Santo Domingo.- U.S. ambassador Raul H. Yzaguirre on Wednesday gave failing grades to Dominican Republic’s education, state of law, anticorruption effort and energy, but praised its social diversity, landscape, attractions and the tranquility of its countryside.

Yzaguirre cited a study which ranks Dominican Republic last in math, reading and science, among 16 Latin American countries evaluated,

The diplomat, the main speaker in the American Chamber of Commerce Monthly Luncheon, also cited another evaluation which places the country in 66th place in math, among 67 nations which participated in the International Student Evaluation Program.

He said the country’s ability to continue reaching high economic growth rates is in doubt, as it has done until now, because what's needed to compete is a good education, “which must be improved.”

“Some economists who analyze the healthy economic growth rates will say that, to date, the Dominican Republic has obtained strange results. The country has obtained high economic growth rates beyond what it would be expected given the rate of educative accomplishments of its youth,” Yazguirre said. “I personally believe that this will not be able to continue. One doesn’t have to be an economist to know that a good education is needed to be able to compete and be successful in the global economy of today.”

The U.S. ambassador, speaking to an audience of industrialists, politicians, civil society personalities and journalists, among others, urged Dominicans to take the lead to improve their education system and noted that that the American Chamber of Commerce and the private sector work for education and that civil society has stressed the subject and spurred a wide ranging debate.

“The United States, through the United States Agency for International Development, has contributed millions of dollars in aid to support the Education Ministry and its decennial program, to improve the quality and development of the basic education in the country. Also Mother is forming alliances with the Pontifical Catholic University and Teacher to implement the Effective Schools Program,” Yzaguirre said.

Corruption

The U.S. Ambassador noted that despite that “everybody” complains of corruption in Dominican Republic, “I’m convinced that something can, in fact, be done.”

“If the Dominican Government doesn’t enjoy the confidence of its people, it will not be able to carry out the fundamental reforms that are necessary to forge onwards. For that, the Government of he Dominican Republic must address the issue of corruption,” the U.S. ambassador said, and hailed the Government’s Participative Anti-Corruption Initiative (IPAC), propose by president Leonel Fernandez with the support of the civil society and the U.S.