SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – President Luis Abinader issued Decree 426-25, appointing the first six deputy ministers of the recently merged Ministry of Finance and Economy, headed by Minister Magín J. Díaz. Two of them will be responsible for fiscal policy.
Derby Bolívar de los Santos Abreu will be Vice Minister of the Treasury and Heritage; José Jesús Rijo Presbot, who until now directed the General Directorate of Budget, will be Vice Minister of Planning and Public Investment; María José Martínez Dauhajre, Vice Minister of Public Credit; Alexis Vidal Cruz Rodríguez, Vice Minister of Economy, while Martín Francos Rodríguez and Camila Hernández Villamán were appointed as Vice Ministers of Fiscal Policy.
According to a statement, this organization is a response to the merger of the Ministry of Finance with the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Development, consolidated under the leadership of Magín Díaz and with the Organic Law of Public Administration, the current regulations, which establish a maximum of six vice ministers per ministry.
Each deputy ministry has a specific purpose, covering critical areas for the new structure of the Ministry of Finance and Economy. José Jesús Rijo Presbot, by moving from the General Directorate of Budget to deputy minister, is positioned as a key figure in aligning the budget with public investment.
Who are they?
Derby Bolívar de los Santos Abreu, Vice Minister of the Treasury and Assets, is an accountant specializing in corporate finance, internal auditing, and tax auditing. He has over 16 years of professional experience in both the private sector (including manufacturing, services, hospitality, and energy) and national and international institutions. In his current role, he oversees government revenue collection and ensures control of public financing to preserve the sustainability of public debt.
José Jesús Rijo Presbot, Vice Minister of Budget, Assets, and Accounting, holds a degree in Education with a specialization in Mathematics from UNPHU, a master's degree in Applied Mathematics to Economics from the University of Panama, and a postgraduate degree in Pure Mathematics for teachers. He served as a member of parliament (1998-2002) and chaired economic and institutional oversight committees. He has been a university professor, an advisor to public and private organizations, and heads the General Directorate of Budget, where he promotes fiscal transparency, quality of spending, and linking the budget to institutional results.
Martín Francos Rodríguez, Vice Minister of Fiscal Policy, is an economist, a graduate of PUCMM, and holds master's degrees in Applied Macroeconomics and Financial Economics from Chile and in Senior Public Management from the Ortega y Gasset Institute in Madrid. He served as Director General of Public Investment, Coordinator of the Public Finance area, and professor at the PUCMM School of Economics for over 15 years. He has published research on employment, productivity, and potential GDP estimation, and has represented the country at forums of ECLAC, IDB, OECD, and the World Bank.
Camila Hernández Villamán, the second Vice Minister of Fiscal Policy, is an economist from INTEC with a master's degree in Macroeconomics from Chile. She was Director General of Fiscal Analysis and Policy at the Ministry of Finance and a university professor at both the undergraduate and graduate levels at PUCMM. She has designed and overseen tax policies, exemptions, and coordination with tax and customs authorities, as well as participating in tax and tariff negotiations.
María José Martínez Dauhajre, Vice Minister of Public Credit, is an economist with a degree in Economics and Political Science from New York University and an MBA from Columbia University. She has worked as Director of Institutional Banking at Citibank Dominican Republic and as Vice President for Latin America, advising the public sector based in New York. She also has experience at ECLAC in Chile and as a program manager at the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Development.
Alexis Cruz Rodríguez, Vice Minister of Economy (Economic and Social Analysis), holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Surrey and a Master's degree in Financial Economics from the University of Santiago, Chile. He has also completed studies in social policy at ILADES and Georgetown University. A graduate in Economics from INTEC, he has served as Director of Economic Analysis at the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Development, Director of Planning at the Superintendency of Banks, Fiscal Specialist at the Technical Secretariat of the Presidency, Minister-Counselor in the United Kingdom, and economist at ECLAC and BancoEstado in Chile. Academic with extensive experience, with publications in international journals and author of "The culture of saving in the Dominican Republic".
