This project, along with the delivery of the Enriquillo-Pedernales and Cabo Rojo-Cueva de Pescadores sections, will reduce travel time from Barahona to the beautiful beaches of the area by more than half an hour.
President Luis Abinader led the inaugural ceremony this Thursday for the first stage of the Barahona-Enriquillo highway, built by the Ministry of Public Works and Communications (MOPC), for an amount of 1,821 million pesos, which constitutes a fundamental link in the investment plan that the government is carrying out to develop the tourist center of Pedernales.
Speaking at the event, President Abinader stated that with the road development being carried out by his government, together with the Enriquillo-Pedernales highway, which is in the reconstruction phase, and the Azua bypass, already in operation, and soon the Baní bypass, which is nearing completion, "it will be possible to save approximately an hour and a half on the journey from Santo Domingo to Pedernales, and vice versa.".
“And why is this important? Because it’s an hour and a half to one of the destinations that will be the fastest growing economically in the Dominican Republic this year,” he emphasized.
He stated that these two days he will be in the Enriquillo region are of special significance for the Southern region, which will go from being a Deep South to a Fertile South, "because of the great significant changes that are coming.".
Meanwhile, the Deputy Minister of Planning and Supervision of Public Works, Roberto Herrera, representing Minister Deligne Ascención, said that this project is part of the set of public investments or public-private partnerships that President Abinader has been promoting since the first day of his government.
Herrera explained that the aforementioned action plan, which began with the rehabilitation of the port of Barahona, has continued with the start of tourist hotels, the arrival of cruise ships, and the construction or renovation of the connectivity routes of the provinces of the entire surrounding area, until reaching the urban center of the Capital, through the Azua and Bani bypasses.
He indicated that this includes the improvement of secondary roads in the Enriquillo Lake basin, and the section of the Enriquillo-Pedernales highway that was delivered.
President Luis Abinader during the inauguration. (External source).
He stated that this first stage of the project, which runs from Barahona to El Derrumbao, covers a distance of 20.5 kilometers, and includes 1.8 kilometers of the road section from Los Patos to the Maniel bridge, the renovation of the Coronel bridge and the installation of two panoramic viewpoints to view the impressive view of the Caribbean Sea.
He stated that the modernization of that road has been carried out by the construction company Inversores del Caribe, for an amount of 1,821 million pesos.
“It consists of the reconstruction and upgrading of certain road sections, including bridges, as well as the improvement of mountain slopes in an area of high rainfall, in addition to an efficient drainage system. This entire set of engineering works requires a high quality of design and structures that guarantee the safety of users, preventing landslides and floods that paralyze traffic flow and generate material losses, or even loss of life,” he added.
The complete road intervention encompasses the reconstruction of 45.5 kilometers of two lanes, with a track width of 3.65 meters and a buffer zone on each side of 1.5 meters, fully paved, which will be delivered in full within the next three months.
This project, along with the delivery of the Enriquillo-Pedernales and Cabo Rojo-Cueva de Pescadores sections, both in advanced stages of construction, will reduce travel time from Barahona to the beautiful beaches of the area by more than half an hour, guaranteeing the flow of motorists, tourist buses and cargo in safe conditions, with directional signage and modern road elements.
“These projects that we carry out at the MOPC are key to raising the quality of life of the more than 16,000 inhabitants of the municipality of Paraíso and the 14,000 inhabitants of Enriquillo, who, in addition to seeing their commerce revitalized and agriculture improved, promote the development of ecological tourism in the mountains of the Sierra de Bahoruco,” he stated.
He maintained that the new, modern road is essential for the more than 58,000 residents of Pedernales province, many of whom are farmers or merchants who transport their products along the highway. “It will also be crucial in transforming this area, in a few years, into the Punta Cana of the South, or the Cancun of the Dominican Republic.”.
He stated that the government transparently builds projects that transform the country, ensuring that every peso of the National Budget is allocated so that people throughout the country can see the fruits of economic growth, making the investments required for integrated territorial development and a more prosperous and secure life for all Dominicans.
Those attending the event included the Minister of the Presidency, Joel Santos; the provincial governor, Genara González; the mayor of Barahona, Míctor Fernández; the vice ministers of MOPC Mélito Santana and José del Carmen Montero, among others.
