Farmers Demand Development Bank

Hundreds of farmers marched this week to the National Assembly to demand the creation of an agricultural development bank to stimulate agricultural production, and to oppose the passage of the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA). Also, they demanded laws that would provide for secure legal ownership of their property, for improvements in production infrastructure, and for protection of natural resources.

Leaders of the farmers said the best solution for financing agricultural production would be a first-stage development bank to provide loans with interest rates no higher than 8 percent. The farmers also want medium- and long-term loans in order to renovate and modernize their farms and increase their competitiveness, explained Alvaro Fiallos, president of the National Union of Farmers and Ranchers (UNAG).

In Fiallos' opinion, another crucial point is secure legal ownership of property. He said, "To be able to produce with tranquility and security we need to be sure that the land that we are working will not be seized by other people. In addition, we need the [land] titles from the Agrarian Reform to be recognized as legal instruments in order to use the property as security [for loans]." The farmers met before marching to the National Assembly and expressed their displeasure with the Free Trade Agreement between Central America, Dominican Republic and the United States (DR-CAFTA).

"The Government cannot approve DR-CAFTA, because we don't have the conditions to be competitive; and the trade agreement would deepen the destruction of the already weak production system we have. How will we be able to compete with subsidized producers from the United States?" asked Daniel Núñez, president of the National Commission of Cattle Ranching (CONAGAN). One of the farmers, Israel Rizo Zamora, said, "The executive branch has not listened to the problems that the farming sector is facing." President of the National Assembly René Núñez Téllez told the farmers that a development bank would be started with existing start-up money, US$10 million from the sale of the state telephone company ENITEL. There is pending legislation to assign those funds to the development bank.