Dominican Republic records the highest foreign direct investment inflows in its history

The executive director of ProDominicana, Biviana Riveiro Disla, pointed out that for the first time, the Dominican Republic reached a record figure for Foreign Direct Investment, with an inter-annual growth of US$813.6 million (25.5%) during the period 2022, matching US$4,010.4 million, according to figures from the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic (BCRD).

This represents 35% of the investment flows of the Central American region for this year.

This trend will continue to consolidate the Dominican participation above 40% in the flows arriving in the Caribbean on average, historically.

“This incredible growth is an indicator that the country is in the sights of foreign investors thanks to the policies of social, legal, political and economic stability promoted by the President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader; of the Investment Cabinet coordinated by the Vice President, Raquel Peña; the work deployed by different government entities, where strategic and competitive advantages are taken advantage of with a privileged location, which allows us to position ourselves as a Logistics Hub due to our high connectivity and routes,” she said,

She added that the achievement is due to an economy in constant growth in strategic sectors such as energy, tourism, free zones and trade, real estate, and telecommunications, which has attracted the interest of investors worldwide.

Riveiro pointed out that the demand for accompaniment and advisory services to companies and foreign missions in ProDominicana has increased substantially and that there has been a substantial 360% improvement in the same, ranging from the availability of helpful information, the structuring of the Investment Portfolio, and the implementation of the innovative One-Stop Investment Window (VUIRD) of world reference.

“All of these initiatives we have deployed have earned ProDominicana international recognition as a cutting-edge promotion agency, being one of the agencies recognized in Latin America and the Caribbean with the Global 2023 Investment Award from the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) organized by the government of the United Arab Emirates. We remain committed to continue fostering a business-friendly environment, working with investors and stakeholders to ensure that the country remains an attractive and competitive destination for Foreign Direct Investment,” said Riveiro.

On FDI growth

The tourism sector played an essential role in the growth of FDI flows in the country, remaining the leading industry with investment exceeding US $1 billion for the first time in history, representing 25% of total FDI flows during 2022.

The energy sector accumulated the highest absolute growth of an additional US$475.2 million and a total attraction of US$753.4 million. In terms of importance, it is followed by the energy sector’s growth.