Abinader, ALYON: Goldman Sachs to invest US$275M

Santo Domingo.- President Luis Abinader accompanied the executives of the ALYON group in an event to announce the expansion of the company thanks to an investment of US$275 million from the international investment bank Goldman Sachs.

The president congratulated Manuel Diez Cabral, its CEO and president, for the operation, and encouraged them to continue in that direction.

Abinader highlighted the role that private companies play for the development of the economy with a quote from Winston Churchill: “Private companies are that robust horse that pulls the cart.” He urged them to continue working with the support of the government. ”

The president attributed the carrying out of economic operations like that to the trust that, according to him, his government has been building every day. He assured that the government works every day to create the best investment climate, and generate opportunities and jobs.

The company explained that the transaction accelerates the regional expansion of Diesco, ALYON’s industrial arm, through a contribution of US $ 275 million, which includes preferred shares of US $ 113 million from the Goldman Sachs Asset fund. Management’s West Street Strategic Solutions.

WELCOME TO MONTECRISTI

The jewel of the northwest, the border province of Montecristi presents a wild and striking landscape ripe for off-the-beaten-track adventures. Rice plantations, banana fields, goats and giant cacti stand sentry roadside, leading towards salt ponds and onto limestone cliffs hugging a wave-rich Atlantic Ocean. Around this part desert and part Mediterranean-like scenery, thick mangrove tunnels give way to fresh lagoons, while offshore cayes teem with migratory birds, and offer secluded white sand beaches.

Sosua75 Cultural Education Center plan presented at Presidential Palace

Last Monday a meeting was convened at the Presidential Palace in Santo Domingo between José Ignacio Paliza, Administrative Minister to President Abinader, and Elihu Baver, Board Chairman of Sosua75. Also attending the meeting were Jhonattan González, Ramón Leonardy Abreu the Director of AltaVision canal 20 both from Gaspar Hernandez and Hernán Santos Lugo, Palace Employee and family friend of Baver from Santo Domingo.

From L-R – Jhonattan Gonzalez, José Ignacio Paliza, Elihu “Hugh” Baver, Ramón Leonardy Abreu

The meeting commenced with Baver presenting a gift on behalf of the European Jewish community of a copper plate embossed with the figure of Moses holding the ten commandments. The gift was given in thanks to the Dominican government for being the only country at the 1938 Evian Conference to open its doors as a haven to fleeing Jewish refugees at the beginning of WWII.  

Gift of copper embossed plate with Moses figure holding the ten commandants given by European Jewish Community and presented to Paliza in honor of The Dominican Republic being the only country at the 1938 Evian Conference.

 The specific intent of the meeting was to plant the seeds and convey the plan of the Jewish Dominican Cultural Education Center project vision, which Baver first conceived seven years ago after forming Sosua75, a US 501(c)3 Non-Profit Organization based out of the Boston area. 

 In addition to showcasing the overall unique aspects of the Dominican Republic, the overarching mission of the Cultural Education Center project is to highlight the many synergies of the Jewish and Dominican cultures since their integration in the 1800s, which then led up to the 1940 establishment of Sosua as a refugee colony following Evian. 

 Formally petitioning the Dominican government to be a collaborative partner with Sosua75 and US investors backing this project, Baver asked Paliza if the government would supply a suitably sized parcel of land near the Puerto Plata airport for the specific purpose of constructing the multi-faceted sports, history, education, and entertainment complex.

Baver envisions this project as a practical role model illuminating collaboration between the Dominican Ministries of Education, Sports, Culture, Agriculture, and Business. After construction, the hope is for large Dominican businesses, corporations, and organizations to sustain the project’s operations.

Potentially employing hundreds in its construction, on-going maintenance, and staffing, the building of the Center could bring a considerable boost to the North Coast economy for generations to come as well as attract thousands of new international tourists to the North Coast, interested in not only the beautiful beaches and environment but “Heritage tourism” the unique history and culture of the region as well.

