Although we may not be satisfied yet, there is an undeniable fact: the process of computerization of Cuban society records progress, and it does so in a more comprehensive way. There are many facts that show it, even though, sometimes, we do not stop to look at the whole picture.
Computerizing a country does not only mean expanding access to the internet. It is to build an ecosystem where technology is the means that contributes to a better quality of life and, at the same time, is inclusive and benefits the entire population.
The will expressed by the Government to advance in this endeavor was strengthened on February 28, 2017 with the approval of the policy for the computerization of society, which requires the participation of numerous agencies in a plan that has 21 outreach projects general and others that lay the foundations to continue the national technological development, said Deputy Minister of Communications Wilfredo González, in a recent interview with CubaSí.
Let's review, then, some elements that could escape our attention and have contributed to expand the national digital environment.
If telecommunications is involved
The cellular telephony in the country has begun to be increasingly general. At the end of 2017, the nation had 4.5 million active lines, and according to data from the Cuban Telecommunications Company, some 600,000 were added in the year.
Mayra Arevich, president of the Telecommunications Company of Cuba, told the media that the effort is to reach 50 percent of mobile density this year.
Perhaps a measure that aims to consolidate this objective is the recent implementation of the collection of telephone calls for real time consumption. Although the price is still high, it is now cheaper to talk on the cell phone compared to the same day a year ago.
With the measure, Etecsa took another step forward in reducing the price of calls, although you may now need to review the cost of text messages. Yes, because what can be sent in 140 characters at nine cents CUC, it is already possible to "speak" at a lower price.
Also, another axis of telecommunications, internet access, continued forward last year. The project, which began in 2013 with 118 public navigation rooms, saw an extension in mid-2015 with the opening of 35 Wi-Fi zones. And this has been a technology that we see today as part of everyday life.
Etecsa data indicate that in 2017 public navigation areas with wireless technology exceeded 500 in the whole country. In that sense, Deputy Minister Wilfredo González said, meanwhile, that they will continue to expand during the coming years.
This service also benefited from a reduction on October 30, when international shipping per hour cost 1 CUC. Perhaps the most significant reduction of the year was in the national navigation, which since March only costs ten cents CUC per hour. This was a measure by Etecsa to promote greater access to sites under the .cu domain, which, by the way, also had some interesting improvements.
It should be noted that in 2017, 40 percent of the population accessed the network of networks, according to figures from the Ministry of Communications. And it is not idle to highlight the opening of the Nauta Hogar service last September, with some 11,000 capacities already commercialized, which it hopes to expand during the current year.
The content challenge
Let's review now some interesting issues of the contents that are now on Cuban websites. I will go beyond Ecured, platform that everyone knows and that continued to solidify their work and reach in 2017.
And today we have many options for accessing content generated in Cuba, which can be better used.
Highlights, for example, the CubaEduca platform of the National Education System. This web portal benefited from a redesign that made it more friendly, and expanded its resources and services significantly.
Now CubaEduca includes the package Pa 'que te educates, a compilation of software resources, audiovisuals, books, movies and music, among others, aimed at training and overcoming new generations.
The platform added, in addition, the service of the Repasador in line, alternative that allows to the family to consult doubts on academic questions of direct form with professionals of the sector.
Another site that also grew was the platform of Cuban blogs Reflejos, with highlight for Ludox (Ludox), a portal dedicated to entertainment through video games.
Ludox allows you to play online or download applications to enjoy them later, and includes a catalog in frank growth with national and foreign titles. It is, without a doubt, a gateway to an industry that could well provide dividends to the country if its development is further promoted, and in which the Young Club of Computing and Electronics, as well as the Animation Studios of Icaic, have a preponderant role .
Examples of the achievements of Ecured, CubaEduca, Ludox, the Reflejos platform, and others such as Infomed, show that Cuba counts, because it has trained them in its academies, with the talent necessary to create valuable digital products. The challenge is to expand them even more, and make them known and used.
Grow more
Just as the creation of content for the network of networks and access to it is important, so is creating a network of services and digital services for everyday life. In that sense, Cuba also advanced in the year just concluded.
At the westernmost point of the island, there is already RedPinar, the citizen portal in Pinar del Río, an initiative that reinforces the communication strategy of the Popular Power in the province and is inserted within what is known as electronic government.
The site, with sections such as politics and government, procedures, services and citizenship, among others, allows users to comment, make suggestions and leave concerns to the delegates of the circumscriptions or know the impact of social programs in the territory.
Developed by young people from the National Software Company (Desoft), in the province, RedPinar is the first phase of the implementation of electronic government at the local level.
Initiatives like this to bring digital services to the population have also had expression in Granma. In this province, they also have facilities accessible via web in the portal of the provincial headquarters of the Ministry of Justice.
Today, the people of Granma have the possibility of requesting certificates of birth, marriage, single life, death, widowhood, citizenship, among others, with just one click and filling in a form.
And last but not least, the deployment of mobile banking in the country is less important. The use of technology to support financial services is part of a national strategy to automate Cuban society.
Although there are currently more than 900 ATMs in Cuba, there are 3 800 000 activated magnetic cards, numbers that show the high demand for a still insufficient service.
Therefore, the national banking system already has a novel proposal in the testing phase: mobile banking, with advantages for both clients and financial institutions. It is easy to access, immediate, reliable and, above all, saves time.
According to a Prensa Latina dispatch, authorities of the Cuban banking system explained that the search for alternatives to make digital payments is due to the need for greater financial inclusion and banking of the population and the vertiginous growth of mobile telephony in the country. country.
The options of online services and the implementation of e-government initiatives demand a qualitative growth in the national software industry, as well as require more infrastructure.
We are yet to see how the country will advance in terms of computerization in the remainder of the year, but the progress shown in recent months indicate that this is an unstoppable process.
(Embacuba Austria)