2001 – Page 125

The military academy of the Armed Forces will be granting university level degrees. President Hipolito Mejia visited the Universidad Militar Batalla de las Carreras in San Isidro yesterday to attend a ceremony that gave the university its formal start.

Economist Andres Dauhajre, in charge of the unit created to manage sovereign bonds in the DR, warned in El Siglo newspaper that Minister of Finances Fernando Alvarez Bogaert intends to secure a “bridge loan” for US$250 million to reactivate the economy and pay off debt with the government’s Banco de Reservas. Alvarez Bogaert said the …

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El Caribe newspaper warns that in only nine months, the Mejia administration has sent to Congress projects needing US$505 million in short term government loans with foreign commercial banks. This contrasts with the US$240 million taken out by the previous Fernandez administration with foreign commercial banks in four years. Newspaper executive editor, Bernardo Vega writes …

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The former president of the National Council of Private Business, Celso Marranzini, warned that if the government does not reduce its current expenditures, primarily on supplies and payroll, it will be playing with fire in the management of the economy. He said the current levels of government spending call for austerity and a line of …

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An earthquake measuring 4.3 on the Richter Scale was felt in the DR, according to Juan Arias of the UASD Department of Seismology. Its epicenter was located in the northeastern province of Maria Trinidad Sanchez (Nagua) at a depth of 20 kilometers. The earthquake was felt in the Northeast, Cibao and in Santo Domingo at …

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Dominican businesses are urging Caribbean countries to implement the free trade agreement recently passed. While the governments have passed the agreement, Customs Departments in several Caribbean islands have not allowed Dominican goods shipments to enter duty free. To pressure the Caribbean islands to comply, local business groups requested that the Dominican customs department retaliate by …

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19-year old Ruth Ocumarez, representing Santo Domingo, was chosen Miss Dominican Republic in a pageant yesterday at the National Theater. For the full story, see the May 22 edition of the Listin at http://www.listin.com.do

President Hipolito Mejia said his government is giving priority to issuing the country’s first sovereign bonds. Plans to place US$500 million in bonds on the market are going ahead. He defended his administration’s borrowing abroad saying it is a way to accelerate social and economic development. He said economists and politicians that oppose the borrowing …

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The Weather Department is forecasting rains for the next 48 hours throughout the nation. A front is moving East from Haiti and the rains could cause flooding.

The Ministry of Environment is not in agreement with how the government’s Corporate Unit of Mining is handling the tender to develop the sulphide ore deposits in northcentral Cotui. The deposits are estimated at more than 100 million tons, which could generate over US$2 billion over the 30 year life span of the mine. El …

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