SANTO DOMINGO. – Francesca Rainieri, current Senior Administrative Vice President of Grupo Puntacana, will assume the presidency of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Dominican Republic (Amchamdr) on April 2nd of this year, marking a new era in this business organization, which will debut for the first time in its 101-year history, a woman to head the management.
Edwin de los Santos, the current president, provided the information during his last speech as head of the organization.
Rainieri is a prominent businesswoman in the Dominican tourism industry. She joined the Puntacana Group in 2001 as Strategic Planning Manager and in 2004 assumed the role of Hospitality Director. In her current position, she contributes to the group's various business units and the implementation of the SAP system in its administrative processes.
Francesca Rainieri. (EXTERNAL SOURCE).
The business leader holds a Bachelor of Science degree with a double major in Finance and Entrepreneurship, as well as a specialization in Economics from Babson College, United States.
"The work is bearing fruit. And I have been very involved with Amchamdr. The time for evolution in that sense has truly arrived. Amchamdr in the Dominican Republic is now open to having a female president, not only because she is a woman, but because everything has aligned," Rainieri stated.
Women in the business sector
Regarding the role of women in the business sector, she believes that "I'm not one of those who thinks that being a woman or not should be a determining factor. I believe we need to create opportunities so that everyone has the chance to develop as they want.".
“I don’t know how many women participated in Amchamdr in the past, but I know my mother was one of them. At the time, for various reasons, she left the organization. She had the goal of developing within Amchamdr, but she didn’t achieve it. Perhaps, at that time, even the institution itself wasn’t ready,” she said.
Rainieri acknowledged that the Dominican business environment has evolved and opened spaces for equitable participation: “For me, it is an honor to be the first female president of Amchamdr, but I know I will not be the only one nor the last. That is what is truly important.”.
She spoke about the challenge of assuming this leadership: "Now I have a greater responsibility because, being a woman, many people indirectly expect me to prove what I know should not be proven and is not necessary, because it has nothing to do with gender, but with the capacity, the ability, the skills and the development that each person wants to achieve.".
Rainieri addressed the organization's true purpose, emphasizing that it is not a business association. Its objective is to forge ties and support the development of trade between the United States and the Dominican Republic. "Everything that involves developing, facilitating, expanding, and growing that trade is part of our work," he said.
He emphasized the importance of the institution in strengthening bilateral relations, with the aim of influencing both locally and in the United States, and supporting ties to facilitate trade between the two countries.
