Economist Eduardo Garcia Michel yesterday had praise for the economic achievements of the government but at the same time warned that the stabilization program is not sustainable in the medium term. The president of the Fundacion Siglo 21 research center mentioned that the achievements are based on the appreciation of the peso that has been achieved with restrictive measures that affect competitiveness of the exporters, as well as a government surplus in the first quarter, a consequence of the government paralyzing capital investments, not cutting spending. Garcia Michel says that another weakness is that the government is setting the tax reform to the political calendar, not the economic needs of the country. Garcia Michel participated in a workshop on economic growth organized by the National Association of Young Entrepreneurs (ANJE). He warned that the Central Bank should not continue to increase is quasi-fiscal debt that at present time is over RD$130 billion.
As reported in El Caribe, Garcia Michel said that the country needs a fiscal surplus of at least 1% of the GDP, but this should not be achieved by raising taxes, but rather by redistributing and controlling public spending and reducing tax evasion.
Celso Marranzini, a former president of the National Council of Business, highlighted that one of the challenges of the country is to combat corruption in government. He highlighted that today we are paying the consequences of a badly managed bank crisis, the illegal return of depositor savings, irresponsible foreign indebtedness on behalf of the government and the irresponsible buyback of the power distribution companies.
At the seminar, Julio Ortega, president of the presidential economic advisor council, highlighted that the new development model of the country needs to emphasize an external vision, where growth be via exports and a focus on services and human development.
President of the ANJE, Richard Lueje concluded, nevertheless, that the country needs to focus and concentrate efforts on removing obstacles to competitiveness. He mentioned the distortions in the tax system, the power problems and the lack of access to credit. He said that with the free trade agreement with the United States around the corner, the country is at a turning point. “No longer can the nation postpone guaranteeing to national producers their competitive participation in markets, both local and international.”