Drug-resistance surveillance by means of culture and drug susceptibility test (DST) allows the estimation of the regional and global magnitude of multidrug-resistance (MDR). Two reports on anti-tuberculosis drug resistance by the WHO/IUATLD showed that drug-resistance TB varied widely across regions. This work determined the prevalence of drug resistance among new cases and among previously treated cases of tuberculosis in Cuba during the period 1995-1998. Drug resistance was determined using the proportion method in 1379 Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains to first line antituberculosis drugs (isoniazid, streptomycin, ethambutol and rifampicin). The resistance in new cases was 8.3% and 6.5%; MDR was 0.7% and 0% in the first and second study respectively. The contributed data through Cuba demonstrated that our country is relatively free of MDR strains, recognizing it to world level the good tuberculosis-control programs and the success of the application in our country of the directly-observed-treatment strategy from the year 1971.