The director of the United Nations Development Program in the Dominican Republic, Paolo Oberti, said yesterday that the economic growth the country has experimented has not filtered down to the poor. Addressing the audience at the monthly luncheon of the American Chamber of Commerce, he said that an improvement in the education system is not an antidote against poverty and that the best vaccine to overcome this critical situation is the multiplication of dignified, well remunerated and stable jobs. He said that industrial restructuring should be a national priority, with the implementation of an innovative program to support micro, small and medium-sized companies, adding that the United Nations contributed US$15 million to development programs in the D.R. in 1997. "The vigorous return of the D.R. to the international scenario is notable and with this the country can aspire to become a much more dynamic partner; receive more resources, obtain a larger bureaucratic quota and aspire to occupy an important position, such as member of the Security Council of the United Nations," he continued. He had praise for what he called the permanent peace in the nation, where the common good is above individual interests.
