2003 – Page 86

According to the Listin Diario, the public payrolls are consuming 31.7% of all government expenditures. During the first 10 months of the year, government expenditures in investments reached 28.2%. This increase in salaries forced the current outlays to reach 71.8% of the budget for public expenditures, while capital expenditures stood at 28.2% for the 10-month …

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El Diario Libre reported long lines at propane stations across the country, especially in Santo Domingo. According to the article, a large part of the problem is that the government has not paid the subsidy to the propane wholesalers. The government has maintained the price of propane gas at RD$25.

The dollar dipped slightly on the exchange market, according to the Listin Diario, closing at RD$43 to US$1. The market was said to be “calm.” Gasoline price also went down slightly on Saturday. After reaching record heights one week ago, the price of gasoline has fallen by about RD$1 per gallon across the board. Premium …

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With the Duarte Bridge currently closed for repairs, motorists are having to take a slight detour. Previously, traffic had been permitted in the center of the bridge, but now all traffic is being redirected around the old structure. Public Works officials took the advice of engineers from the Conde-Mouchel consortium, charged with the repairs of …

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El Caribe reported that the National Council of Busines (CONEP) suggested to the government that the electoral campaign and the internal political strife within the parties are of use to no one. Elena Viyella de Paliza, CONEP’s president, told reporters that the crisis facing the various political parties is hurting the Dominican economy and impeding …

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El Caribe reports that the various political parties have spent in the neighborhood of RD$53 million on publicity since the beginning of September. The PRD, even without an official candidate to promote, has spent nearly RD$28 million. The PLD has spent RD$13.2 million on its campaign to date and the PRSC has spent nearly RD$12 …

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The Central Electoral Board (JCE) traveled to Santiago to meet with Monsignor Agripino Nunez Collado, who had resigned as the head of the Watchdog Commission designated during the National Dialog debates last year. Monsignor Nunez chose to leave the post because of the manner in which new personnel had been contracted by the JCE. During …

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El Caribe reports that the municipal council for Santo Domingo North has opened bidding for a new administration to invest US$100 million in the cleanup of the Duquesa landfill waste disposal area. The new environmental laws require a much-needed modernization of the facility, which receives 3,200 metric tons of waste every day. While the site …

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El Caribe reports that infant mortality rates in the Dominican Republic have gone down over the last five years, although 38 per 1,000 of all live births will die before five years of age. Overall, 3% die in the first few months of life. Other indicators show that only 13.3% of infants are exclusively breastfed, …

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Facing possible imports of 900,000 hundredweight of rice, the president of the Dominican Federation of Rice Growers, Fernando Valero, rejected the need to increase the price of the cereal or import any from abroad. According to the Fenarroz president, there is enough rice in storage to satisfy the national demand for the staple until March. …

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