Analysis of Development in the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic has experienced a tumultuous history, which has caused the country to develop into a constant state of crisis. The situation in the Dominican Republic is bleak socially and economically. There is widespread and extreme poverty and violence, as well as an overall lack of available education and medical care. Luis Barrios and David Brotherton, authors of “Dominican Republic” (2004), asserted “the current state of affairs is partly the legacy of decades of corrupt authoritarian rule, and partly due to the political betrayal and moral bankruptcy of the country’s elites who failed to bring to fruition the promises of democracy.” The disparities in income and education between the richest and the poorest in this country are extreme, and there has been little true economic development in decades. The economic and social development of the Dominican Republic is continuously being hindered by the widespread corruption of the elites and the politicians. The Dominican Republic has a long history of corruption and poverty. In 1930, a military coup put Rafael Trujillo in power. Trujillo ruled the Dominican Republic for over 30 years as an absolute dictatorship (Barrios & Brotherton 2004). Trujillo followed an uneven mix of repression and ruthlessness along with modernization (Barrios & Brotherton 2004). Many people suffered under his dictatorship. Trujillo was always on the look out for disloyalty and potential enemies. Anyone suspected of being disloyal was punished. However, contrary to this ruthlessness, Trujillo also promoted the development of transportation and education, but only in certain areas. For example, Trujillo refused to modernize the North Coast, and in 1946 Trujillo closed down the Puerto Plata’s harbor completely (Barrios & Brotherton 2004). The corruption and violence continued until 1961 when Trujillo was assassinated. When he died the infrastructure, as well as the economy and the social conditions of the people, were in shambles. Immediately following Trujillo’s assassination, the country lacked strong leadership for many years. It wasn’t until the 1970s that things started happening in the Dominican Republic. Economic development started moving forward in the tourism industry. Between 1974 and 1982, over C$ 113 million was invested in the Puerta Plata area of the North Coast (Barrios & Brotherton 2004). Through the development of tourism, the Dominican began developing a middle class. Tourism developed so much that laborers and farmers began leaving their jobs to move to the North Coast and get a job there. The disadvantage of this development was that nearly all areas not related to tourism were neglected. Aside from tourism, the economy of the Dominican Republic has suffered. High tariffs and an anti-export mentality prevented the Dominican economy from developing. However, 2001, the Dominican government attempted to boost the economy by reducing many of their restricting tariffs. “The reduction in tariff rates and in their dispersion is evident, but the government yet uses tariffs and temporary excises as a means of protection for some industries/sectors, mainly agricultural products and raw materials that compete with imports” (Santos-Paulino 2010). Figure 1 shows the reductions made on import tariffs. These changes were intended to help promote the economy, and enabled the closer degree of trade balance. However, these changes still fell short of the level of change needed to create sincere and lasting development. After changes were seen following the first round of tariff reforms, further changes were made in an effort to boost exports.

Figure 1: Before and After 2001 Trade Reform
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Type of Imports Tariff (%) Before After
Final consumption 20–35 20
Agricultural goods (final consumption or agro industrial) 30–35 20
Inputs (which are not produced in the country) 5 3
Inputs (which are produced in the country) 10–20 8
Capital goods 10–20 8
Inputs for construction (luxurious) 15–25 20
Inputs for construction (not luxurious) 15–25 14
Pharmaceutical products and inputs required for their fabrication 3–5 3
Vehicles for transport 30 20
Other vehicles for commercial use 10–15 8
Memorandum
Average tariff rate (simple)a 18.6
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Source: Santos-Paulino (2006).

The current GDP for the Dominican Republic is US$54.912 billion. This demonstrates little to no growth over the past few years. Table 1 shows the real GDP growth from 2008 through 2011. As this table demonstrates, there has been no real development in the GDP. Additionally, this table demonstrates the unstable nature of the economy in the Dominican Republic. Between 2008 and 2009, the GDP falls, but then jumps dramatically from 2009 to 2010. As of 2011, the GDP had gone back down to almost what it was in 2008. The Gross National Income of the Dominican Republic is $18,954,900,000.00 (NationMaster 2012).

Table 1: Real GDP Growth
|2008 |2009 |2010 |2011 |
|5.3% |3.5% |7.8% |5.5% |

Source: Global Finance (2012).

