The Empresa Farmaceutica 8 de Marzo is one of the many state-owned entities of the Cuban biopharmaceutical industry, which produces beta-lactam antibiotics (Cephalosporin, Penicillin and Carbapenem), in their different presentations: injectable, capsule and powder for oral suspension, the site reported.

The plant was inaugurated by Vilma Espin, chemical engineer and Communist Party leader, who founded the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC) in 1960 for the economic and political empowerment of women and gender equality on the island.

The United Nations Development Program’s Gender Inequality Index gave Cuba a score of 0.304, which is lower than the world average of 0.436, indicating that the country is progressing on a par with many developed nations in terms of reproductive health, empowerment and labor market.

Cuba has also ensured access to universal and free education for women, mandated equal pay for equal work and has the world’s second highest female participation in Parliament, in which nearly 53 percent are women.

The impressive achievements made by Cuba, the site referred, are accomplished despite the economic blockade imposed by the United States.

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