Cubans use the "peso cubano" also referred to as "moneda nacional". There are 100 centavos in a peso cubano. The symbol used to represent the peso cubano in the store or bank is the dollar sign "$." One U.S. dollar will get you approximately 26 pesos cubanos in one of the state owned exchange booths, called a Cadeca. Cuban money as seen below displays heros of the revolution - from left to right José Martí, Antonio Maceo, Máximo Gomez, Camilo Cienfuegos. The coins from left to right - a one peso coin with José Martí and "Patria o Muerte" (homeland or death) on the obverse side, and a three peso coin with Ernesto "Che" Guevara, another hero of the Cuban revolution of 1959.
Upon his victory in 1959, Castro immediately began to socialize the Cuban economy. This meant simply that the government began to control industry and prices. Under the previous dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, workers, especially in the countryside, were impoverished and uneducated, and the American government and American companies controlled the politics of Cuba . Castro immediately set out to correct these excesses and turned to the Soviet Union for help as he began converting the Cuban economy to socialism.
The socialist economic system is contrary to the capitalist system in which prices are determined by the laws of supply and demand. In a capitalist system the government does not typically control the price of goods and services. Castro began to eliminate private ownership of factories, large farms, and stores. Foreign businesses were nationalized (taken over by the state) and everyone essentially became an employee of the state. After the revolution Castro first halved rents and then further reduced them so that they now may not exceed 10% of a person's income. Other services are heavily subsidized (i.e. the government keeps the prices artificially low) such as water and electricity. Certain basic foodstuffs such as beans and rice are also subsidized. Education as well as medical care are free. The Cuban state even pays for funeral costs. Officially, unemployment is also not a problem in Cuba - in fact employment, medical care, education and adequate housing are considered basic human rights in a socialist state. What rights are considered to basic human rights where you live?
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The flip side of this seemingly wonderful utopian picture of Cuba is the fact that in reality the economy is very weak and actually declined considerably in the mid 1990's. Now it is growing modestly again. The average Cuban would be considered very poor by the average North American. Wages are incredibly low, many Cubans are underemployed, and industry is quite inefficient. There are frequent shortages of clothing, medicine, appliances, automotive spare parts, and certain foods. These shortages became especially bad after 1989 with the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba 's close socialist ally. The period immediately following the collapse was called the "special period" by Castro and was marked by particularly acute shortages. The Soviet Union had supported Cuba as a part of its Cold War politics against the United States . As Cuba 's major trading partner, the Soviet Union and the Eastern Block accounted for approximately 80% of all Cuban exports and Cuba received an estimated $ 4-6 billion in subsidies annually. Making the current shortages even more acute is the trade embargo of the United States . Since 1961 there has been no direct importation of American goods such as cars, appliances, clothing, or food. The Helms-Burton act of 1996 has made the embargo even tougher on the Cuban economy.
Another negative aspect of the socialist government of Cuba is that it does not allow any criticism of its policies. There is neither freedom of expression nor freedom of the press. Cubans who actively protest against the government can often find themselves in jail. Although Cubans may travel freely within Cuba if they can afford it (and most cannot), it is very very difficult to leave the country.
