DR faces serious challenges in transport, water and sanitation

A study by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) highlights that the Dominican Republic has serious challenges in the infrastructure sectors, such as transport and logistics, water and sanitation.

In transport, the entity points out that the values ​​of the indicators of the sector are well below what would be expected depending on the level of income of the Dominican Republic. In the first place, he cites that the country has very low transport security and a high mortality rate due to traffic accidents is evident.

It also details that there are serious challenges in transport infrastructure and logistics, especially with regard to commercial infrastructure. It highlights the problem of congestion on public roads due to capacity limitations, and that rural roads and access to productive agricultural areas require rehabilitation.

Another issue that the IDB details is that transport and logistics services are costly and inefficient because there are signs that control prices and mobility of land transportation.

Added to this is that port costs are also high due to the lack of infrastructure for customs and phytosanitary verifications, and cold chains.

Despite these problems, the study indicates that the quality of roads and maritime connectivity is considered acceptable.

These details can be found in the complementary summary of the “Macroeconomic Report of Latin America and the Caribbean 2019”, of the IDB. It also analyzes the electricity, telecommunications and water and sanitation sectors.

On the subject of water and sanitation, the IDB explains that the country’s performance in the indicators of quality and stability is below what was expected, especially in relation to sanitation.

This sector is characterized by low quality and limited service coverage, where 33% of families receive water outside the home. Also, there are large differences in water coverage according to the economic level of the population and its area of ​​residence. Highlights that the challenges of the sector are associated with financial and regulatory deficiencies. Water companies depend on state subsidies

Weakness INTRANT

The IDB highlights that with the recent update of the legal and regulatory framework, an entity empowered to lead the sector was created, the National Institute of Transit and Land Transportation (INTRANT), which replaced the multiplicity of existing regulations and institutions. However, the full implementation of the law is pending, hampered by institutional weakness, lack of human resources with technical skills and resistance from private interest groups.