Link:https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2021/1/1/what-will-cubas-new-single-currency-mean-for-the-island
Cuba is opting for a single currency system along with devaluing the peso, which last happened in 1959. The exchange rate is now 24 pesos per dollar and the convertible Cuban Peso will be removed, while the Cuban Peso stays. The removal of this peso will hit the workers getting paid by the convertible pesos the hardest, since the power of the coin will be void. The idea to opt to a single currency was thought of in October, where the Central bank of Cuba would only accept the Cuban Peso and set a new exchange rate. I personally believe this was a bad time to enact this policy of a single currency because of the state of how many countries were left due to Covid-19. Countries like Cuba who somewhat revolve around tourism are put into a deeper hole because of the new currency. The US embargo doesn’t help with the economy either, but I guess it’s better to hit them while they are down instead of waiting for all of this to pass and having your economy collapse again. The socialist government said they would also reform salaries and prices. They should have done this at the same time because it would make the obsolete currency absolutely useless, instead of creating markets that still use the coin illegally with value. I believe they should have just made a deal with the US and switched to the US dollar because some countries do that and are fine. At the very least, Cuba is trying to re-open its country along with many others who rely on tourism, where a negative Covid-19 result is needed to enter.