President Medina travels to China this week
Coastal Petroleum Dominicana expands their fuel hub
Dominican stock market handles RD$1 trillion
CDEEE identifies five obstacles to improve the electricity system
Brain strokes, heart attacks and diabetes are the “fatal three”
The DR is graduating too many doctors, says Jorge Marte of Cedimat
Xiomara Guante confirmed to preside over ADP
PLD Central Committee approves open simultaneous primary to choose presidential candidate
Francisco Ortega Polanco ordered to continue to hear Odebrecht case
Old wives’ tale comes true: man electrocuted by refrigerator
ProConsumidor fines apartment developer for misleading buyers
Happy Birthday, a baby bison is born at the zoo
Motoconcho drivers tried to lynch assailant of a comrade
Seacology Prize recognizes Patricia Lamelas’ lifetime Samana activism
There is a Dominican behind of the show windows at Saks Fifth Avenue
Dominican fashion designer Jorge Diep passes away
Vicente García was inspired by Juan Luís Guerra, now sings a duo with Guerra
Winter baseball championship update
President Medina travels to China this week
The Presidency has confirmed President Danilo Medina will travel to Beijing in the People’s Republic of China on “Tuesday or Wednesday.” This is the first official visit of a Dominican statesman to China. The Presidency says the Dominican official delegation will sign at least 15 bilateral agreements with his colleague, President Xi Jinping. The Medina visit is a follow up to the signing of diplomatic relations in Beijing by Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas Maldonado on 1 May 2018.
The Presidency says that Medina will be accompanied by cabinet ministers who will be signing the cooperation agreements in matters of trade, infrastructure, finance and tourism. These have traveled ahead to China.
The Presidency announced Medina will meet with Chinese business people in Shanghai to encourage these to invest in the Dominican Republic.
The Presidency says the agreements will generate “lots of jobs” and the new diplomatic relations will have an impact especially in areas of international cooperation, trade, investment, infrastructure, education, among others of common interest, whose results will be seen immediately in the medium and long term.
https://presidencia.gob.do/noticias...estado-china-desde-establecimiento-relaciones
Coastal Petroleum Dominicana expands their fuel hub
President Danilo Medina attended on Friday, 26 October 2018, the inauguration of the Grupo Propagas Coastal Petroleum Dominicana fuel terminal in San Pedro de Macoris. The new terminal has storage capacity for 40MM of propane, enough to supply the local demands for a month. The terminal now has two docks with capacity to service two Panamax fuel tanker ships. The facility has capacity to manage 750 thousand gallons per hour of propane and 300,000 thousand gallons per hour of liquid fuels.
The expansion is part of the positioning of the Dominican company as a regional hub for Central America in the import, storage and dispatching via sea and land of fuel.
The keynote speech was by Arturo Santana Reyes who recalled the start of Propagas operations 63 years ago. Coastal Petroleum was started 18 years ago to ensure stability in fuel availability for company clients.
https://www.revistamercado.do/inaug...nternacional-de-coastal-petroleum-dominicana/
Dominican stock market handles RD$1.0 trillion
Hacienda Minister Donald Guerrero says that foreign investors are attracted to invest in Dominican bonds because of the judicial security, fiscal and exchange stability the country has shown for more than a decade. He said Dominican bonds are an excellent option for financing for companies and the public sector. He says it is a way to channel national savings to finance productive activities, while investors receive adequate returns on their investment. As of September 2018, the commissions of bonds in the custody of the stock market in the Dominican Republic totals nearly RD$1 trillion pesos, equal to 24% of the GDP.
The minister noted that more than 30 local companies have been able to finance the operations through the bond market at favorable interest rates, generating investments that produce thousands of jobs. In an interesting note the treasury minister said that at the present time some 63% of the internal public debt is placed in domestic bonds in the market, while in 2011 this proportion was only 36% of the external debt.
