El Siglo newspaper reports that the Asociación de Empresas de Zonas Francas of Santiago will promote the installation of industrial parks in the frontier with Haiti if the country is awarded textile parity by the US Congress. The bill to this intent passed by the US Senate needs yet to be reconciled with another bill passed by the House of Representatives. The free zones would have a significant effect on reducing the migration of Haitians into the DR, and thus on poverty in both countries. Rosario Viñas, president of the Association of Free Zones said that Japan, Asia, Taiwan and England reached significant development levels by exploiting their textile industry and that the DR should do the same. He said that it is important to create more industrial parks in rural zones to reduce the immigration of farmers to urban centers. Viñas said that if parity is passed, in the next two years some 60,000 new jobs could be created, or about 40% of the present employment.
