Paving the Way for Prosperous Cities and Territories : Urbanization and Territorial Review of the Dominican Republic
Over the past four decades and prior to the pandemic, the Dominican Republic (DR) experienced high economic growth rates, which were accompanied by an expansion of the middle class and a significant reduction of poverty rate. During the same period...
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| Format: | Report |
| Language: | English en_US |
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Washington, DC : World Bank
2022
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099520007132233569/P172715065b95b0bc08ce70a7fe6442f014 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/37710 |
| Summary: | Over the past four decades and prior
to the pandemic, the Dominican Republic (DR) experienced
high economic growth rates, which were accompanied by an
expansion of the middle class and a significant reduction of
poverty rate. During the same period, the country became
predominantly urban, and its territories evolved from rural
and agricultural spaces to large metropolitan areas,
consolidating tourism poles in coastal areas and suburban
spaces where manufacturing emerged, fueled by the creation
of Special Economic Zones (SEZ). In 2020, it is estimated
that 82.5 percent of the Dominican Republic’s population
lives in urban areas; and by 2050 this number will go up to
92 percent.While the economic and territorial transformation
of the country has generated opportunities for its
population, it has also created a number of challenges which
require to be tackled. Such as providing quality basic
services, assuring safe and affordable housing solutions to
the fast-growing population, assuring firms count with the
right enabling environment in the places where they locate
and, more recently, supporting the Coronavirus (COVID-19)
recovery efforts to build a better future for the country.
The government of the Dominican Republic has recognized the
opportunities that come with better leveraging its territory
and tackling current development challenges; and is pushing
to advance an ambitious territorial development reform. This
DR’s Urbanization and territorial development review aims to
inform and contribute to the Government’s effort by (i)
providing evidence of the main territorial challenges
currently being faced by the country with a specific focus
on urban areas and lagging regions; (ii) review the current
(and proposed reforms to the) regulatory framework for
territorial planning and local government finance; and (iii)
inform policy decisions at the national, regional, and local
levels for ways ahead to address the territories challenges
and embrace its opportunities, and to implement the proposed reforms. |
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