Guerrero made the observations when speaking during the International Forum on Stock Market Bond Emissions in the Americas. He said that for financing the new debt contained in the 2019 Budget, the government expects to place 68% of public investment in the stock market in local bonds.
https://www.diariolibre.com/economi...si-un-trillon-de-pesos-en-custodia-IA11111018
CDEEE identifies five obstacles to improve the electricity system
According to the executive vice president of the Public Electricity Corporation (CDEEE), Ruben Jimenez Bichara, in order to provide better and cost effective electric service in the country there are five major challenges that must be overcome. These obstacles include stemming huge energy losses during transmission; the deficit in the supply of electricity; the financial deficit; the growing demand and finally the large dependence on hydrocarbons as the fuel for the generators.
Jimenez Bichara said that the Punta Catalina generating facility will, without a doubt, contribute to the energy sector. However, he also stressed that the construction of Punta Catalina is just part of these five challenges of the electric sector. He indicated that the industrial sector is waiting on the electricity sector for improvements and expansion in order to be able to compete with lower costs for energy. He also noted that the entry of the 752 MW capacity Punta Catalina into the national grid would provide stable service during breakdowns and scheduled plant maintenance.
https://www.diariolibre.com/economia/sistema-electrico-rd-debe-superar-cinco-desafios-BA11110436
Brain strokes, heart attacks and diabetes are the “fatal three”
The director of the Cardiovascular Center at the Center for Diagnostic Advanced Medicine and Tele-medicine (Cedimat), Dr. Cesar Herrera says that the government needs to seriously look into developing a policy of preventive medicine for heart patients that includes education, improved access to healthcare and the creation of reliable data system to keep tract of the cases.
He commented that this is one of the countries in Latin America where the population consumes a daily diet with the largest amounts of salt and fats. He feels that the people should be educated to improve their eating habits. This action would help people control hypertension and reduce incidence of diabetes.
Dr. Herrera spoke of the impact of strokes on patients, leaving persons with permanent disabilities, psychological and social problems during the 16th Juan Manuel Taveras Rodríguez Scientific Conference at the Center for Diagnostics, Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine (Cedimat) held last week at the medical center.
https://www.diariolibre.com/noticias/salud/acv-infartos-y-diabetes-trio-mortal-FA11110995
The DR is graduating too many doctors, says Jorge Marte of Cedimat
Using parameters of the World Health Organization, the Dominican Republic has more physicians that it needs. The WHO established in 2013 that there should be 25 physicians per 10,000, or 25,000 for the population of 10 million in the country. In his talk “Post Graduate Education at Cedimat” as part of the 16th Juan Manuel Taveras Rodríguez Scientific Conference at the Center for Diagnostics, Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine (Cedimat), Marte said that already in 2013 there were around 15,400 working physicians in the Dominican Republic. But around 40,000 students are studying medicine, and the country’s 10 medicine schools are turning out 4,000 doctors a year.
Marte called for controls on the quality and quantity of physicians the medical schools are graduating because the country could be on the verge of a situation of having more physicians than it needs. He says the physicians will graduate only to find themselves not being able to find jobs.
Marte called for the government, which is the principal entity responsible for the health, education, quality of life of the Dominican people, and the leading funder of the system, to play a more proactive role in the process. He also called for a more active role by the university, medical societies and the Dominican Medical Guild (CMD).
Cedimat is the most coveted place for work by graduate students. It offers medical residences, post-graduate degrees, and has agreements with universities and medical education programs in the United States and Europe. Marte said that more than 100 specialists have graduated in its 12 post-graduate studies programs, and their graduates are working all around the country and at Cedimat.
The conference this year was dedicated to the memory of late cardiologist Douglas Bournigal. Special guests this year were Anthony Kalloo, Francisco Alvarez Aquino and Bryan Mandell. The speakers included doctors César Herrera, Pedro Roa, Fernando Vidal, Andrés Ureña, Anyeri De Peña, Jorge Marte, Sócrates Bautista, Fernando Contreras, Ángel Gómez, Liliana Jiménez, José Miguel Stefan, José Rafael Yunén and Yovanna Rosich.
Xiomara Guante confirmed to preside over ADP
The National Electoral Commission of the Dominican Association of Public School Teachers (ADP) has officially announced the victory of Xiomara Guante in the 10 October 2018 election to preside the organization. Her term will begin on 25 November 2018. The president of the commission said it took the organization 15 days to collect all the documents for the vote in which 76,557 public school teachers participated nationwide, or 70.76% of those eligible to vote. Almonte won with 46,182 votes, or 60.30%, versus runner up Eduardo Hidalgo, who received 25,858 votes or 33.78%. Hidalgo had sought reelection.
