CubaPLUS Magazine

The Havana International Fair (FIHAV 2025) is the ideal place to initiate these kinds of relationships, and, of course, we believe we will achieve success on this occasion," stated Pavol Kozik, the principal shareholder of the Cuban-Slovak joint venture Proxcor.

In an exclusive interview with this magazine, Kozik spoke in detail about the significance of FIHAV for him, the creation of the joint venture six years ago, and his experiences doing business in Cuba.

"We anticipate more contacts during the fair and new contracts, especially with the private sector. As we mentioned, production has already begun, and now we need to focus on sales. And not just domestic sales, but also exporting Cuban products. And this (FIHAV) is the ideal place to begin these types of relationships. And yes, of course, we believe we will succeed, also thanks to FIHAV," he emphasized.

Regarding his experiences doing business on the island, Kozik acknowledged the difficulties the country faces, for which they have prepared. He added, "Of course, we have managed to commence production at our joint venture, established with the Cuban government. Currently, in the city of Caibarién, in Villa Clara province, we operate a modern factory where we produce sweet biscuits, sorbets, and cereals."

This businessman believes that the prospects for his investments in Cuba are promising: "After the Coronavirus crisis, Cuba is completely different from what it was before. We know that the private sector of small entrepreneurs is developing, and a partial dollarization has begun. All of these are positive signs, and we are pleased to see that we have more and more potential clients," he highlighted.

"We hope that the next step will be the implementation of what the Cuban government is declaring: that it will protect national production and national products with import tariffs. Also, at this moment, efforts are being made to establish a resolution to avoid double taxation between the Slovak Republic, our country of origin, and Cuba, which will benefit us," he noted.

"And if all this is achieved, these will be important elements that will significantly support our business. Therefore, we want to thank the Cuban government for this opportunity... as our factory is operating very well and will serve as an example to attract more investors to Cuba," Kozik concluded.