James J Heckman, who was honored with the 2000 Nobel Laureate in Economics for his development of theory and methods for analyzing selective samples, is currently in the Dominican Republic to attend the 20th General Assembly of the Inter-American Conference on Social Security. Speaking during the event that is taking place in Casa de Campo, La Romana, he warned that corruption is the enemy of social security systems and recommended that business sectors and governments make an earnest effort to combat its spread.
Speaking to representatives from 38 countries who gathered to discuss the main problems affecting social security regimes in Latin America, Heckman urged that the governments encourage the generation of wealth, seek investment in education and guarantee benefits for workers. He spoke of the common aspects of successful labor reforms. As a professor at the University of Chicago, he said that Latin America must implement drastic reforms to reduce inequity and exclusion. He insisted on the need for creating confidence and climates that welcome investment and the creation of wealth. In speaking of the need for governments to collect taxes, he observed that people refuse to pay when they do not see anything in return for their taxes.
Heckman, as reported in the Listin Diario, suggested that, before it deals with social security programs, the DR must promote economic development, investment and the creation of enterprise to generate wealth. He said that the taxes to support social security programs need to come from the productivity of the private sector.