As a result of the elections, the National Executive Committee now is under the leadership of the opposition party (PRM) with 13 positions, followed by 7 positions for the ruling PLD and one for the Espacio Magisterial Narciso González.
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/10...ia-de-xiomara-guante-en-elecciones-de-la-adp/
PLD Central Committee approves open simultaneous primary to choose presidential candidate
The vote of the ruling PLD Central Committee to decide on the modality to choose presidential candidates for the party ended with a vote in favor of using the general national voting list handled by the Central Electoral Board (JCE). It was also agreed that a commission would come up with amendments to the party statutes. The decision would be ratified by the full leadership of the ruling party.
The assembly, in which 559 of the 607 members participated, lasted only ten minutes, which was enough time for the members to vote on this single issue.
The meeting ended what was perceived in the media as a tug of war between President Danilo Medina and former President Leonel Fernandez, who is the president of the PLD. There was speculation the differences among the two were growing and could divide the party.
But then it would be Leonel Fernandez himself who would announced the motion for the open simultaneous primaries in the name of the Political Committee of the party had been accepted. The motion had the support of President Medina. Observers say the ruling PLD party again averted splitting the party between the two leaders –Medina and Fernandez.
Fernandez announced: "In the new modality and product of the agreement, the exercise of the right of our members to elect and be elected is guaranteed; and it offers the opportunity to the sympathizers of our organization to be part of the selection of our candidates ".
The vote was supervised by the Central Electoral Board technicians and was held behind closed doors. In making the announcement, PLD party secretary general Reynaldo Pared Perez said the motion was adopted by the majority of members.
The vote was conducted after the Political Parties Law authorized political parties to choose closed primaries, open primaries and even polls as methodology for the selection of their candidates.
Diario Libre explains that the agreement rolls the differences between both political leaders to March 2019, when Medina has said he will announce whether he will seek reelection in the 2020 general election. The 2015 Constitution bans him from running for reelection. Nevertheless, the ruling PLD party has the votes in Congress to promote an amendment allowing for his reelection, as occurred in 2015.
https://www.diariolibre.com/noticia...ara-escoger-candidato-presidencial-FA11113512
http://eldia.com.do/una-eventual-perdida-del-poder-une-a-los-dos-liderazgos-del-pld/
http://eldia.com.do/leonel-explica-opciones-de-primarias-salvan-ley-de-inconstitucionalidad/
https://www.diariolibre.com/noticia...ion-entre-danilistas-y-leonelistas-LA11119398
Francisco Ortega Polanco ordered to continue to hear Odebrecht case
The Supreme Court of Justice has again confirmed that Judge Francisco Ortega Polanco is to prepare the first phase of the Odebrecht corruption scandal. The decision was taken on Thursday, 25 October 2016, after the Supreme Court justified reviewed the request of the lawyers for Jesus Vasquez, who had accused the judge of partiality.
Judge Ortega needs to set a new date for the case against Conrado Pittaluga Arzeno, Senator Tommy Galán Grullón, former senator Jesus Vásquez, businessman Ángel Rondón Rijo, former Public Works Minister Víctor Díaz Rúa, Senator Andrés Bautista García and former Inapa officer Juan Roberto Rodríguez.
https://elnuevodiario.com.do/scj-ra...-ortega-polanco-para-que-siga-caso-odebrecht/
Old wives’ tale comes true: man electrocuted by refrigerator
For nearly a century now, many people have believed that a refrigerator can electrocute a person, causing spasms and death. The tale is based on the fact that early refrigerators, together with local wiring lacked proper grounding, and with many people walking barefoot, contact with anything electrical could prove “shocking.” Over the weekend, a man did indeed die after receiving a high electrical shock as he opened an icebox to retrieve as soda.
