Cubans have suffered from poor connectivity, with very minimal broadband internet access across the country and limited mobile network coverage not suitable for Internet applications, in part due to a decades-long US trade embargo. The country introduced its state-run Internet cafes in 2013 and its first public Wi-Fi hotspots in 2015. While hundreds of public Wi-Fi access points are available across the island, most citizens do not have home Internet access: home Internet access was only authorised in 2017.

Recently-elected President Miguel Diaz-Canel – a trained electronics engineer – has called for an expansion of Internet connectivity in order to boost the Cuban economy and defend its communist policies online.

According to a Reuters report, many Cubans are unhappy with having to tolerate insects, poor weather and a lack of privacy to use public Wi-Fi hotspots.

Cuba has one of the world’s lowest rates of Internet use and is one of the last countries to offer a mobile Internet service. Until recently, citizens have only had access to their government email accounts on their mobile phones.

In a broadcast yesterday, ETECSA president Mayra Arevich announced that the organisation would be rolling out a range of monthly 3G packages, from a $7 (£5.50) 600Mb package to a $30 (£23.60) 4Gb package. The packages offer a significantly more cost-effective option than a tariff of $10 (£7.90) per 100Mb.

While almost half of Cubans have mobile phones, it is expected that many will not be able to afford mobile Internet access due to average state wages of approximately $30 per month.

“It was about time [mobile Internet] became a possibility for Cubans, too,” said Joaquin Montiel, a Havana resident who earns $20 (£15.70) per month, in conversation with Reuters. “But for some, like me, it’s still a remote one.”

Tania Velázquez, Vice President of ETECSA, explained that the service would be rolled out over several days in order to avoid network congestion. A mobile Internet trial held earlier this year was criticised for preventing some citizens from sending texts and making calls on their mobile phones during the trial period.

Velázquez added that access to state-owned Internet applications – such as a Cuban online encyclopaedia, EcuRed – would be cheaper than access to the rest of the web.

Cubans have suffered from poor connectivity, with very minimal broadband internet access across the country and limited mobile network coverage not suitable for Internet applications, in part due to a decades-long US trade embargo. The country introduced its state-run Internet cafes in 2013 and its first public Wi-Fi hotspots in 2015. While hundreds of public Wi-Fi access points are available across the island, most citizens do not have home Internet access: home Internet access was only authorised in 2017.

Recently-elected President Miguel Diaz-Canel – a trained electronics engineer – has called for an expansion of Internet connectivity in order to boost the Cuban economy and defend its communist policies online.

According to a Reuters report, many Cubans are unhappy with having to tolerate insects, poor weather and a lack of privacy to use public Wi-Fi hotspots.

Cuba has one of the world’s lowest rates of Internet use and is one of the last countries to offer a mobile Internet service. Until recently, citizens have only had access to their government email accounts on their mobile phones.

In a broadcast yesterday, ETECSA president Mayra Arevich announced that the organisation would be rolling out a range of monthly 3G packages, from a $7 (£5.50) 600Mb package to a $30 (£23.60) 4Gb package. The packages offer a significantly more cost-effective option than a tariff of $10 (£7.90) per 100Mb.

While almost half of Cubans have mobile phones, it is expected that many will not be able to afford mobile Internet access due to average state wages of approximately $30 per month.

“It was about time [mobile Internet] became a possibility for Cubans, too,” said Joaquin Montiel, a Havana resident who earns $20 (£15.70) per month, in conversation with Reuters. “But for some, like me, it’s still a remote one.”

Tania Velázquez, Vice President of ETECSA, explained that the service would be rolled out over several days in order to avoid network congestion. A mobile Internet trial held earlier this year was criticised for preventing some citizens from sending texts and making calls on their mobile phones during the trial period.

Velázquez added that access to state-owned Internet applications – such as a Cuban online encyclopaedia, EcuRed – would be cheaper than access to the rest of the web.