evolution of Cuban Housing Policy After the Victory of the Revolution
  3. Cuban Housing Practice: Production, Distribution, and Consumption
  4. Current Status and Challenges of the Housing Issue in Cuba Section 2: Responding to the Problem of Population Aging
  5. Basic Trends and Characteristics of Cuban Population Development After the Victory of the Revolution
  6. The Problem of Population Aging Under the Background of the Model Update
  7. Cuba’s Measures to Cope with Population Aging
  8. Enlightenment of the Cuban Experience for Developing Countries Section 3: Institutionalized Exploration of Environmental Governance
  9. The Establishment and Evolution of Cuba’s Sustainable Development Strategy
  10. The Framework and Basic Experience of Sustainable Development in Cuba Section 4: Epidemic Prevention and Control and Public Crisis Management
  11. Party Leadership and the Unity of All People as the Source of Strength in Cuba’s Fight Against the Epidemic
  12. People-Centered Institutional Construction as the Secret to Cuba’s Victory Against the Epidemic
  13. Economic Updates and Livelihood Guarantees in the Context of the Epidemic

Chapter 7: Adjustment and Expansion of Foreign Relations Section 1: Expansion and Breakthroughs in Multi-dimensional Diplomacy

  1. Strategic Characteristics of Cuban Island Diplomacy
  2. Adjustment and Breakthroughs in Cuba’s Foreign Relations Since the Model Update
  3. Foreign Aid and International Influence Under the COVID-19 Epidemic Section 2: Evolution and Impact of Cuba-US Relations
  4. Serious Regression in Cuba-US Relations
  5. Cuba Faces the "Double-Edged Sword" Effect of the Restoration of Cuba-US Diplomatic Ties

Chapter 8: Historical Significance and Prospects of the Model Update Section 1: Basic Experience and Significance of the Model Update

  1. Basic Experience of the Model Update
  2. Historical Significance of the Model Update Section 2: Challenges and Prospects Facing the Model Update
  3. Challenges and Prospects for the Political System Update
  4. Challenges and Prospects for the Economic Model Update
  5. Challenges and Prospects for the Social Construction Update
  6. Challenges and Prospects for the Foreign Relations Update

Conclusion: Toward a Prosperous, Democratic, and Sustainable Update of the Cuban Model — Also on Socialist Reform in the Era of Globalization

References Postscript