This accident occurred in a colmado in the community of El Corrazal Abajo in San Jose de las Matas, according to police sources. Farmer José De Jesus Rodriguez, 72, died as he made contact with the refrigerator, according to the report by the owner of the colmado, Antonio Alfredo Brisita, to the police. While electric shocks are still very common in housing without proper grounding, death by electrocution is a rare event. However, the site of towels hanging from the handles of most refrigerators indicates the persistence of the belief that opening of a refrigerator can cause spasms and death.
https://elnacional.com.do/hombre-muere-electrocutado-al-hacer-contacto-con-una-nevera/
ProConsumidor fines apartment developer for misleading buyers
ProConsumidor ordered CBS Developments Nuevas Terrazas, builder of the Residencial Nuevas Terrazas, to pay its customers RD$25 million for having not fulfilled contracts they entered into with their customers. The customers complained of irregularities in false advertising, lack of safety, breach of contract, construction vices, sanitary issues, and other problems affecting the neighborhood. The promotion had offered the construction of a clubhouse, recreational areas, basketball and soccer court, parks and a pool, none of which has happened yet. The project calls for the construction of over 400 apartments.
ProConsumidor said the company needs to deliver to each purchaser guarantees of the repairs and constructions that need to be carried out, as well as plans for the construction of adequate water and sewage systems duly approved by the Ministry of Public Works and following Santo Domingo potable water (CAASD) guidelines. The company has 120 days to deliver.
http://proconsumidor.gob.do/2018/10/25/impone-multa-de-mas-de-25-millones-a-constructora-cbs/
Happy Birthday, a baby bison is born at the zoo
After many years, the National Zoo of the Dominican Republic has announced the birth of a baby bison, the first one to ever be born in this country. The National Zoo put up a video of the bison cow during birth and witnessed by several other members of the herd. Manuel Hichiez, one of the vets at the zoo, observes the birth and said the new baby is a male. The bison is a very large bovine, which once lived in huge herds throughout North America and Europe. The number of bison has fallen greatly because of a loss of habitat and illegal hunting for its meat and hide.
Motoconcho drivers tried to lynch assailant of a comrade
A group of motoconcho drivers tried to lynch an alleged criminal who had shot a fellow driver twice in order to steal his motorcycle in the sector of Los Girasoles in the National District. The authorities identified the alleged criminal as Danny Roa, 21, who received injured as a group of montoconcho drivers struck him with rocks, baseball bats and knives after having discovered that this lowlife had shot their comrade Miguel Rosario Mendes. Mendes was hospitalized at the public health center in Los Girasoles.
Meanwhile, Roa was transferred out of the sector to the Vinicio Calventi hospital in Los Alcarrizos by the police. The motoconcho drivers followed the police unit that was transferring Danny and during the short trip they tried to take him away from the police. Once in the hospital, the mob tried once again to take him away from the authorities, but the police agents frustrated the attempt. Because of the incident police and military security at the hospital was doubled in order to provide protection to the medical personnel and nurses as well as the injured suspect who was being treated by the doctors.
In the meantime, the regional director of West Santo Domingo for the National Police, Colonel Julio Cesar Lorenzo Pulinario, said that although this incident occurred in the sector of Los Girasoles, it was being investigated by officials from Criminal Investigation within his jurisdiction.
https://elnacional.com.do/motoconch...-herido-de-bala-companero-para-quitarle-moto/
Seacology Prize recognizes Patricia Lamelas’ lifetime Samana activism
Dominican Patricia Lamelas, a longtime environmental champion of the province of Samana, was the recipient of the 2018 Seacology Prize during the awards ceremony held at the David Brower Center in Berkeley, California on 4 October 2018.
The Seacology Prize is underwritten by Seacology’s president Ken Murdock, in honor of his mother, Lalovi Fish Murdock. Each year, the Seacology Prize to an islander for exceptional achievement in preserving the environment and culture of his or her home country. Winners receive US$10,000 and are brought to the United States for the ceremony.
Lamelas has worked with the nonprofit CEBSE, the Center for the Conservation and Eco-Development of Samaná Bay and Surroundings, for more than 25 years. She is recognized as her voice has been influential in the movement to conserve the rapidly changing region. She has advocated for protection of the bay, which is home to countless bird species and an important breeding and birthing ground for humpback whales.
