GEDEME – Cuba’s First Mobile Phone

The company GEDEME is in the final stages of developing the first mobile phone prototype suited for use in Cuba with software and systems manufactured by Cuban institutions. 

GEDEME, the Cuban industrial group for information technology, communications, and electronics, announced it has created a mobile phone made entirely in Cuba with Cuban components.

René Cano Diaz, the General Director of GEDEME said the assembly of the phones began at the end of May, “It is the first pilot test with 6,000 units destined for ETECSA and Copextel. It is something very positive that we have been working on together for a year. We were able to standardize the equipment.”

In short, the new cellphone will be 100% made in Cuba. It is a technological breakthrough for the island. More than 6,000 smartphones will soon be on sale in the shops of ETECSA. Currently its shops sell various brands such as the Alcatel, Samsung and Nokia phones.

Cano said that in this first stage they will release it with its own operating system. In the second phase, it will have its own operating system developed with the University of Informatics Sciences (UCI) with which it has an agreement. 

He added that GEDEME aims to develop devices not yet manufactured by the company such as projects to computerize schools at the lowest cost and with the fewest imported parts. GEDEME will also produce tablets and computers. 

He said that, “We have been developing equipment and thus building chassis, lamps, we are working on new projects to achieve greater computerization of our schools, with equipment that converts televisions into interactive ones and to use these resources that we already had with a minimum expense, a minimum of imports, and we are working hard on this together with the Ministry of Education and the UCI.”

GEDEME also manufactures products such as aluminum window frames, electronic refrigeration protectors, LED light bulbs, and made-in-Cuba computers available in online stores. 

With a view to business growth in electronics experience, and knowledge potential, GEDEME is synonymous with innovative thinking and sustainability. 

The company aims to move into new markets, generate customer confidence and establish connections to achieve more productivity and continuity of growth. 

“This was being imported. Today we are doing it in one of our units. In import substitution, we are also working on the manufacture of electrical boards,” Cano said.

GEDEME is focused on energy efficiency and the computerization of Cuban society with a plan that includes the manufacture of laptops, tablets, and servers. The Company currently assembles laptops with components from China.

GEDEME is heavily involved in research, design, and innovation, and implementing technologies that allow standardization of its products and services. GEDEME’s mission is to generate new business opportunities and reduce the reliance on imports. 

And, of course, a smartphone conceived, developed and manufactured in Cuba will contain Cuban apps.