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Cuba resurrects dollar-only stores, a symbol of inequality

In January, Cuba opened its first state-owned, dollar-denominated supermarket in Havana, with plans to expand these stores across the island.
This initiative is part of the government's effort to revive the nation's struggling economy, which is currently facing its worst crisis in 30 years due to shortages of food, fuel, and hard currency, exacerbated by a six-decade-long US trade embargo.
The dollar-only stores create a divide between Cubans who have access to dollars and those who do not, as the average monthly salary is around 5,000 pesos, equivalent to approximately $42, and salaries are not available in dollars.
Teacher Michael, who declined to give his surname, told AFP, "we had barely put a foot inside when they told me it was in dollars," while Prime Minister Manuel Marrero described the move as a "necessary process" to obtain dollars circulating on the black market.
Economists like Mauricio de Miranda argue that the partial dollarization excludes those without access to dollars, while the government aims to eventually wean Cubans off the US currency, but for Tamarys Bahamonde, dollarization is an illusory goal, highlighting the challenges of de-dollarizing the economy.

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