Seacology acknowledges that awareness of the importance of mangrove forests is now growing worldwide, but Lamelas was ahead of the curve, having worked for the preservation of these vital ecosystems for more than two decades. At CEBSE, she has worked with local communities, where many people relied on cutting mangroves for charcoal, to find sustainable livelihoods. She has helped to secure legal protections for mangroves, established the first mangrove nursery in the province, and led programs to educate many Dominican youth about their local environment and climate change. CEBSE is a valuable partner in one of Seacology’s first projects in the Dominican Republic, working to promote ecotourism and protect mangroves in the community of Las Garitas.
https://www.seacology.org/about/seacology-prize/
https://listindiario.com/vida-verde...logy-2018-para-la-dominicana-patricia-lamelas
There is a Dominican behind of the show windows at Saks Fifth Avenue
Raylin Diaz Suarez, an architect and designer from Santiago, traveled to New York as a child and with his mother visited the famous stores on Fifth Avenue. The store’s famous shop windows facing the street always seemed to catch his attention. After jobs with well-known designers such as Sully Bonelly and Diane von Furstenberg, he first became the creative director of rSquared and connected with the head visuals of different clients (among them Saks Fifth Avenue), as tells a story in Diario Libre. Eventually, he would become the design chief for the 32 windows at Saks Fifth Avenue.
In talking with Diario Libre, Diaz Suarez described how he went about preparing for the great window displays at Saks. He tells of examining clothes, studying trends, knowing the brands, creating “mood boards”, and even looking at street styles all before doing a mockup of the window. The feature explains that the architect makes it sound so easy.
Diaz Suarez describes what he does as “fleeting or momentary architecture” because it allows him to do projects at a rapid pace and back-to-back. When he was asked about the importance of these windows, he stressed the magnitude of the visual merchandising, especially for a company such as Saks, which uses the windows to attract customers. Diaz Suarez says the windows are big scale invitations.
When asked about taking the famous Santiago “Lechones” to the windows of a world-famous clothing retailer, he responded that it was part of his culture and it happened to fit in with a momentary trend called “embellishments.” He admits he brings his culture, education and way of thinking to his work every day.
Diaz Suarez has also worked with the Metropolitan Opera during the event known as the Met Gala, one of the most important fashion shows in the industry, and he received an invitation from Vogue magazine to work with them on a display window dedicated to the Met Gala.
https://www.diariolibre.com/estilos...s-escaparates-de-saks-fifth-avenue-PA11110843
Dominican fashion designer Jorge Diep passes away
Dominican designer Jorge Diep denied of respiratory arrest at 3:26pm on Sunday, 29 October 2018. He suffered from chronic kidney failure, hypertension and obesity. He was 61 years old. Dominicana Moda 2018 that ended on Sunday, had been dedicated to him.
Diep had been admitted to intensive care at the Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine Diagnostic Center (Cedimat) for several days for suffering from a large infection. He was an obese patient and had to be dialyzed and was a candidate for kidney replacement. His remains will be exhibited at the Blandino Funeral Home on Abraham Lincoln Avenue.
Diep was born in Nagua, María Trinidad Sánchez and was a major promoter of Dominican fashion design. He was the creator of the first Dominican Republic Fashion Week in Santiago in 2012.
http://hoy.com.do/fallece-disenador-dominicano-jorge-diep-era-hipertenso/
Vicente García was inspired by Juan Luís Guerra, now sings a duo with Guerra
Rollingstone online magazine has reviewed the new single, “Loma de Cayenas” by Latin Grammy-winning young performer Vicente García where he sings with Juan Luis Guerra.
García said he would tour next year with the legendary Dominican singer to promote his third solo album. He explains how Guerra has been an inspiration to him all along in his career and the production of his three albums (Melodrama, A la Mar and Loma de Cayenas). García was awarded three Latin Grammys in 2017, including Best New Artist.
Rollingstone says that now the singer is able to interact more directly with his lodestar: García’s latest single, “Loma De Cayenas,” is a nimble merengue collaboration with Guerra himself. The publication explains that the two singers trade light-footed verses about love at first sight as a guitar tumbles and cascades and an agile brass section adds weight to the driving beat. In the song’s final third, wordless backing vocals arranged by Janina Rosado swell prettily just beneath the drums.
García explains initially he was into punk rokc and other genres. But when playing with Calor Urbano, Guerra invited the group to open for him on tour. “That’s when I realized that Dominican music has this power to make people dance and saw how people got really interested in our culture [through Guerra’s music],” García told Rollingstone.
