Víctor Bisonó, Minister of Industry and Commerce.LD
Santo Domingo — The Minister of Industry, Commerce, and Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MICM), Víctor (Ito) Bisonó, spoke on Tuesday about the country’s immigration crisis and the impact of the tariffs imposed by the United States government on the Dominican economy.
In response to the recent announcement by the US government of tax increases on imports of products from the Dominican Republic to the United States, the Minister of Industry and Commerce assured that this has not yet had an impact on the national economy.
“Not yet. It’s not that we’re calm, because it’s a process where both sides have to sit down at the table. We’ve already taken some steps, we had the first meeting in Washington; now we have to see when and how we’ll move forward with the technical aspects that you all know about. The United States has started with China and England, and we’ll see when the opportunity will come for the Dominican Republic,” said Bisonó.
Regarding the Haitian immigration crisis in the country and the 15 measures announced by President Luis Abinader to counter this problem, Bisonó said that the right thing to do is to have a “regime of order,” in addition to determining what “talents” we need and how to regularize them in the country.
“The first thing is that we must comply with the Constitution, we must comply with the laws. We have decided that, in addition to that, even if they have a work or tourist visa, they must comply with our principles of religion and customs, and that is what is happening throughout the world. The debate today in the United States is about the deportation of illegal immigrants or citizens who do not comply with internal regulations, even if they have a visa.”
Bisonó also clarified that, given the need for foreign labor, it is not a question of granting citizenship, naturalization, or nationality but instead of guaranteeing workers’ rights, as is the case in other countries.
“When we are talking about a foreigner being in our country, it is not a question of granting them citizenship, naturalization, or the state committing to granting them nationality. Nothing of the sort. ”For as long as necessary, they must be paid for their health services, benefits, and normal processes,” clarified Bisonó.
These statements were made at the launch of the seventh edition of the National Private Sector Quality Award of the Dominican Republic (Pncrd), organized by the National Association of Companies and Industries of Herrera (Aneih).
The award is the highest recognition given to Dominican companies for quality management and excellence at the national level, valuing their efforts to improve their performance, competitiveness, and sustainable development.
The event was held at the Intec Social Security Auditorium with the participation of the Minister of Industry and Commerce, who emphasized that the award represents much more than recognition.
“First and foremost, we are committed to quality. Today, as you know, we are also dealing with tariff issues, where it is not only prices that matter, but quality is the main competitive factor, followed by supply, trust…,” he said.
The president of the Pncrd, Ángelo Viro, said that the award is a strategic tool that promotes a business culture based on world-class standards and strengthens the private sector’s commitment to sustainability and the country’s development.
“The award not only distinguishes excellence, but also promotes internal transformation in organizations, increasing their response capacity, motivating their teams, and strengthening their competitive position,” said Viro.
The call for applications for the award began on Tuesday, May 20, and will end on Friday, June 27. The application report is scheduled to be released on September 19.