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BiggerU.S. lifts sanctions on Central Romana’s sugar exports
Santo Domingo.- President Luis Abinader announced that the United States government has lifted its two-year ban on sugar exports from Central Romana Corporation, restoring normal trade operations. Speaking at La Semanal, Abinader confirmed that the company can now resume shipping sugar and related products to the U.S.
The U.S. had suspended Central Romana’s exports in November 2022 due to allegations of forced labor, aligning with efforts to combat labor exploitation globally. Previously, in 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor listed Dominican sugarcane among goods linked to child or forced labor, and the State Department classified the country as Tier 2 in its Trafficking in Persons Report.
With trade restrictions lifted, Central Romana can now resume supplying one of its key export markets, reinforcing the Dominican Republic’s sugar industry.
This ban should never have happened. It was a political move using a cloak of combating labor exploitation to appease the lobbying US sugar suppliers at the expense of Central Romana. The US growers wanted limits on imported sugar. The result kept domestic consumer prices high, resulting in more revenue for the growers. Yet, the US can only satisfy 75% of domestic demand. Imports are necessary.