“I went back to the Dominican Republic after that tour, realized I wanted to work with Dominican music and with our culture,” he continues. “I was really influenced not just in terms of music and rhythm, but in the way [Guerra] writes songs, trying to bring Dominican expressions and make people get curious about the things said in Dominican Spanish.” García left Calor Urbano to pursue a solo career in 2010.
His first two albums were bachata and bolero explorations. But now, García has set his sights on merengue. “I think merengue is our best known rhythm, our music flag,” he says. “But I didn’t want to do it before because I thought I wasn’t ready to do it — it’s a really specific way of singing. So I started to look into the origins of the merengue and see how I could get my own voice,” he told Rollingstone.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/...rcia-juan-luis-guerra-new-single-tour-746655/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAEGTNrfmmo
Winter baseball championship update
With the Leones del Escogido defeat on Sunday of the Gigantes del Cibao, the weekend concluded with a triple tie in the Dominican Winter Professional Baseball Championship. The Aguilas Cibaeñas also positioned themselves in first place after defeating the Tigres del Licey (1-0) to the delight of their fans in Santiago. The Aguilas Cibaeñas, Gigantes del Cibao and Leones del Escogido are now in first place with 8 wins and five losses. The Estrellas Orientales are 7-6, the Toros del Este 5-8 and the Tigres del Licey 3-10.
http://estadisticas.lidom.com/Estadisticas/Inicio
See the upcoming games schedule at:
http://www.lidom.com/home/calendario/
Coastal Petroleum Dominicana expands their fuel hub
Dominican stock market handles RD$1 trillion
CDEEE identifies five obstacles to improve the electricity system
Brain strokes, heart attacks and diabetes are the “fatal three”
The DR is graduating too many doctors, says Jorge Marte of Cedimat
Xiomara Guante confirmed to preside over ADP
PLD Central Committee approves open simultaneous primary to choose presidential candidate
Francisco Ortega Polanco ordered to continue to hear Odebrecht case
Old wives’ tale comes true: man electrocuted by refrigerator
ProConsumidor fines apartment developer for misleading buyers
Happy Birthday, a baby bison is born at the zoo
Motoconcho drivers tried to lynch assailant of a comrade
Seacology Prize recognizes Patricia Lamelas’ lifetime Samana activism
There is a Dominican behind of the show windows at Saks Fifth Avenue
Dominican fashion designer Jorge Diep passes away
Vicente García was inspired by Juan Luís Guerra, now sings a duo with Guerra
Winter baseball championship update
President Medina travels to China this week
The Presidency has confirmed President Danilo Medina will travel to Beijing in the People’s Republic of China on “Tuesday or Wednesday.” This is the first official visit of a Dominican statesman to China. The Presidency says the Dominican official delegation will sign at least 15 bilateral agreements with his colleague, President Xi Jinping. The Medina visit is a follow up to the signing of diplomatic relations in Beijing by Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas Maldonado on 1 May 2018.
The Presidency says that Medina will be accompanied by cabinet ministers who will be signing the cooperation agreements in matters of trade, infrastructure, finance and tourism. These have traveled ahead to China.
The Presidency announced Medina will meet with Chinese business people in Shanghai to encourage these to invest in the Dominican Republic.
The Presidency says the agreements will generate “lots of jobs” and the new diplomatic relations will have an impact especially in areas of international cooperation, trade, investment, infrastructure, education, among others of common interest, whose results will be seen immediately in the medium and long term.
https://presidencia.gob.do/noticias...estado-china-desde-establecimiento-relaciones
Coastal Petroleum Dominicana expands their fuel hub
President Danilo Medina attended on Friday, 26 October 2018, the inauguration of the Grupo Propagas Coastal Petroleum Dominicana fuel terminal in San Pedro de Macoris. The new terminal has storage capacity for 40MM of propane, enough to supply the local demands for a month. The terminal now has two docks with capacity to service two Panamax fuel tanker ships. The facility has capacity to manage 750 thousand gallons per hour of propane and 300,000 thousand gallons per hour of liquid fuels.
The expansion is part of the positioning of the Dominican company as a regional hub for Central America in the import, storage and dispatching via sea and land of fuel.
