Santo Domingo.- President Leonel Fernandez on Sunday defended his Administration’s management amid the global economic crisis, affirming that the country has kept stability and foreign investors’ confidence, recognized by the International Monetary Fund and other credit entities.

“This administration has had to sail amid stormy seas, amid high swells and infuriated waters, within an economic internal crisis billed by the PRD (opposition party), and another external one; and in spite of that, the national ship has evaded all dangers, it has forded all the difficulties, and currently exhibits one of the highest confidence index in the international markets of all the world economies,” the Head of State said in a televised speech before the ruling PLD party’s midlevel and senior members.

He said amid the dark global situation and of uncertainty, Dominican Republic emerged as the Latin America and Caribbean country with the highest economic growth in 2009, of 3.5%, which reached 7.8% in 2010.

Anti-impact measures

Fernandez affirmed that faced with the impact of the world crisis, his Administration extended the energy and food subsidies, incorporating 770,427 families to the Bonogas (cooking gas) program, increased the beneficiaries of the Solidarity program to160,300 in 2008,  and the affiliation of 780,000 people to the subsidized Family Health Insurance.

Government spending

As to the handling of taxpayers’ money, the chief executive said under the direction  the International Monetary Fund, government spending was cut by RD$40 billion from July to December 2010, and 20 billion more in the course of this year. “This is the Administration which has assumed the handling of the government spending with the greatest responsibility.”