Above: Port-au-Prince

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Following up on a dialogue that started in Miami last month, private sector representatives from Haiti and the Dominican Republic are planning to deepen their conversations.

Both sides agreed to transform their bilateral discussion into a permanent regular meeting to address the challenges that affect trade relations between the two countries, according to a statement from the office of Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe.

“By supporting the institutionalization of this new dialogue mechanism, our governments are in the process of demonstrating their commitment to resolve long-standing problems that have affected trade and investment in both countries,” Lamothe said.

The trade relationship between the two countries has been rocky of late, with Haiti banning a number of products from the Dominican Republic.

In an effort to improve things, the two sides agreed to turn the talks into a “forum for direct discussion,” a more formal kind of summit.

“These business meetings reflect the effective management of relations between the Dominican Republic and the Republic of Haiti and prove that, through open and honest dialogue, we can reach favourable solutions for the two countries,” Dominican Foreign Minister Carlos Morales Troncoso said in a statement.

The two sides plan to hold a Business Summit in Port-au-Prince in the first week of October.

“We will do everything we can to reach a wider participation of all sectors of Haitian business at the forum,” said Norma Powell, a Haitian private sector representative. “These discussions with our fellow Dominicans have allowed us to better know and understand the realities of each country.”