The keynote speech was by Arturo Santana Reyes who recalled the start of Propagas operations 63 years ago. Coastal Petroleum was started 18 years ago to ensure stability in fuel availability for company clients.
https://www.revistamercado.do/inaug...nternacional-de-coastal-petroleum-dominicana/
Dominican stock market handles RD$1.0 trillion
Hacienda Minister Donald Guerrero says that foreign investors are attracted to invest in Dominican bonds because of the judicial security, fiscal and exchange stability the country has shown for more than a decade. He said Dominican bonds are an excellent option for financing for companies and the public sector. He says it is a way to channel national savings to finance productive activities, while investors receive adequate returns on their investment. As of September 2018, the commissions of bonds in the custody of the stock market in the Dominican Republic totals nearly RD$1 trillion pesos, equal to 24% of the GDP.
The minister noted that more than 30 local companies have been able to finance the operations through the bond market at favorable interest rates, generating investments that produce thousands of jobs. In an interesting note the treasury minister said that at the present time some 63% of the internal public debt is placed in domestic bonds in the market, while in 2011 this proportion was only 36% of the external debt.
Guerrero made the observations when speaking during the International Forum on Stock Market Bond Emissions in the Americas. He said that for financing the new debt contained in the 2019 Budget, the government expects to place 68% of public investment in the stock market in local bonds.
https://www.diariolibre.com/economi...si-un-trillon-de-pesos-en-custodia-IA11111018
CDEEE identifies five obstacles to improve the electricity system
According to the executive vice president of the Public Electricity Corporation (CDEEE), Ruben Jimenez Bichara, in order to provide better and cost effective electric service in the country there are five major challenges that must be overcome. These obstacles include stemming huge energy losses during transmission; the deficit in the supply of electricity; the financial deficit; the growing demand and finally the large dependence on hydrocarbons as the fuel for the generators.
Jimenez Bichara said that the Punta Catalina generating facility will, without a doubt, contribute to the energy sector. However, he also stressed that the construction of Punta Catalina is just part of these five challenges of the electric sector. He indicated that the industrial sector is waiting on the electricity sector for improvements and expansion in order to be able to compete with lower costs for energy. He also noted that the entry of the 752 MW capacity Punta Catalina into the national grid would provide stable service during breakdowns and scheduled plant maintenance.
https://www.diariolibre.com/economia/sistema-electrico-rd-debe-superar-cinco-desafios-BA11110436
Brain strokes, heart attacks and diabetes are the “fatal three”
The director of the Cardiovascular Center at the Center for Diagnostic Advanced Medicine and Tele-medicine (Cedimat), Dr. Cesar Herrera says that the government needs to seriously look into developing a policy of preventive medicine for heart patients that includes education, improved access to healthcare and the creation of reliable data system to keep tract of the cases.
He commented that this is one of the countries in Latin America where the population consumes a daily diet with the largest amounts of salt and fats. He feels that the people should be educated to improve their eating habits. This action would help people control hypertension and reduce incidence of diabetes.
Dr. Herrera spoke of the impact of strokes on patients, leaving persons with permanent disabilities, psychological and social problems during the 16th Juan Manuel Taveras Rodríguez Scientific Conference at the Center for Diagnostics, Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine (Cedimat) held last week at the medical center.
https://www.diariolibre.com/noticias/salud/acv-infartos-y-diabetes-trio-mortal-FA11110995
The DR is graduating too many doctors, says Jorge Marte of Cedimat
Using parameters of the World Health Organization, the Dominican Republic has more physicians that it needs. The WHO established in 2013 that there should be 25 physicians per 10,000, or 25,000 for the population of 10 million in the country. In his talk “Post Graduate Education at Cedimat” as part of the 16th Juan Manuel Taveras Rodríguez Scientific Conference at the Center for Diagnostics, Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine (Cedimat), Marte said that already in 2013 there were around 15,400 working physicians in the Dominican Republic. But around 40,000 students are studying medicine, and the country’s 10 medicine schools are turning out 4,000 doctors a year.
Marte called for controls on the quality and quantity of physicians the medical schools are graduating because the country could be on the verge of a situation of having more physicians than it needs. He says the physicians will graduate only to find themselves not being able to find jobs.
