{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.022026431718061675, 'fraction_numerical': 0.002936857562408223, 'mean_word_length': 4.926086956521739, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 1, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Intellectual Property Rights and Foreign Direct Investment: Lessons for Central America

This chapter discusses the effects of intellectual property rights (IPRs) on foreign direct investment (FDI) and the role that regional economic integration may play in determining those effects.The discussion is applied to the Dominican Republic–Central American Free Trade Agreement (DRCAFTA) region. In terms of GDP and population, the DR-CAFTA region is a relatively small market with geographic advantages related to its proximity to the U.S. market.The region accounts for a small share of U.S. outward FDI. Most U.S. FDI in the region is concentrated in the wholesale trade and manufacturing industries, such as textiles. Other FDI from Asia occurs in agriculture and fishing. Given the characteristics of the DRCAFTA market and its potential growth, the aim of this chapter is to analyze how strengthening IPRs in the context of economic integration will influence the incentives of U.S. and other foreign firms to acquire or establish subsidiaries in this region. Chapter 15 of the DR-CAFTA lays out a comprehensive set of provisions to raise intellectual property standards and enforcement mechanisms in the region.The agreement calls for the ratification of or accession to the Copyright Treaty of the World Intellectual Property Office, Patent C H A P T E R 1 0