President Obama’s visit to Cuba this month will mark the first visit to the Caribbean island by a sitting American president in 88 years.

The trip is part of a series of efforts by Cuba and the U.S., begun in December 2014, to ease restrictions and pave the way for greater cultural and economic exchange.

After announcing his plans, President Obama drew criticism from some American politicians who believe that his administration’s Cuba policy is not sufficiently punitive, according to the New York Times. Others, however, have applauded the president, arguing his diplomacy could spur a period of progress with regard to human rights improvements and poverty alleviation.

Though Cuba’s communist government has long been censured by the international community for human rights violations, the country has made some notable achievements in the past half-century.

According to the Guardian, Cuba has had 100 percent literacy for a long time, and “its health statistics are the envy of many far richer countries.”

Devex, a media platform for the global development community, has also applauded Cuba for its success in lifting many of its poorer citizens out of poverty.

The island’s state-run economy, however, does not seem capable of solving all its problems, according to Devex. Inequality runs rampant despite decades of socialist programming.

This disparity of wealth, along with a growing older population, closed markets and limited availability of advanced technologies and quality food for farmers and other low-income people has begun to overwhelm Cuba’s social protection programs.

Some see Obama’s visit to Cuba as an opportunity to influence President Raul Castro to make necessary changes in addressing these problems.

The New York Times Editorial Board has called on the president to push Castro to “set the stage for a political transition in which all Cubans are given a voice and a vote” as a pretext for liberalizing the economy and respecting human rights.

The editorial adds that the U.S.’s failed efforts to bring about regime change have only hurt Cuba and that more peaceful gestures geared toward self-determination would be more helpful.

Specifically, Obama could negotiate the lifting of trade embargoes as a way of easing the burden on Cuba to supply its citizens with adequate food and other resources.

The United Nations already has a development action framework for the island, which focuses on food security, energy, social services, climate change and disaster response, according to Devex.

These efforts, along with those of big players in the development community, like the World Food Program, would be significantly bolstered by the normalizing of relations between Cuba and the U.S., since freer trade would make the island less dependent on essential goods from more distant nations.

The exact program of President Obama’s visit to Cuba is still open to speculation but the topics most likely to be discussed are trade and tourism. Opening up relations with regard to these areas could be mutually beneficial to both nations.

– Joe D’Amore

Sources: BNA, Devex, NY Times 1, NY Times 2, The Guardian