Designed with a consistent white Victorian architectural styled theme and showcasing the latest developments in technical innovation, slated key elements of the new proposed Center include a major educational facility to accommodate University exchange students and study abroad programs, a self-sustaining cooperative organic community farm, outdoor amphitheater for concerts, theatre, and other events, a butterfly conservatory honoring the life and legacy of “Las Hermanas Mirabal” (the Mirabal Sisters), a Santiago based Centro Leon-like feel with smaller museums dedicated to sugar cane, tobacco, coffee, and the indigenous Taino Indian culture, expansive gardens where native species of plants will be cultivated, and a world-class agricultural research and development facility. 

Sosua Registered Architect Ramón “Monchy” Escoto standing in front of the design he worked on for Baver.

Representing this country’s national pastime, a large baseball stadium and training complex is planned for players of all ages and to host international baseball tournaments and exhibitions, including housing accommodations for both the players and their families.

 An ideal complement to the recent announcement by the Tourism Ministry to focus their 2021/22 tourism campaign based on the historical establishment of the Sosua Jewish refugee colony back in 1940, Baver is a noted subject matter expert on the 1938 Evian Conference to Sosua journey. 

 In addition to being a keynote speaker at the multiple US and international conferences and events, author &/or subject of over 50 newspaper articles, radio, and TV shows, and documentaries in 2018, Baver was awarded the “Gold Key to the City” of Evian France and currently is enrolled in the prestigious Yeshiva University in Washington Heights/ NYC as a Master of Art’s degree candidate in Holocaust and Genocide Studies.

Baver received the Evian France “Gold Key to the City” at the Mayor’s office in 2018

 The desired location for the Cultural Education Center is in or near Paliza’s hometown of Puerto Plata, somewhere off the main road near the airport. With the overall objective of attracting international family-friendly tourism to the North Coast based on its rich history, Baver’s vision is for the North Coast to be the epicenter of Education, History, Culture, Agriculture, and Sports in the Caribbean. 

Paliza requested additional information be made available to him and his partners, and an upcoming follow-up meeting is being planned.”

Dominican Republic has a new National Park

Santo Domingo.- President Luis Abinader, issued Decree 659-22 on Tuesday, which creates Loma Los Siete Picos National Park, under category II of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN ).

The park borders Sierra de Yamasá, Santo Domingo, Monte Plata, San Cristóbal and Monseñor Noel provinces.

The decree seeks to protect the entire ecosystem, the nascent water sources that guarantee the water supply to 48% of the Dominican population, and the biological and landscape diversity of the surroundings of Los Siete Picos.

The boundaries of the park were defined with the coordinate system of the Transversal Mercator Unit (UTM). The new park has an area of approximately 100 square miles (154.54 square kilometers).

Spanish hotels will dedicate 580 million dollars to the Dominican Republic

Santo Domingo

The leading Spanish hotel chains will invest 580 million dollars in the Dominican Republic until 2024, the Ministry of Tourism reported on Wednesday.

The investment plans were announced by eight executives of the Spanish hotel chains present in the country during a private lunch with President Luis Abinader, which took place on Tuesday in Santo Domingo.

The new investments will raise the quality of the offer of the 16 hotel chains belonging to the Inverotel association and will also serve to promote social and environmental sustainability actions, according to a statement from the Ministry.

At the meeting, the hoteliers presented the government with some priority areas in which they believe that action should be taken to improve the competitiveness of Dominican tourism, including citizen security, energy and water infrastructure, health facilities, and taxation and competition regulations.

The government valued the announcement of the investments as “an important boost for the Dominican Republic” as a tourist destination for a group of companies that currently has 72 hotels in the country.

According to the Ministry of Tourism data, the Spanish hotel offer represents almost 45% of the rooms built in the Dominican Republic and generates around 43,000 direct jobs.

President Abinader thanked the Spanish families for believing in the Dominican Republic and invited them to continue betting on this destination as he told them that “the best years are yet to come.”

Last September, the Dominican Republic surpassed tourist arrivals data before the pandemic and expects to reach record figures in 2022.

Grupo Piñero and Inverotel, Encarna Piñero, and owners or senior managers of other Spanish chains such as Riu, Meliá, Iberostar, Palladium, Princess, Catalonia and Grupo Fuerte were present at the meeting.

Government manages new Copa flights Panama to Punta Cana and Santo Domingo

The Minister of Tourism, David Collado, reported that together with President Luis Abinader, during his visit to Panama, they met with Stanley Mota, president of the board of directors of Copa Holdings and the main executives of Panama’s Copa Airlines to coordinate new routes to the Dominican Republic.

