REGIONAL PLANNING FOR INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

In this study, the University of Wisconsin, in response to a request from the Oficina Nacional de Planificacion (ONAPLAN), analyzes in-country USAID/Dominican Republic and ONAPLAN possibilities for a Regional Planning and Area Development Project (RPADP) in the Dominican Republic with specific reference to the country"s southwestern and southcentral areas. The team notes that an integrated strategy for area development requires a multisectoral approach in a specific geographical area where the government is committed to decentralization, i.e., to creating and maintaining an institutional infrastructure invested with decisionmaking authority. To date, despite the Dominican Republic"s commitment of administrative and financial resources to regional programs, decentralization efforts have often been disorganized and diffused. Within this context, the prospects for developing agriculture, agroindustry, manufacturing, and marketing are reviewed in terms of physical and institutional resources. The Southwest possesses a sufficiency of both types of resources to offer genuine development potential in agriculture and industry and could serve as a model for decentralization efforts elsewhere. Improved irrigation, a research facility, and increased agricultural inputs could strengthen cotton, castor beans, grapes, and grain sorghum production; while manufacturing possibilities exist in export assembly operations and food processing. By contrast, the Southcentral region is still recuperating from the damage inflicted by Hurricanes David and Frederick in 1979 and lacks sound institutional infrastructure. Consequently, long-term development efforts should be deferred in this area until immediate needs are met. It is recommended that USAID link RPADP to efforts of the Instituto para el Desarrollo del Suroeste (INDESUR); coordinate technical assistance in specific sectors under the umbrella of an RPADP program; and engage in institution-building efforts to increase the capacity of ONAPLAN and other Dominican agencies to engage in regional planning, development, and decentralization.