Cuba wants to prepare citizens for modern life, government

May 17, 2008, 1:31 GMT

Havana - The Cuban government says it intends to prepare its citizens for life in a modern state, according to a report Friday in the young people's newspaper of the Communist Party.

Juventud Rebelde, the newspaper, reported that the Cuban National Assembly has formed a 43-member commission which will develop an 'integral plan for educating citizens' about civil society, in order to strengthen civic knowledge and awareness about the organization of Cuban society.

Cubans were ill informed about 'many issues' of civil society, assembly President Ricardo Alarcon was quoted as saying.

The need for the project was clear from polling of the population, the report said.

'The project is inextricably entwined with the present and future of socialism in Cuba,' Alarcon aid.

In comparison to other countries in the region, Cuba is admired for the generally high standard of education of its citizens. Its physicians, engineers and technicians have been deployed worldwide to help less developed countries.

But there are huge gaps when it comes to jurists, people who understand the law, economists, public administrators and others who understand how a modern society functions. Analysts say that addressing these shortcomings is one of the most important projects in Cuban reforms.

Until revolutionary leader Fidel Castro stepped down due to illness earlier this year, Cuba had been tightly ruled for nearly half a century.

But his brother Raul, who took over as president, has launched a huge raft of reforms, including making more consumer goods available, liberalizing agriculture to allow small farmers access to unused agricultural land and opening the doors of its tourist hotels and attractions to Cuban citizens.