The routes would be increased to the Punta Cana and Internacional de las Américas ( AILA ) airports.

“Every step we take is thinking about the jobs of our people,” added Collado on his social networks.

The meeting was also attended by the president of the Civil Aviation Board ( JAC ), José Marte Piantini ; Paola Rainieri , from the Puntacana Group ; Mónika Infante , director of Dominican Airports Siglo XXI ( Aerodom ); José Ignacio Paliza , Minister of the Presidency; Víctor Pichardo, executive director of the Airport Department, among others.

Víctor Moneo: “Dominican Republic has managed to combine health prevention with openness of tourism”

THE DIRECTOR OF IBERIA EXPLAINED THAT AS A RESULT OF THIS, THE AIRLINE HAS INCREASED ITS FLIGHTS TO THE COUNTRY

 “The President and the Minister have had very good vision.”

Víctor Moneo, director of LATAM Sales and Institutional Agreements of Iberia, said that the Dominican Government had done one “thing well, much better than other countries” since it has been able to combine health precautions with openness to tourism properly.

“In the pandemic period we made repatriation flights only and in July this was one of the first destinations we started operating. Here there is also a medical guarantee,” he added.

He explained that as a result of this (due to the security provided by the country), Iberia had increased the offer in a significant way to DR since, from November, the airline’s operations will be increased to 13 weekly flights.

“Before the pandemic we had seven. We are optimistic and it is an important bet. The limitation of all airlines are airplanes and pilots, and you have to have them accommodated and yet we believe that this country has gone quite well,” he said.

The executive also referred to the rd, after the security it projects for tourism and travel, will be the partner country in Fitur 2022. “It has not been a reckless bet, it has been a very good bet and I feel that we are accompanying them on this path.”

“We believe in the trade fair world. Fitur was the last tourism fair before Covid and the first to be held in a pandemic. I think this year will be very successful and the fact that the Dominican Republic is the partner country has been excellent. President Abinader and Minister David Collado have had a very good vision in pursuing the recovery of tourism,” he said.

Moneo also indicated that the passenger has changed after the pandemic, and “there was a first stage with a lot of fear. People thought that getting on a plane was a risk and that leaving home too. We have invested a lot of time in creating a communication that would clarify that flying is not dangerous.”

“Onboard, there is a phrase that says that “the probability of contagion in an airplane is the same as in an operating room. In an airplane, there are all the sanitary measures, with filters that are constantly renewing the air, all the security measures, masks, the cleanliness of the plane, and the statistics accredit them. So that passenger who first entered with fear realized that the sanitary measures we had on board were serious and robust,” he emphasized.

President says several sectors that contribute to the country’s economy are “recovered”

Santo Domingo, DR.

The President of the Republic, Luis Abinader, assured that several sectors that contribute to the national economy have already “recovered” from the impact of the crisis caused by COVID-19.

He indicated that beyond the “great distortions” concerning the transport of raw materials, they had come forward to recover different sectors.

During the forum “Mipyes and Covid-19 towards a sustainable recovery,” the president said that the government is working to recover this productive sector.

“The economy is already in the process of frank recovery, which is going to grow with more than double digits this year, where the free zone is already recovered, where tourism is already recovered and we expect the best tourist season in history next year, and where all sectors are recovering and MSMEs have to accompany that recovery, we are going to help all MSMEs make a frank recovery,” he said.

He thanked the different associations that brought together micro, small and medium-sized companies for the work carried out, despite the conditions generated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Thank you very much to codopymes for working together with us to achieve this recovery. Now we need to double the efforts to continue solving any problem that arises in a world that struggles with great disturbances as we have seen in transportation logistics. In the increase in raw materials, we have a long way to go to continue working and recovering,” said the president.

Abinader stressed that MSMEs are “fundamental pillars” for the country’s sustainability since they constitute 98 percent of the business fabric and 50 percent of jobs in the country according to data.

Economy will close the year with a growth rate of 10%

Santo Domingo, DR

In a speech on the occasion of the 74th anniversary of the Central Bank, Governor Héctor Valdez Albizu revealed that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) reached a growth of 12.7% in the first nine months of this year and projected that at the end of this 2021 it would be double digits (10%) or more.

