Cuba Represented at International Book Fair in Buenos Aires

HAVANA, Cuba, Apr 24 (acn) Cuban publishing houses and writers are participating in the 35th International Book Fair in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which was inaugurated on April 23rd and will run until May 11th.

Exhibiting their publications on the Cuban stand are the Capitán San Luis and Ediciones Cubanas, publishing houses, besides others from the Enterprise for Information Technologies and Advanced Data Transmission Services (CITMATEL), the Center for the Development of Information on Public Health (CEDISAP), and the Center for José Martí Studies.

The web site of the Cuban embassy in Argentina reports that the Society of Argentinean Writers will pay tribute to Havana’s Casa de las Américas, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of that cultural institution.

Also scheduled are book launchings and presentations by Cuban writers, among them Senel Paz and José Luis Méndez.

Paz, who is also a scriptwriter and a journalist, will present his most recent novel, “En el cielo con diamantes” (In the Sky with Diamonds), besides offering a conference on Cuban literature.

Méndez, who is also a professor and a researcher, will do the same with the texts “Los años del terror 1974-76”, “La república de Miami” and “Mercenarios cubanos en África. Una historia de la contrarrevolución cubana (1961-91)”, among other titles.

Cuba Day will be celebrated on Saturday, as part of which a cultural activity will take place. It will include items from traditional music to contemporary sounds.

This is the 26th occasion that Cuba has participated in this type of fair, described as the great event of Argentinean culture.

(Cuba en Feria Internacional del Libro de Buenos Aires)

Cuban Population Continues to Decrease

HAVANA, Cuba, April 24 (acn) The Cuban population decreased in number for the third year in a row by the end of 2008, according to official figures released by National Statistics Office (ONE).

According to the information, there were 11, 236, 099 Cubans residing in the country by the end of December last year, 691 citizens less than the year before.

The year 2006 marked a turning point for demographic indicators, since it was the first in a three-year period to witness a progressive reduction in the number of inhabitants.

The negative balance between 2006 and 2005 reached 4, 793 persons, while that relationship between 2007 and 2006 reported 2, 253; the decreasing trend has progressively slowed down and it almost stood still based on the fact that the birth rate increased in 2008.

A slight growth of general mortality might have a negative impact, but it is a natural phenomenon related to the aging of the population, whose average age has increased with some 2 million inhabitants over 60 years, nearly half of them are in their 70´s and more than 85 years old.

In Cuban demographic history there were only two occasions in which the population decreased; first in 1899, close to the end of the Independence War (1895-1898) and later in 1980, following a mass emigration.

The population fall over the past three year has been the result of a decrease of fertility indicators, which reported a favorable peak last year, though such an increase is not likely to keep taking place. Another two indicators that are taken into consideration in such a phenomenon are emigration and general mortality, which have maintained at steady levels.

In the late 1960´s and early 1970´s the Cuban population experienced its fastest growth, after increasing to 9 million up from 8 million people in just six years. Later, the process slowed on its way up until reaching 10 million inhabitants in 12 years and it continued with similar performance to the number of 11 millions.

(Continua decrecimiento demográfico en Cuba)

Cuban Vaccines against Asthma Prove very Effective

HAVANA, Cuba, April 24 (acn) After more than a decade of research, Cuban scientists announced that three vaccines to treat asthma have proven very effective; the information was released during the 2^nd Ibero-American Encounter on Allergy Research, which wound up today in Varadero, Matanzas province.

Doctor Alexis Labrada, an expert with the Cuban Bio-Preparations Center (BIOCEN) told the Cuban News Agency that the vaccines, known as VALERGEN, have been registered and introduced in the Cuban health care system. The treatment with the medication has achieved lasting effects of between five and 10 years in asthmatic patients, and it is being applied in all allergy services throughout the country.

The vaccines are being administered on patients who show early and light clinical asthma symptoms, and they have contributed to the reduction in the use of medications, unlike other symptomatic treatment currently being applied.

The progressive introduction of VALERGEN was prioritized for allergy services in Cuban hospitals and polyclinics, while its offer to other countries interested in getting the vaccines is currently under consideration, said the scientist.

One of the main immediate goals of BIOCEN is that of achieving vaccination by means of sublingual medicine drops, which would have a favorable impact on patients, said Doctor Raul L. Castro, another expert with the Cuban scientific institution.

(Exponen eficacia de vacunas cubanas contra el asma)