Challenges And Opportunities Of The DR CAFTA Region

Dominican Republic and the Central American countries are united by several trade agreements that identify and strengthen them as one region, a region full of opportunities which main characteristics are:

- The total region covers a population of 60 million people; - The economies of these countries maintain rates of economic growth above the average of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) at 4.3% vs. 0.7% respectively; - It has significant advances in infrastructure; - It has an expectation of stability in the prices of its exports with access to a market of more than 2000 million consumers which main market is the United States; - There is a relative macroeconomic stability and moderate to high growth prospects with low levels of inflation; - It has a wealth of assets, natural resources, culture and biodiversity which means a high potential for economic and social development. According to the IMF, the region's economy will be able to cope with the deceleration observed in emerging markets and its growth would be moderate as a result of global financial conditions.

The countries with the highest growth rates are Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic and, in terms of exports, the overall results of DR CAFTA indicates that the region has multiplied by 2.2 times...