The Largest Fair of the Last Decade

The 33rd edition of the Havana International Fair, FIHAV 2015, the largest of the past ten years, comes around with the intention to showcase Cuba as a safe and luring destination for business.

Rodrigo Malmierca, Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment, and president of the Organizing Committee, said the exhibition area is 2,000 square meters larger than in the 2014 edition. He pointed out that some 900 companies, 570 of them from other nations, will attend this year’s tradeshow.

Mr. Malmierca explained that FIHAV 2015 will be visited by over 30 high-ranking delegations, many of them led by ministers, and that fifteen National Days will be held. One of the highlights will definitely be the launch of the second issue of the business portfolio, as well as the unveiling of the directory of Cuban companies with operations overseas.

Debuting in the 2015 edition are the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, while Venezuela is remodeling its pavilion as other countries, like Panama and Canada, are ratcheting up their exhibition areas. Some 30 high-ranking delegations, many of them led by ministers, will be in attendance. Like in previous editions, Spain will be the country with the largest exhibition area during this year’s fair.

Mr. Malmierca availed himself of this opportunity to underscore “that the large turnout of foreign companies speaks volumes against the obsolete U.S. policy of isolation imposed on Cuba through an economic, commercial and financial embargo that remains in force.

“As in previous years, over two dozen U.S. companies will be present, a token of corporate America’s willingness to do business with Cuba. The measures approved by President Obama last January and in September are definitely on the right track, yet they are still insufficient. The big problems generated by the embargo remain unchanged for us and that’s the reason why we must continue our denunciation of it,” he added.

The Cuban pavilion will take some 5,000 square meters for a grand total of 121 stands that comprise more than 360 national entities, according to Orlando Hernandez Guillen, president of the Chamber of Commerce of the Republic of Cuba.

In Mr. Guillen’s words, the Mariel Special Development Zone (ZDEM is the Spanish acronym) will have an outstanding exhibition area of its own.