{ "title": "Removing Obstacles and Creating Opportunities for Sustainable Growth", "publication": "IMF News, July 26, 2018", "sourceUrl": "https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth", "canonical": "https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth", "overlayPath": "/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/index.md", "summary": "Conference has served as a forum for key economic and financial issues over the last 16 years.", "publishDate": "2018-07-26", "sections": [ { "heading": "Challenges for the region", "content": "- Conference has served as a forum for key economic and financial issues over the last 16 years.\n- Growth performance across CAPDR has been uneven:\n - In the Northern Triangle countries – El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras – as well as in Nicaragua, income per capita has been stagnant for the past 35 years.\n - Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and Panama have grown much faster, narrowing the income gap with the United States.\n- Divergence explained in part by capacity to innovate and adapt:\n - Northern Triangle countries are still diversifying into higher-value added and more complex products and sectors.\n - Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, and Panama have shifted resources into higher-productivity sectors and rank the highest in Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of economic complexity.\n - Examples of sector shifts:\n - Costa Rica: electronics, mechanical parts, financial services, and medical equipment.\n - Panama: logistics and transportation services.\n - Dominican Republic: electrical equipment and medical instruments.\n- Structural and macroeconomic impediments dragging on growth and foreign investment:\n - Infrastructure and education gaps.\n - Large informal sectors.\n - High crime and poor rule of law.\n - Limited fiscal space.\n - Low financial intermediation." }, { "heading": "Regional outlook and recent developments", "content": "- Central America and the Dominican Republic: growth remains strong in 2018, driven by robust U.S. growth and higher remittances due to uncertainty about future migration policies in the U.S.\n- Country-specific headwinds:\n - Political uncertainty in Nicaragua.\n - Temporary disruptions in the construction sector in Panama.\n - These factors contributed to a small downward revision to regional growth to 4 percent in 2018." }, { "heading": "Policy priorities and recommendations", "content": "- Regionwide policies needed to remove constraints to investment and employment growth:\n - Improvements in the business environment.\n - Strengthening institutions to raise productivity and limit incentives for outward migration.\n- For the Northern Triangle countries:\n - Effective policies to improve the security situation are critical.\n- To realize the economic and social potential of women in CAPDR:\n - Improved access to education.\n - Higher investment in infrastructure and information technology.\n - Targeted measures to support working women with children." }, { "heading": "Technology and Fintech", "content": "- Fintech is affecting consumers and businesses across the region:\n - From local merchants seeking loans, to families planning for retirement, to foreign workers sending remittances.\n- Emerging technologies referenced:\n - Artificial intelligence.\n - Distributed ledgers.\n- Potential impacts:\n - Large efficiency gains in payments, financing, investments and insurance.\n - Risks to financial stability and integrity, particularly where operations occur outside the purview of financial regulation and supervision.\n- Regional learning:\n - Experience of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico—the top five Fintech markets in Latin America—will inform policy priorities for the region." }, { "heading": "Climate change and resilience", "content": "- Managing the impact of climate change is a defining global challenge of this century and is inseparable from reducing poverty.\n- IMF emphasis:\n - Climate change is at the forefront of IMF work.\n- Regional preparedness:\n - CAPDR countries are developing preparedness to deal with climate consequences.\n- Macroeconomic implications:\n - Policies will need to be calibrated to accommodate more frequent weather-related shocks.\n - This includes building policy space to respond to shocks and upgrading infrastructure to enhance economic resilience." }, { "heading": "Conference structure and purpose", "content": "- Main themes of the conference focus on removing obstacles and creating opportunities for sustainable, higher, and more inclusive growth.\n- Sessions outlined:\n - Session 1: Outlook and challenges facing the global economy and the region.\n - Session 2: Anchor theme—Removing Obstacles and Creating Opportunities for Sustainable Growth.\n - Session 3: Technology/Fintech.\n - Session 4: Recent experiences in addressing climate change.\n- Purpose:\n - Provide practical insights on how the region can achieve higher and more inclusive growth.\n\nSource: Opening Remarks by Mitsuhiro Furusawa, IMF Deputy Managing Director, Regional Conference for Central America, Panama, and the Dominican Republic, Honduras, July 26, 2018.\n\n---\n\n\n References\n\n- Mitsuhiro Furusawa\n- Costa Rica and the IMF\n- Dominican Republic and the IMF\n- Guatemala and the IMF\n- Honduras and the IMF\n- Nicaragua and the IMF\n- Panama and the IMF\n- IMF-World Bank Debt Sustainability Framework for Low-Income Countries -- A Factsheet\n- Speeches\n- PRESS CENTER\n- https://www.imf.org/en/home\n\nSource: https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth" } ], "bullets": [ "[Markdown version](/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/index.md)", "[Structured JSON version](/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/index.json)", "[Bundle manifest](/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/bundle-manifest.json)", "Published: July 26, 2018", "Conference has served as a forum for key economic and financial issues over the last 16 years.", "Growth performance across CAPDR has been uneven:", "Divergence explained in part by capacity to innovate and adapt:", "Structural and macroeconomic impediments dragging on growth and foreign investment:", "Central America and the Dominican Republic: growth remains strong in 2018, driven by robust U.S. growth and higher remittances due to uncertainty about future migration policies in the U.S.", "Country-specific headwinds:", "Regionwide policies needed to remove constraints to investment and employment growth:", "For the Northern Triangle countries:", "To realize the economic and social potential of women in CAPDR:", "Fintech is affecting consumers and businesses across the region:", "Emerging technologies referenced:", "Potential impacts:", "Regional learning:", "Managing the impact of climate change is a defining global challenge of this century and is inseparable from reducing poverty.", "IMF emphasis:", "Regional preparedness:", "Macroeconomic implications:", "Main themes of the conference focus on removing obstacles and creating opportunities for sustainable, higher, and more inclusive growth.", "Sessions outlined:", "Purpose:", "[Mitsuhiro Furusawa](http://www.imf.org/external/np/omd/bios/mf.htm)", "[Costa Rica and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/CRI/index.htm)", "[Dominican Republic and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/DOM/index.htm)", "[Guatemala and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/GTM/index.htm)", "[Honduras and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/HND/index.htm)", "[Nicaragua and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/NIC/index.htm)", "[Panama and the IMF](http://www.imf.org/external/country/PAN/index.htm)", "[IMF-World Bank Debt Sustainability Framework for Low-Income Countries -- A Factsheet](https://www.imf.org/en/about/factsheets/sheets/2023/imf-world-bank-debt-sustainability-framework-for-low-income-countries)", "[Speeches](https://www.imf.org/en/news/searchnews)", "[PRESS CENTER](http://presscenter.imf.org/)", "[https://www.imf.org/en/home](https://www.imf.org/en/home)" ], "alternates": { "markdown": "/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/index.md", "json": "/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/index.json", "bundleManifest": "/en/news/articles/2018/07/26/sp072618-removing-obstacles-and-creating-opportunities-for-sustainable-growth/bundle-manifest.json" }, "generatedAtUtc": "2026-09-25T22:07:21.082Z" }