According to a spokesperson for the consumers association 'Pro Consumidor' the cost of living in the Dominican Republic has increased considerably over the past few months.
Basic products, such as fish (bacalao), coffee, cake, chocolate, flour and plastic items, as well as rice, beans, eggs and cooking bananas have dramatically risen in price.
The spokesperson for the association does not understand how the government can allow huge amounts of sugar to be exported to the USA while the domestic market is suffering from sugar shortages.
The strong increase in the cost of basic food items is also caused by the additional export of food to the disaster areas in Haiti.
The national production companies are profiting from this increased export to neighbouring Haiti, but the poor population here now have to pay higher prices, despite the fact (according to the consumer association), that there is a Dominican law (Article 358-05) that prohibits price increases of basic food items without express permission from the central government.
