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	Workshop on "Opportunities and challenges of DR-CAFTA for Dominican agriculture" by Jose Luis Cordeu, Senior Commodities Officer

This workshop was held in Dominican Republic between 10 and 11 November, 2005, in response to a request submitted by the President of that country, Dr. Leonel Fernandez to FAO Director-General, Dr Jacques Diouf in a meeting which took place in Costa Rica in November 2004 and in which several FAO technical assistance activities to Dominican Republic (DR) were agreed.+

The request of the President reflects the great importance CAFTA-DR (Central American Free Trade Agreement for Dominican Republic with the United States of America) has for the Dominican Republic and for Central America. This agreement is already signed and in the process of implementation, for this reason the DR government was very clear in stating that the purpose of the Workshop was not to analyze the viability of the Agreement since this had already been done, but to discuss how to implement it and solve the problems that may arise.

This point had to be accepted by the 130 participants, the majority of which belonged to the private sector even though there was quite a numerous governmental representation and from FAO, IICA and even from the labor sector. Anyhow, I must point out that in personal conversations with some rural entrepreneurs, they stated their great apprehension by the consequences the Agreement may have on their companies and one of them perhaps too emotive expressed he was prepared to sell his estate at any price and dedicate himself to another activity. I consider that this is an over reaction to a problem that is not so serious if we take into account that CAFTA- RD grants terms and measures that should facilitate the necessary adjustments in Dominican agriculture. On the matter, the impact of the Agreement must not be overestimated since although it is very important to promote trade and the much needed investment, it must be part of an adequate sectoral policy and as denoted in the conclusions of the participants, it must generate a strategic alliance between the public and the private sector in order to allow to implement the Agreement in the framework of an economic policy that faces the most important problem which is growth with equity in a country in which the 62% of the population is below the line of poverty, situation which turns specially serious in the rural sector.