Valdez Albizu cited the Hotels, Bars and Restaurants sector as the great driver of growth from January to September, with 31.8%; followed by construction with 30%, free zones 24%, among other activities that in turn contributed to an increase in formal and informal employment.

However, he stressed that as in previous months, construction was once again the activity with the highest impact on growth, representing almost 80% of gross fixed capital formation.

“The remarkable performance of the first nine months of the year consolidates the projection that the Dominican Republic will achieve a double-digit expansion at the end of 2021,that is, 10% or more, placing the country again as one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America,” the governor said in his speech.

He affirmed that the growth registered in the first nine months is a “real feat,” given the impact of the pandemic on health and the economy.

The most dynamic sectors in performance, in terms of value-added in January-September, were: Hotels, bars, and restaurants (31.8%); construction (30%); manufacturing of free zones (24.2%); transport and storage (13.7%); local manufacturing (11.5%); trade (11.1%); and mining and quarrying (6.9%), reported Governor Valdez Albizu.

Recovered tourism
Valdez Albizu stressed that tourism had recovered faster than expected, and according to figures, in January-September, more than 3.3 million non-resident visitors arrived in the country.

In September alone, non-resident passengers who entered the country increased by 12.9% concerning visitors received in the same month of 2019, a performance that he said allows projecting that the arrival of non-residents would exceed 4.8 million in 2021.

Local Manufacturing
Regarding local manufacturing, the governor said that the recovery was decisive, not only because of its share of GDP but also because it is one of the country’s main generators of formal jobs.

He also referred to the manufacture of free zones, which recovered 100% of the jobs suspended during the confinement.

Regarding trade, the governor explained that the sector was a significant beneficiary of the increase in demand “as a result of the relaxation of the confinement aimed at mitigating the spread of the coronavirus.”

Canadians look to invest as Gov. touts business climate

Santo Domingo.– A mission of Canadian business  leaders interested in investing in the Dominican Republic in the areas of trade, development, investment, industry, tourism, cooperation for environmental sanitation projects and others, visited Foreign Minister Roberto Álvarez yesterday.

The official explained that with this meeting the work agenda of these businessmen in the country began.

“You are in a nation with an excellent investment climate, reinforced by the efforts of the Dominican Government to combat corruption and impunity.

In addition, we have a free zone regime that generates investment facilities and we have macroeconomic stability,” added the foreign minister.

The arrival in the country of this high-level business mission was coordinated by the embassy of the Dominican Republic in Canada, and its ambassador Michelle Cohen.

Venezuela maintains its flights to the Dominican Republic in an “exceptional” way

The National Institute of Civil Aviation (INAC) of Venezuela announced that the restriction on international flights was extended due to Covid-19, except for the routes that connect the Caribbean country with the Dominican Republic, Turkey, Mexico, Panama, Bolivia, and Russia.

“Exceptionally, only commercial air operations are authorized for the transfer of passengers, cargo and mail between the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the sister countries of the Dominican Republic, Turkey, Mexico, Panama, Bolivia and Russia,” according to an INAC statement, which, in that case, did not clarify how long the extension is.

INAC urged “air operators and travel agencies not to market tickets on routes other than those approved.”

It is recalled that on March 12 of last year, the Venezuelan Government suspended all flights from Europe and Colombia, in principle for a month, “to add to the preventive processes at the international level” and try to stop the arrival of Covid-19 in the Caribbean country. This measure was extended a few days later to the rest of the connections.

Protecting economy now more important than fighting covid-19, international survey says

Paris, France

Preserving the economy, even if it leads to a deterioration of the health situation, is now more important for a part of public opinion, especially in the United Kingdom and Germany, according to an international study published on Monday.

Conducted by the Kekst CNC cabinet in the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, and Japan, the study, conducted between September 28 and October 5 with 6,000 people, reflects the evolution of public opinion since a previous survey in May.

“The main information is the change of priorities of the public, which is now more concerned about the protection of the economy,” summarizes James Johnson, director of the survey department.

In Germany, 49% of respondents in May considered limiting the epidemic a priority and 33% the protection of the economy, now 40% and 39%. In the UK, where there are still many daily cases of COVID-19, the gap between the two priorities has also narrowed.

