Honduran Charter City Loses Its Compass

As Elisabeth Malkin reports, Romer's plan, which landed in Honduras after a global search for interested parties, has been scuttled by the very type of shady decision-making that his theories on economic development (based on strong institutions and the rule of law) were formed in response to.    

Romer has apparently left the project, and, according to Malkin, "[t]he tipping point came with the announcement a few weeks ago that the
Honduran agency set up to oversee the project had signed a memorandum of
understanding with its first investor group. The news came as surprise to Mr. Romer. He believed that a temporary
transparency commission he had formed with a group of well-known experts
should have been consulted."

"The law setting up Honduras's experiment in a charter city, a special
development region, or RED in its Spanish initials, creates flexibility
that promotes innovations, but requires strict disclosure along the way,
Mr. Romer said. 'The one absolute principle is a commitment to
transparency,' he said."