SANTO DOMINGO – The Dominican Republic continues to position itself as an attractive market for foreign investment, increasingly expanding its offerings. Last year, foreign direct investment (FDI) surpassed US$5 billion, while the Central Bank's projections for this sector in 2026 exceed US$5.2 billion. According to preliminary figures from the Central Bank, FDI reached US$1.5367 billion at the close of the first quarter of 2026, an increase of US$92.2 million (6.4%) compared to the same period of the previous year.
The United Arab Emirates joins the group of nations interested in expanding their investments in the Dominican Republic, highlighting sectors such as logistics, aviation, high-tech free zones, agricultural modernization and human capital development.
Luis Madera, Deputy Minister of Government Coordination and Monitoring of the Ministry of the Presidency, explained that a cooperation agenda initiated at the end of 2024 is being carried out, aimed at strengthening Dominican institutional capacities to achieve the goals prioritized by the Government and the RD 2036 Goal.
Madera explained that, since the signing of a formal agreement in June of last year, several technical missions have been carried out and currently work is being done on 12 thematic tables to define concrete projects with measurable results in three, six and twelve months.
The details were offered during the "Government Experience Exchange Forum," held by officials and technicians from the Dominican Republic and the United Arab Emirates, where they agreed on a roadmap to develop cooperation projects focused on strengthening public management, improving citizen services, boosting economic growth and competitiveness, and accelerating human capital development through digital transformation.
The official cited initiatives including scholarship programs between universities in both countries, job training, strengthening the Technological Institute of the Americas (ITLA) and the National Institute of Technical and Professional Training (Infotep), as well as public policy monitoring and evaluation systems.
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