People interviewed are also reluctant to new restrictions and lockdown measures, even if most predict a brutal winter: more than 50% in Japan, the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom think there will be a new epidemic wave.

“Large majorities reject restrictive measures, also in the event that hospitals are saturated in winter,” according to the study.

However, “the proportion of people prone to vaccination is on the rise in each country,” he adds. In France and Japan, an average of 80% of people says they are vaccinated or in favor of it, though they do not support a vaccine or “green” pass, as the public views these as gateways to further freedoms and rights abuses by governments. The United States has become the least likely country, five points behind France.

The report also indicates an increase in the “gap” between the vaccinated and the unvaccinated. 34% of Germans and 33% of Swedes say they are willing to break off relations with unvaccinated friends.

Overall, pessimism about the future is planned among the six countries in the study, with a population that thinks there will be an increase in rates and living costs in the coming years.

Air Canada to connect Toronto with Santo Domingo twice a week

TUESDAY AND THURSDAY FROM DECEMBER 16

The airline highlights historical and cultural attractions of SD

They maintain strict sanitary protocols on their flights

Air Canada announced it would launch a new seasonal service between Toronto and Santo Domingo as the airline rebuilds its North American network.

The airline’s new flights to Santo Domingo will operate twice weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting next December 16 aboard Air Canada Rouge aircraft with Premium Rouge and Economy services, product enhancements including upgraded streaming entertainment, and options to purchase high-speed wi-fi.

Mark Galardo, Air Canada’s senior vice president of network planning and revenue management, said, “As travel restrictions ease, we are committed to rebuilding our international network to connect the world to Canada, reuniting people with families, friends and business colleagues.”

“Our flights to Santo Domingo connect to and from our flights across Canada at our global hub in Toronto to offer easy and convenient access to the Dominican Republic’s capital city, a destination that is steeped in rich culture and history, including the location of a Unesco World Heritage site, as well as being the country’s commercial and financial center,” he added.

He explained that customers could also accumulate and redeem Aeroplan points through Canada’s leading loyalty program when traveling by Air Canada, and eligible customers have access to priority check-in, Maple Leaf lounges in Canada, priority boarding, and other benefits available.

“Foreign nationals who have been fully vaccinated with Canadian government-accepted vaccinations at least 14 days in advance and who meet specific entry requirements may enter Canada for non-essential travel,” he added.

He indicated that seats are available for sale through all booking channels, including aircanada.com and travel agencies.

On his side, Fabien Gourdon, Commercial Director of Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI (Aerodom), expressed that “we are delighted to welcome at SDQ the new direct flight from YYZ with Air Canada, which will allow more Canadian tourists to visit the magnificent hotels and the wide variety of recreation and entertainment options that the DR has to offer, such route will also serve the growing business and friends and family visits demand, and will allow expanding the growing cargo exchange between both countries.”

Please be reminded that Air Canada’s business schedule may be adjusted as necessary based on Covid-19’s path and government restrictions which may change with little notice. Passengers are responsible for ensuring they meet all government entry requirements, including the correct travel documents, visas, required health certificates, and all other eligibility requirements for any flight they purchase.

Seven contracts signed for renewable energies would contribute 420 megawatts

The Minister of Energy and Mines and the executive vice president of the Unified Council of Electricity Distribution Companies led the signing of seven contracts for renewable energy projects, with national and foreign companies contributing to the system 420 megawatts: and could reach 544 megawatts of peak clean energy.

During the event, held in one of the halls of the “Julio Sauri Club” of the CDEEE, several of the investors highlighted the levels of transparency and speed with which these contracts were evaluated and approved, considering that, in the past, they took between one and eight years.

Speaking of the investment destined for these projects, which will be more than 485 million dollars, Minister Antonio Almonte considered it a milestone to have signed these contracts because they stimulate energy investment, generate confidence, and fulfill the promise of the changed sector.

“These investors will give testimonies and will be promoters for the stimulation of new investments in the Dominican Republic in the area of energy, after having arrived at this process without any difficulty in terms of transparency and legality,” he said.

Almonte said that due to the facilities received and the transparency of the process, the investors present would be the best promoters to stimulate the inflow of capital for investment in clean energy and thus transform the generation matrix by injecting renewable sources.

