The National Council of Private Enterprise (Conep) summarizes the appropriate measures to mitigate the effects of the current geopolitical scenario in three keys: targeting subsidies, reorienting public spending and relief to the private sector by reducing bureaucracy and facilitating investments.
“Prosperity lies in that balance,” said its president, Celso Juan Marranzini, with conviction, stating that these same points are analyzed with the Dominican State in the permanent dialogue that is maintained with the sectors to define actions that mitigate the situation.
As he explained in a meeting with the media, together with the executive vice president of Conep, César Dargam, in the face of a situation characterized by its volatility and its global impact, the objective is to maintain cooperation between all parties, to maintain national economic stability along with the climate of stability and social peace, and he emphasized the importance of dialogue to achieve these purposes.
Representing the business sector, Marranzini highlighted the strategic vision of development that is maintained before the panorama with a capacity for planning, response and vision for long-term solutions, while maintaining a fluid dialogue with the Government.
Conep suggested prioritizing public investment as an engine of development, due to its capacity to increase long-term productivity and improve quality of life, resulting in a key axis in the face of the international crisis.
Marranzini stated that the role of the productive sectors in this context is to maintain stability in prices, supplies, jobs and investments as a way of organizing national economic activity, allowing sustainable development.
“Work hand in hand with collaborators, believe in the country, continue investing and generating jobs,” he summarized.
Results of the meetings
Regarding the meetings held with the Government, Marranzini expressed that they allow constant monitoring of supplies, identifying possible points of restrictions or threats of shortages in specific items, providing an updated communication channel that allows taking actions and foreseeing situations in real time.
According to his observations, the national situation is partially favorable, with an adequate general supply, and he ruled out a possible increase in the basic basket, while he said that sectors more dependent on packaging materials warn about high costs that can impact their products.
They motivate dialogue
The president of the Association of Industries of the Dominican Republic (AIRD), Julio Virgilio Brache, valued the constant sessions with the public sector to draw up the guidelines to follow in this situation.
“Only dialogue between the private sector and the official sector is what will move us forward as a country in this very adverse situation that we have due to the war,” he indicated and explained that bureaucratic processes need to be streamlined, especially with permits, so as not to delay imports of raw materials, in addition to not taking into account the sudden increase in freight rates, but rather their previous price, taking into account the government’s measure to subsidize fertilizers and fuels.
Meanwhile, they are evaluating how to reduce operating costs as much as possible so that price increases do not affect the consumer and, even when there are increases out of their reach, they alleged that they seek to make purchases in the Western Hemisphere with new alternative suppliers to avoid reducing the cost of the products.
