Dominican Republic transfers Centroestad presidency to Belize
Santo Domingo.- The Dominican Republic, through the National Statistics Office (ONE), officially transferred the pro tempore presidency of the Central American Statistical Commission of the Central American Integration System (Centroestad) to the Statistical Institute of Belize during the commission’s XXXI Ordinary Meeting held in Santo Domingo.
The handover marked the conclusion of the Dominican Republic’s leadership of the regional body during the first half of 2026. ONE Director General Mildred Martínez passed the presidency to Diana Lisa Castillo-Trejo, head of the Statistical Institute of Belize, who will oversee the commission’s activities during the next term.
The meeting brought together representatives of national statistical offices from Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, and the Dominican Republic, along with delegates from regional and international organizations. Discussions focused on strengthening statistical cooperation, modernizing information systems, and promoting the exchange of best practices among member countries of the Central American Integration System (SICA).
Participants reviewed progress made under Centroestad’s January–June 2026 work plan, assessed ongoing challenges, and identified strategic priorities for advancing regional statistical integration. The agenda also included presentations on gender statistics, innovation in official data production, and the use of artificial intelligence to improve data quality, efficiency, and analytical capabilities.
In addition, member countries shared advances in the development of food balance sheets, a tool that supports evidence-based policymaking and planning by improving information on food availability and security.
The ONE highlighted Centroestad’s role as a key platform for technical cooperation and knowledge exchange, helping strengthen official statistics across Central America and the Dominican Republic. The activities were supported through international cooperation from the Republic of Korea via the Korea-SICA Fund.