He affirmed that the construction of these projects would begin shortly in the different municipalities of the country.

The vice president of the Unified Council of the EDE, Andrés Astacio, was in charge of signing the contracts for the purchase and sale of energy with the participating companies, Koror Business S.R.L; Desarrollo Fotovoltaicos DSS, S.A.S.; Levitals Grupo Inversor, S.L.U.; Ege Haina, AES Dominicana Renewable Energy, S.R.L; Electronic, J.R.L., and Natural World Energy Corporation, NWEC, S.R. L.

The companies plan to develop their photovoltaic projects of between 42 and 120 megawatts in Azua, Peravia, San Cristóbal, San Pedro de Macorís, Monte Plata, and La Victoria, in Santo Domingo Norte.

Astacio said the signing of the contracts as part of the continuation of the energy policy established by President Luis Abinader for the country to have a renewable energy matrix with natural gas as a transition fuel.

He added that we would continue working with other concessionaires to achieve agreements that benefit Dominican society within a legal and transparent framework in the coming days.

At the end of the event, the businessmen who signed the contracts for the production of renewable energies agreed that they had not participated in the past in a meeting of that nature, nor that it showed those levels of transparency for the conduct of their business.

Jaime Llinares of Levitals Grupo Inversor highlighted the government’s effort to eliminate the bureaucratic obstacles of the past and congratulated the authorities for making this business effort a reality.

Michelle Reyes, Commercial Director of AES Dominicana, congratulated the authorities for the levels of transparency with which the contracts were handled, as well as for the speed with which all the permits were processed, “something that was not seen very often.”

Businessman Alfonso Rodríguez, the representative of Electronic JRC and the Monte Plata Solar project, highlighted the effort made by the current management to incorporate more renewable energy into the country’s energy matrix. “This work done by the authorities can be described as very good,” Rodriguez said.

While Luis Mejía Brache, of Ege Haina, stressed that his company has a lot of experience processing permits and that the record time in which they were approved on this occasion “is an engine to continue investing in the country.” “This is a support to investors like us to continue investing in new projects and new investments,” he said.

The Minister of Energy and Mines shared the main table, the vice president of the Unified Council of the EDE and several of its members, and with the Deputy Minister of Energy, Rafael Gómez. Lawyer Carmen Chevalier notarized the process.

Hoteliers demand Dominican Gov. action to compete

Santo Domingo.- The Association Hotels and Tourism of the Dominican Republic (Asonahores) highlighted the importance of maintaining policies to promote the tourism industry as tools to guarantee the regional competitiveness of the tourism sector.

It said that maintains growth rates experienced in recent years, both in investment through the development of new hotel rooms and complementary offer infrastructure, as well as the arrival of tourists to our territory.

In a statement, Asonahores pointed out that for the association, “it is important to remember that tourism is a globalized sector, which requires a fiscal and legal framework in accordance with the competitive and long-term environment, which generates trust and maximizes the flow of capitals to the country.”

WELCOME TO PUERTO PLATA

The birthplace of tourism in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Plata continues to pack a mighty punch. Its spectacular, sprawling landscape combines sea, mountains, lush valleys, rivers, and a multitude of beaches. Its fertile soil grows cacao and coffee trees, while underneath rests the world’s clearest amber.

Savvy explorer Christopher Columbus knew there was much to discover on this northern Atlantic coastline–eventually finding gold deposits–when he glimpsed it from his ship in 1492. Drawn by the sight of clouds shimmering over Mount Isabel de Torres and illuminating Puerto Plata’s vast blue shoreline, he named the area the “Silver Port” and settled at La Isabela with a mixed community of Tainos–original inhabitants of the area–and Spaniards, built the first church and his first home in the Americas. You can follow Columbus’s trail and tour these archeological ruins, now part of a national park.

This Caribbean island has had its best tourism month ever

Maureen O'Hare, CNN

Read in CNN: https://apple.news/Ag3R6GDQBQ1Osi2HkHlIzHw

6. The Dominican Republic had its best tourism month ever

David Collado, the Dominican Republic's tourism minister, has tweeted that in September the country enjoyed its biggest visitor numbers ever. 

It's welcomed 3.3 million visitors so far this year -- more than in the pre-pandemic days of 2019 -- of which more than 365,000 were in September, reports the Caribbean Journal. 

