The Dominican Republic will close 2022 with a economic growth above five percent, despite the global crisis currently affecting economies.
This is how he projected it on the minister of EconomyPlanning and Development, Pavel Isa Contreras, who indicated that the data comes from the macroeconomic figures that are handled, which he said are favorable for the country, although the authorities have a great challenge ahead.
“This year we will be ending with very good macroeconomic data, that is to say, economic growth continues, we are going to grow the growth forecast figures of 5%, we can probably finish perhaps a little more. In August the figure was above 5%”the official explained.
He recalled that between the months of April and May inflation was at 10%, however, a positive decline began, so they expect it to reach between 3% and 5%.
“The forecast is that it falls below 5%. In other words, we are, let’s say next year, normalizing inflation. Jobs have recovered very significantly, we already have more jobs created, a figure higher than the total number of people employed prior to the pandemic. As always, we are returning to macroeconomic normalcy,” he stated.
He indicates that the current challenge is how to manage the high prices of fuels and other commodities, assume the development of a long-term vision and transform economic growth in quality of life, what he says has been the problem of this economy”.
He recognized that in the last 50 or 60 years the Dominican Republic has had growth, however, he admitted that it has not been equitable.
“We have the challenge of transforming that growth, distributing it better, but at the same time we have the challenge that this development is not based on eating our natural capital. We cannot turn our backs on nature, which has already been compromised. We have to change the model, so that growth is accompanied by a consistent increase in wages, an improvement in the quality of jobs, but at the same time an improvement in the quality of public services”he admitted.
He commented that despite the economic situation that the United States is going through, the Dominicans who reside there continue to make an important contribution to the development of the country through the remittances they send to their families.
He valued as positive the contribution of internal sources to the economic growth of the Dominican Republic that is produced through private investment, which is still very active.
challenges
Pavel Isa Contrera said that the country must strengthen education to change the source of competitiveness, improve wages.
“The economy it has grown, it has produced wealth because it has been able to export, for example, because it has had low wages and that is changing. Well, we have to reinforce the march and, how do we do it?: with more education, because the employers are demanding more quality for this job, ”he indicated.
He added that a more aggressive attitude is necessary to export more and insert the Dominican Republic into global value chains.
“Spend more on social matters, we need better quality public services, more health, in addition to more education, more public security and for that we need to raise the tax burden. We cannot continue with a tax burden of 14% and 15% and in that we have to rebalance it, we cannot continue charging more to the same as always. We have to rebalance so that the State has the capacity to finance the well-being of the people”.
2023 Budgets
the minister of EconomyPlanning and Development defended the budget that the government has presented for next year and denied that the amount is exaggerated.
“If you break it down, you can see that there are a number of subsidy programs. But, if it is insisted that there are many resources for the Presidency and that there is an emphasis on the social part, but with an electoral vision. Look, the goal is to protect people; there is a lot of money destined not to increase the electricity tariff and not to increase the price of fuel. So, if that, I repeat, has an electoral effect, fine, but the most important effect is that the government is betting that the situation of the population not only will not worsen, but will improve next year. That is the fundamental bet”.
Haiti crisis
Isa Contreras expressed that the crisis that Haiti is going through has not yet had a negative impact on the level of commercialization with the Dominican Republic.
“Right now, with all the crisis it is experiencing, the governance crisis and the disintegration of the Haitian State, we are not seeing severe consequences on exports, export flows from the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Until now it is possible that part of these exports is through Codevi, because they are textile inputs that go from Santiago. Well, there was a week, a few days that Codevi stopped, that can affect, let’s say, the figures, but in general terms we are seeing that the flows of merchandise to Haiti have not been affected so far, ”he commented.
Pavel Isa was interviewed on the program “Encuentro Extra”, produced by the journalist Cristhian Jiménez on Saturdays for the television station Color Vision.
