Country profile

USAID/Dominican Republic Background

On January 11, 1962, the Secretary for Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic, Alvarez Aybar, jointly with the then U.S. Ambassador, John Calvin Hill, signed the General Convention for the Economical, Technical and Similar Purposes that served as a base for the initiation of American foreign assistance in the Dominican Republic.

USAID was established as an official agency of the U. S. Government when the Foreign Assistance Act was signed by President John F. Kennedy on September 4, 1961 in Washington, D.C. With this event, a new era in U. S. Government foreign assistance programs was initiated.

USAID's main objective is that of administrating economic aid programs that achieve the improvement of the quality of life of people in developing countries. USAID works to help these countries achieve their potential through the promotion of open and democratic societies, the dynamism of free trade, and initiative that support social progress.

Programs are located in countries where assistance is most necessary, and where there is a clear commitment to wide, democratic-based growth and a marked interest in a sustained development.

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OVERVIEW

USAID’s close partnership with the Dominican Republic has helped the country address many key challenges to development, including weak governance, in-adequate rule of law, frail public institutions, and poor service delivery; poor quality and equitable access to public health care and basic education; environmental degradation; a growing gap between rich and poor; and the need to improve the business and investment climate and adjust to a rapidly changing global economy. The USAID program has also contributed significantly to mutual understanding between the United States and the Dominican Republic and to the geo-political stability of the Caribbean region.

The most recent World Bank Poverty Assessment reports that 43 percent of the Dominican Republic’s population lives in poverty. Of this population, 16 percent fall into the extreme poverty category. Moreover, nearly 30 percent of poor Dominicans lack official identity documentation, which hinders their access to formal credit and basic public services such as schooling and health care. Other challenges to the country’s development include low levels of public expenditures allocated to education (2.9 percent of GDP, representing 44 percent less, on average, than other countries in the region), high interest rates, frequent electrical blackouts, institutional rigidity, shortage of qualified human capital, high maternal mortality rate (178 deaths for every 100,000 live births), corruption, lack of accountability, and limited citizen oversight of government expenditures.

On March 1, 2007, the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) went into force for the Dominican Republic. To fully benefit from the trade agreement, the country needs to improve efficiency and transparency in customs procedures, the protection of intellectual property rights, the enforcement of environmental and labor standards, sanitary and phytosanitary regulations, fair trade practices and dispute resolution, and government procurement of goods and services. In addition, small businesses, including farms and tourism enterprises, have to become more competitive to survive and expand in an open global economy. The growth of investment and small businesses are also critical to increasing employment and reducing poverty in the country.

PROGRAMS

GOVERNING JUSTLY AND DEMOCRATICALLY

USAID supports democracy and good governance in the Dominican Republic by improving electoral processes and strengthening civil society’s responsible participation in the political system. The program helps a better informed and active citizenry demand more from elected officials by increasing incentives for government officials to meet their obligations. The program, in turn, assists the Dominican people to evaluate the performance of those elected. USAID assistance is also reinforcing the rule of law, helping to reform and modernize the judicial system, and increasing access to equitable justice. A crucial component in support of more government transparency and accountability is USAID’s technical assistance to public sector institutions and civil society groups to combat corruption and promote fiscal integrity and responsibility.

INVESTING IN PEOPLE

USAID is working to improve the quality of life for Dominicans through support for widely accessible quality health care services and disease prevention. USAID assistance focuses on prevention, care, and treatment of communicable diseases and on improvements in primary health care services for underserved populations. USAID supports increased access to and use of basic health care services for sexually transmitted infections, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS among vulnerable and affected groups. USAID also helps underserved populations gain access to quality reproductive, maternal, and child health services, provided by the public and private sectors. USAID is working to increase the efficiency and equity of basic health care services at the local level by strengthening systems and supporting public health policy reform. USAID programs also improve social and economic opportunities for the poor by enhancing teacher training for public primary school teachers in reading, writing, and mathematics, and by fostering active private sector and community participation in raising the quality of basic education in local public primary schools. Additionally, USAID programs provide at-risk and disadvantaged youth with opportunities to become productive and active citizens through basic education, vocational, and life skills training programs.

ECONOMIC GROWTH

USAID is contributing to the Dominican Republic’s ability to compete in global markets and reduce poverty through increased economic opportunities for targeted populations. USAID is providing technical assistance in economic policy reform, trade capacity building, rural economic diversification and development, and regional competitiveness initiatives so that entrepreneurs and small businesses in rural communities become more productive and competitive in domestic and global markets. USAID’s economic growth program is also safeguarding biodiversity and natural ecosystems through strengthened Dominican capacity to develop and enforce national environmental and natural resources laws and regulations; increased public sector capacity at the national and municipal levels to identify and implement activities that promote environmentally sustainable economic growth; and assistance to civil society groups that advocate for and contribute to a cleaner environment and greater biodiversity protection.