The constant fluctuations in the GDP are reflective of the chaotic situation in the Dominican. One of the many issues preventing the Dominican Republic from developing is the constant political conflict. Although the Dominican Republic presents a democratic system, corruption and deadlock prevents positive development. “A deadlock is an executive-legislative conflict that hampers the legislative process” (Marsteintredet 2008). Despite the fact deadlocks are often ignored in research pertaining to presidentialism and democracy, deadlocks are one of the primary causes of democratic breakdowns (Marsteintredet 2008). Deadlocks are increasingly more common when there is an individual from a minority party in the position of president. The persistence of deadlocks in the Dominican Republic often prevent politicians from making any changes. Additionally, the ongoing corruption has caused a number of disruptions throughout the country. “Increasingly angry amid the deepening economic crisis set off by last year’s bank fraud scandal, Dominicans staged a 48-hour national strike on January 28 that shut down businesses, schools and public transportation throughout the Dominican Republic” (Garland, 2004). This is just one example of the ongoing chaos. Although the economic and political situation are the primary factors preventing overall development in the Dominican Republic, education, access to health care, and social inequality also play an impacting role on the lack of development. These factors are intertwined with the political and economic problems and corruption. This is due to the fact that the political and economic issues have led to a long history of social unrest and inequality. Since roughly 2000, there has been an increase of Haitian people moving into Dominican Republic, which has led to an intense increase in violence and race-based crimes against people suspected of being Haitian (Howard 2007). The violence is a hindrance to the Dominican development because it increases the crime rate, negatively affects tourism, and creates a negative relationship between the Dominican and Haiti. Despite this, the Dominican government does not work to stop the violence because Dominican leaders believe the growing Haitian population is negatively affecting the economy. “The increase in reported racist and violent attacks against people presumed to be of Haitian origin in the Dominican Republic during the past five years, allied with popular and government claims that Haitian immigration is detrimental to the economy, thus provide the immediate context for what follows” (Howard 2007). This claim indicates the degree of support the government has for the prejudice and subsequent violence. The state of education in the Dominican Republic is dismal and adds to the overall lack of development. Schools are understaffed, physically inadequate, and they lack the supplies and resources needed to properly education children. Elementary schools are only required to run half-day programs, and most teachers work second jobs just to get by (Boylston 2003). In 1992, the Dominican government did pass a number of educational reforms in an attempt to improve the education system. They raised teachers’ pay, imposed national curriculum standards, made it mandatory for children to attend school through 12th grade, and required that all teachers be certified (Boylston 2003). Unfortunately, these changes did little to improve the system. Inadequate schooling prevents children from gaining the skills needed to find gainful employment as they get older. This creates and enforces a cycle of poverty. Although in the past, many families sent their children to private schools, the depressed economy has caused many to switch to public schools (Boylston 2003). The lack of adequate education will always act as a hindrance to the Dominican Republic because it prevents the population from learning the skills needed to improve their conditions. Finally, access to healthcare is also an ongoing hindrance in the Dominican Republic. There is no insurance in the Dominican, and the condition of the hospitals is so low that they are only utilized by those who are dying (Boylston 2003). People who have the financial resources travel to other countries for medical, while the poor simply suffer and die from common medical problems due to poverty and no access to medical attention. The lack of healthcare is one of the many factors that is both a sign of lack of development and a hindrance of future development. The Dominican Republic is facing a multitude of problems. For decades, the country has seen little to no development in most areas. This lack of development is demonstrated through the poor economy, the rampant racism and violence, the inadequate education, and the dilapidated healthcare system. The lack of development can be attributed to historical and widespread corruption and political unrest. The changes need to start at the top because social improvements can not be made until the political leadership is ready to act in the best interest of the people. Additionally, despite the boom in tourism, the economy will never truly be strong until the other problems are dealt with. A strong economy is reflective of a strong country.

Works Cited

Barrios, L. and Brotherton, D. (2004). “Dominican Republic.” NACLA Report on the Americas. 38(3), 11-13. Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/ehost/detail?sid=583e2b62-f075-4b19-afdd-7d7ac9e6d9ba%40sessionmgr4&vid=1&hid=10&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=15155707.
Boylston, F. (2003). “The Dominican Republic.” Inroads. 13: 110-121. Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/docview/218315392.
Garlans, S. (2004). “Dominican Republic: Violent National Strike.” NACLA report on the Americas. 37(5) 44. Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/ehost/detail?sid=e1a6918a-c685-4840-a0a9-dd4b9b36b014%40sessionmgr15&vid=1&hid=10&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=12670329.
Howard, D. (2007). “Development, Racism, and Discrimination in the Dominican Republic.” Development in Practice. 17(6), 725-738. Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/pdfplus/25548279.pdf?acceptTC=true.
Marsteintredet, L. (2008). “Executive-Legislative Deadlocks in the Dominican Republic.” Latin American Politics and Society. 50(2), 131-160. Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/pdfplus/30130859.pdf?acceptTC=true.
Santos-Paulino, A. (2010). “The Dominican Republic Trade Policy Review 2008.” The World Economy. 33(11). Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/doi/10.1111/j.1467-9701.2010.01323.x/pdf.

“The Dominican Republic Country Report.” (2012). Global Finance. Retrieved May 24, 2012 from http://www.gfmag.com/gdp-data-country-reports/282-the-dominican-republic-gdp-country-report.html#axzz1vqfeVMw5.