Fidel Castro was sworn in as Prime Minister of Cuba, beginning his decades-long rule over the country.

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2008. Ideologically a Marxist–Leninist and Cuban nationalist, he also served as the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from 1965 until 2011. Under his administration, Cuba became a one-party communist state; industry and business were nationalized, and socialist reforms were implemented throughout society.

The prime minister of Cuba, officially known as the president of the Council of Ministers between 1976 and 2019, is the head of government of Cuba and the chairman of the Council of Ministers (cabinet). The prime minister is the third-highest office in Cuba, after the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba and the president of Cuba, and the second-highest state office.