The president of the National Council of Business (Conep), Manuel Diez Cabral, called for authorities to end inertia and begin to confront the challenges the country faces.
He recommended that government stop the cycle of borrowing that is increasing the socio-economic burden for future generations.
Diez said that in the past 12 years, 65% of private employment has been generated by the informal sector, which means that more than 2.3 million Dominicans are not protected by the Labor Code.
Diez Cabral also called for reforms in the electricity sector. The National Development Strategy Law calls for the drafting and enactment of the Electricity Pact, which has been delayed by the government.
He made his comments while speaking to Santiago businessmen yesterday, 7 August 2014, in an activity organized by the Association of Industries of the North Region (Airen), the northern chapter of Conep. Present at the event were Carlos Iglesias, of the American Chamber of Commerce, Sandy Filpo of the Association of Merchants and Industrialists of Santiago (ACIS) and Luis Jose Bonilla, of the Santiago Free Zone Association.
“We have not defined medium and long term national industrial policies, our education system continues to operate under the same guidelines from last century,” Diez Cabral said.
He commented that it is alarming that domestic help and motorcycle taxis are the two largest sources of jobs in the national economy. Motoconcho employment is not regulated, and domestic help has very flexible employment conditions.
He called for greater education and employment opportunities for young people, noting that the unemployment rate for youth in the Dominican Republic is 32%.
Read more in Spanish: http://www.elcaribe.com.do/2014/08/08/conep-pide-romper-inercia-del-gobierno