Abinader inaugurates new hospitality and tourism school in Punta Cana

Punta Cana.- The Dominican Republic took a significant step toward strengthening its tourism workforce with the official inauguration of the Gabriel Escarrer Juliá School of Hospitality and Tourism in Punta Cana, led by President Luis Abinader alongside government officials and Gabriel Escarrer Jaume, president and CEO of Meliá Hotels International.

The school is the result of a strategic partnership between Meliá and the National Institute of Technical and Vocational Training, aimed at developing local talent, improving employability, and enhancing the competitiveness of the country’s tourism sector—one of the Dominican Republic’s main economic pillars. The initiative is designed to align technical education with the real needs of the hospitality industry, ensuring graduates are prepared for current and future labor demands.

Operating since the beginning of the year, the training center features 11 fully equipped classrooms offering both theoretical and hands-on instruction in key hotel operations, including reception, culinary arts, food and beverage service, maintenance, bar operations, English, and computer skills. With the capacity to train up to 800 students annually, the school is open not only to Meliá employees, but also to their families and members of the surrounding community in La Altagracia, providing many with their first opportunity to access formal technical education.

Under the agreement, INFOTEP supplies instructors and part of the required equipment, while Meliá contributes the facilities, additional resources, and its international operational expertise. This collaboration allows students to train in a professional environment that reflects global hospitality standards and promotes a culture of excellence and innovation.

During the inauguration, Escarrer highlighted the personal significance of the project, noting that naming the school after his father honors his belief in tourism as a driver of opportunity and social progress. He emphasized that the institution will play a direct role in training future generations and contributing to community development.

The opening of the Gabriel Escarrer Juliá School of Hospitality and Tourism reinforces Meliá’s long-term commitment to social and economic development in the destinations where it operates, in line with its Travel for Good program, and underscores the shared focus of the private sector and government on human capital, inclusion, and sustainable tourism growth in the Dominican Republic.