The Dominican Republic is at "Level 2: Covid-19 Moderate" on the CDC's travel advisory list. 

Mitur: “Vaccination cards will not be required from tourists to enter”

THE USE OF A MASK AND SOCIAL DISTANCING ARE MAINTAINED

 Public Health issues new resolution aimed at the tourism sector

 Health protocols promote the recovery of the tourism industry

The Ministry of Tourism ( Mitur ) established that the application and use of health risk management protocols against Covid-19 would continue, aimed at the tourism sector, which establishes the use of a mask and social distancing.

In this sense, resolution DJ-0032/21 establishes that “the presentation of vaccination cards by passengers arriving in the Dominican Republic will not be required,” following the protocols approved by the Civil Aviation Board. ( JAC ).

“To enter the hotels and services offered within these and the hotel complexes to their guests, it will not be necessary to present the vaccination card against Covid-19, as well as the negative PCR test, established in Resolution No. .00048, dated October eight (8), 2021, issued by the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance,” says the resolution in point three.

Similarly, it establishes that activities related to land tourism transport, cruises, travel agency, tour operators, horse ranches, tourist walks, zip line, water or recreational theme parks and paintball, maritime transport and water sports, diving school and parasailing, will follow the same treatment indicated for hotel establishments, always safeguarding compliance with the provisions of the sector protocol issued for this purpose.

The resolution signed by the Minister of Tourism, David Collado, this Thursday, the 14th, establishes that the measures will be applied immediately.

Jubilation in Puerto Plata tourism: Air Transat resumes its flights from Montreal

On Thursday, October 14, the Dominican Republic welcomed back Air Transat, which resumed service from Gregorio Luperon International Airport in Puerto Plata to Montreal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, increasing the number of tourist flights available between Canada and the North Coast of the DR.

Air Transat’s new operation is being served on a modern Airbus A321neo LR aircraft, which offers more space in economy class, with wider seats and 50% less cabin noise.

It also offers state-of-the-art in-flight entertainment with larger individual touch screens and USB ports for charging your electronic devices.

The weekly flight that has been inaugurated will be growing in frequencies in the coming weeks, reaching three flights a week by the end of the current year.

“We continue to welcome new flights to our airports! With great joy we welcomed back AirTransat Welcome to paradise!” wrote Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI (Aerodom) on its social networks.

Announcement of USA program to facilitate trade with Dominican Republic

Improve trade. Replace paper certificates with electronic ones, streamlining processes

To improve trade flow, the Dominican Government will adopt the phytosanitary electronic certification system (ePhyto / GeNs) with the support of the United States Government through its Trade Safe or Trade Safe (TraSa) project.

This innovative tool harmonizes standards and facilitates transactions through electronic certificates, thus replacing traditional paper certificates.

This makes it possible to optimize the security of official communications between countries and reduces costs by reducing complex processes concerning the exchange of electronic data.

ePhyto / GeNs will be applied by the Dominican Ministry of Agriculture and is promoted by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in alliance with the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).
The Minister of Agriculture, Limber Cruz, highlighted this tool that will speed up the procedures required for importing and exporting plant products.

The director of the TraSa project, Brian Rudert, pointed out that ePhyto/GeNs will increase the efficiency of the processes by replacing 62,000 paper forms with electronic ones, representing an automatic impact on the reduction of transit time through the ports of entry. In addition, Rudert said that in the case of perishable products, they would be able to move faster they guarantee more shelf life, which means benefits for all.

The TraSa project has been supporting the Department of Plant Health of the Ministry of Agriculture with the adoption of the ePhyto system through strengthening the capacities of inspectors of the Department with the use of this tool. Similarly, the project foresees an investment of approximately US $ 250,000 to integrate the ePhyto system with the Foreign Trade Single Window (VUCE) system.

The director of the Department of Plant Health of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rosa Lazala, explained that they are the executing body of ePhyto/GeNs and urged all sectors involved in export and import activities to have confidence in the change to digital and that at the same time are integrated into the use of this tool.

“This tool is safe, easy to use and quickly transmits the forms, which translates into direct economic benefits for these sectors and the country,” he explained during the launch of the certificate yesterday at the Dominican Fiesta hotel.