According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), urban unemployment in the Dominican Republic stood at 5.6 percent for 2011 whilst it was 5% in 2010. This represents a marginal increase in 2011 compared to the previous year, but continues to be below the average for Latin America. Other countries below the average are Panama with 5.4% and Brazil with 6.2%. The countries with the highest unemployment rates in the region are Jamaica with 12.6%, Colombia at 11.8% and Venezuela at 8.6%.

Despite the world economic crisis, the average in Latin America has shown a decrease of 0.5 percentage points since 2010 when it was at 7.3%.

The ILO stated in its annual report that urban unemployment in Latin America and the Caribbean is at the lowest levels since the middle of the 1990's.

Elizabeth Tinoco, ILO regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean stated: "We are optimistic when we see how Latin America has responded in a positive manner to the crisis. The decrease in unemployment broke records and is now significant, being one of the lowest in comparison to the rest of the world".

She added that thanks to five years of sustained growth, Latin America has succeeded in maintaining equilibrium in both the balance of payments and employment growth. She did warn, however that a major challenge for the region is to take care of the needs of young people, who are often excluded from the labor market, with youth unemployment standing at 14.9%, representing seven million young Latin Americans.

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