The Tourism Model in Post-Castro Cuba: Tensions between Ideology and Economic Realities

Cuba’s casas particulares: an analysis of informality, social capital, entrepreneurship and sustainability

“…We acknowledge that informality can have different effects in different contexts Diálogos Latinoamericanos 28 (2019) DL Dossier: Sustainable Development Goals and informal economies in Latin America Ditlefsen/Hamilton/Meaker and countries, and that it is not a perfect system (even in Cuba). Despite this, our study agrees with Clausen and Velázquez (2018), who state that a solely economic focus limits our understanding of other kinds of exchanges, enterprises and transactions and who at the same time challenge the capitalist and market-driven ideologies.…”

“…The focus is almost solely on economic growth, investment, job creation, and generating revenue. As previously stated, our paper correlates with Clausen and Velázquez (2018) who claim how it can be a limitation to our understanding if we merely focus on the economic side. We should likewise consider other exchanges or transactions of non-economic nature.…”

“…Only focusing on the financial side of development, sustainability etc. limits our understanding, as claimed by Clausen and Velázquez (2018). Cuba's casas particulares and their society as a whole is an example of how other systems and ideologies can work, and our paper illustrates the notion of other exchanges within the informal economy.…”

“…Yet, increasingly, some literature recognizes the informal sector's contributions, also in the developing world, for example, from a management perspective (Darbi/Hall/Knott, 2018). Clausen and Velázquez (2018) also note how the informal economy can co-exist and benefit the formal system well. Gaiger (2019) also finds great heterogeneity and lack of consensus among the recent literature on informality.…”

“…While we acknowledge that this is the reality in some contexts, this is not the case in the Cuban context. As a former socialist state (in transition towards including more market-oriented policies), Cuba ensures universal healthcare, job security, education and more for all of its citizens (Clausen/Velázquez, 2018).…”