President Hipolito Mejia expressed his concern for the continuing decline in money sent home by Dominicans living abroad during his talk at the Latin American Affairs Workshop held yesterday at Columbia University in New York City. He said the problem is that more second and third generation Dominicans are living abroad and they have fewer ties to relatives in the DR. Remittances from abroad have over the years helped the Dominican balance of payments and been an important contribution to the Gross National Product. In his speech, Mejia recognized the Dominican economy has gone from one based on cash crops to one based on services, with tourism, commerce and free zone manufacturing being the most dynamic sectors. Nevertheless, he emphasized that the modernization of farming is one of the top priorities of his government. He said he sees in farming the key to development because of "the direct correlation between food production and sustainable economic growth of under-developed countries."
