The World Bank In Dominican Republic

The economic growth of the Dominican Republic has tripled the regional average over the past two decades, resulting in close to 3 million people rising out of poverty, a middle class that now surpasses the poor population, and an improvement in the quality of life in terms of access to basic services, housing, and education.

In 2025, the economy is expected to grow by 4%, driven by strong consumption and investment, supported by structural reforms in the energy, water, and labor sectors, along with efforts to improve education and attract foreign direct investment (FDI).

To maintain this dynamic growth and extend its benefits to more households and impoverished areas, it will be crucial to increase productivity through the implementation of reforms to strengthen human capital, competitiveness, innovation, service delivery, public spending efficiency, and proper management of the growing debt.

The government has shown a strong commitment to addressing the long-standing challenges posed by the electricity sector through a comprehensive package of reforms aimed at increasing transparency, accountability, and efficiency in the sector, continuing the diversification of the energy matrix to include less polluting energy sources, and increasing access to reliable and affordable energy. However, there is still work to be done in the transmission sector, which has historically suffered economic losses.

The occurrence of  extreme weather events increasingly highlights  the critical need for accelerated action to strengthen the country's resilience and adaptation in an inclusive manner.

Taking advantage of new business opportunities and private sector solutions, and developing assets in key sectors such as logistics and financial services, would increase the attraction of competitive investors to the Dominican Republic, while gradually reducing the country's dependence on fiscal incentives.

Last Updated: Apr 23, 2025

The World Bank Group has a strong commitment to the Dominican Republic to improve people's lives by enhancing access to quality public services, increasing the number of high-quality jobs through better labor skills and higher education quality, and increasing responsiveness and recovery capacity to the adverse effects of climate change.

The Country Partnership Framework (CPF) FY22-FY26 defines the World Bank Group's commitment to the Dominican Republic and has three main objectives:

• improving the quality of basic public services such as energy, water, social protection, and health
• increasing the number of high-quality jobs
• increasing climate resilience

As of April 2025, the World Bank portfolio for the country amounts to $1,890.00 million and includes ten investment projects in energy, health, state modernization, housing, water and sanitation, resilient agriculture, and social protection; one budget support operation for climate change response ($400 million); one Program-for-Results in support of the water sector ($250 million); one Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option (Cat DDO) ($230 million); and one Emissions Reduction Payment Agreement (up to $25 million).

Funding for fiscal year 25 includes a fiscal and sustainable development policy operation ($400 million).

The loan portfolio is complemented by a wide range of reports in key areas for the country such as climate and development, economic performance, the private sector, poverty, gender, transport and territorial development.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) currently maintains its strongest portfolio in the Caribbean in the Dominican Republic (US$179.2 million committed from its own balance) and strategically focuses on promoting job creation through the support of key economic sectors such as agribusiness, manufacturing, and medical technology; promoting competitiveness through improvements in technical education and health; supporting access to financing for MSMEs and women; prioritizing sustainable development through investments in renewable energy and green financing; and developing capacities that enable the growth of the capital market.

The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) will focus on investment opportunities that increase job creation and support a green, inclusive, and resilient recovery, and will work closely with IFC and the World Bank to improve the enabling environment for the development of public-private partnerships and foreign private investment.

Last Updated: Apr 23, 2025

The support of the World Bank Group includes financing for development projects and technical assistance, with significant results for the country in recent years, including:

Technical Assistance

• In August 2024, the country launched the National Digital Health Strategy, designed to ensure more Dominicans have access to medical consultations regardless of their location or social status. Digital technology will help strengthen, optimize, and improve the quality of services to achieve patient-centered care and facilitate access to medical information for health professionals.
• In June 2024, the country successfully issued its first sovereign green bond in international markets. Mobilizing private and foreign financing will be crucial to meeting national sustainable development and climate change goals, such as implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 27% by 2030.
• Within the framework of the National Strategy for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), the country has significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions and increased carbon stocks in forests and agroforestry systems. Additionally, it has initiated the Long-Term Low Emission and Resilient Development Strategy (ELP) to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
• In September 2023, the Dominican Republic launched the first master's program of its kind to train qualified human resources in Caribbean countries, especially in the insular Caribbean, in the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of migration policies, to achieve effective standards of migration management and regulation in line with development objectives.
• In May 2021, an agreement was signed with the World Bank's Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF), which will allow the country to receive payments of up to US$25 million for verifiable reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from forest carbon through the country's emissions reduction program.

Innovation

• Since March 2022, the "Emergency Bond" has provided temporary support to the population most affected by shocks, helping nearly 35,000 poor and vulnerable families recover from the devastation of Hurricane Fiona. This is an innovative process in the region.
• In February 2022, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Superintendency of Securities Market, and the Ministry of Environment launched the "Green Taxonomy" project, the first in the entire Caribbean, to promote the sustainable growth of the capital market and contribute to climate change mitigation.
• In 2019, the Ministry of Education (MINERD) launched the Prográmate project, which uses adaptive technology to improve math learning in the third year of high school. This technological platform adapts to each student's level.

Direct Benefits to the Population

• Since 2017, 1.3 million households in extreme poverty have received the "Aliméntate" cash transfer, conditioned on primary health care responsibilities, with a special emphasis on child and reproductive health.
• Since 2017, nearly 9,000 dirt floors have been replaced with cement in the 14 poorest provinces of the country.
• Additionally, more than 27,000 young people have received training for job placement or starting a business, of which 69% are women.

Last Updated: Apr 23, 2025