World Bank: CAFTA should spur growth
The free-trade agreement between the
On May 11, the World Bank released a preliminary summary of its forthcoming report, Challenges and Opportunities of DR-CAFTA for
"The treaty holds the potential of increasing trade and investment in the region, which in turn is key to lifting economic growth and improving the welfare of the people of Central America and the DR, (Dominican Republic) including those living in poverty," the World Bank spokesperson said.
However, the study concluded that even though DR-CAFTA caps a decade and a half of reforms and offers an important opportunity to make additional progress in trade-led growth, it is not a "silver bullet" or magic formula.
"DR-CAFTA alone cannot be expected to unleash radically higher levels of trade and growth," the World Bank said. "Countries will need to accompany DR-CAFTA implementation with policies to address key constraints and bottlenecks in order to reap the full social and economic results of this initiative."
