The economic history of Cuba before 1950 -- Economic development and national income in the 1950s -- Monetary system and trade in the 1950s -- Economic participation and standards of living in the 1950s -- Education and health care in the 1950s -- Prospects for future growth -- Cuban communism: the road to nowhere -- The Cuban economy from 1972 to 2002 -- A review of the collapse of Cuba's largest industry -- The reconfiguration of Cuba's economy in the new millennium -- Cuba's developmental standing after fifty-six years of Communism -- Conclusion.