Marte called for the government, which is the principal entity responsible for the health, education, quality of life of the Dominican people, and the leading funder of the system, to play a more proactive role in the process. He also called for a more active role by the university, medical societies and the Dominican Medical Guild (CMD).
Cedimat is the most coveted place for work by graduate students. It offers medical residences, post-graduate degrees, and has agreements with universities and medical education programs in the United States and Europe. Marte said that more than 100 specialists have graduated in its 12 post-graduate studies programs, and their graduates are working all around the country and at Cedimat.
The conference this year was dedicated to the memory of late cardiologist Douglas Bournigal. Special guests this year were Anthony Kalloo, Francisco Alvarez Aquino and Bryan Mandell. The speakers included doctors César Herrera, Pedro Roa, Fernando Vidal, Andrés Ureña, Anyeri De Peña, Jorge Marte, Sócrates Bautista, Fernando Contreras, Ángel Gómez, Liliana Jiménez, José Miguel Stefan, José Rafael Yunén and Yovanna Rosich.
Xiomara Guante confirmed to preside over ADP
The National Electoral Commission of the Dominican Association of Public School Teachers (ADP) has officially announced the victory of Xiomara Guante in the 10 October 2018 election to preside the organization. Her term will begin on 25 November 2018. The president of the commission said it took the organization 15 days to collect all the documents for the vote in which 76,557 public school teachers participated nationwide, or 70.76% of those eligible to vote. Almonte won with 46,182 votes, or 60.30%, versus runner up Eduardo Hidalgo, who received 25,858 votes or 33.78%. Hidalgo had sought reelection.
As a result of the elections, the National Executive Committee now is under the leadership of the opposition party (PRM) with 13 positions, followed by 7 positions for the ruling PLD and one for the Espacio Magisterial Narciso González.
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/10...ia-de-xiomara-guante-en-elecciones-de-la-adp/
PLD Central Committee approves open simultaneous primary to choose presidential candidate
The vote of the ruling PLD Central Committee to decide on the modality to choose presidential candidates for the party ended with a vote in favor of using the general national voting list handled by the Central Electoral Board (JCE). It was also agreed that a commission would come up with amendments to the party statutes. The decision would be ratified by the full leadership of the ruling party.
The assembly, in which 559 of the 607 members participated, lasted only ten minutes, which was enough time for the members to vote on this single issue.
The meeting ended what was perceived in the media as a tug of war between President Danilo Medina and former President Leonel Fernandez, who is the president of the PLD. There was speculation the differences among the two were growing and could divide the party.
But then it would be Leonel Fernandez himself who would announced the motion for the open simultaneous primaries in the name of the Political Committee of the party had been accepted. The motion had the support of President Medina. Observers say the ruling PLD party again averted splitting the party between the two leaders –Medina and Fernandez.
Fernandez announced: "In the new modality and product of the agreement, the exercise of the right of our members to elect and be elected is guaranteed; and it offers the opportunity to the sympathizers of our organization to be part of the selection of our candidates ".
The vote was supervised by the Central Electoral Board technicians and was held behind closed doors. In making the announcement, PLD party secretary general Reynaldo Pared Perez said the motion was adopted by the majority of members.
The vote was conducted after the Political Parties Law authorized political parties to choose closed primaries, open primaries and even polls as methodology for the selection of their candidates.
Diario Libre explains that the agreement rolls the differences between both political leaders to March 2019, when Medina has said he will announce whether he will seek reelection in the 2020 general election. The 2015 Constitution bans him from running for reelection. Nevertheless, the ruling PLD party has the votes in Congress to promote an amendment allowing for his reelection, as occurred in 2015.
https://www.diariolibre.com/noticia...ara-escoger-candidato-presidencial-FA11113512
http://eldia.com.do/una-eventual-perdida-del-poder-une-a-los-dos-liderazgos-del-pld/
http://eldia.com.do/leonel-explica-opciones-de-primarias-salvan-ley-de-inconstitucionalidad/
https://www.diariolibre.com/noticia...ion-entre-danilistas-y-leonelistas-LA11119398
Francisco Ortega Polanco ordered to continue to hear Odebrecht case
The Supreme Court of Justice has again confirmed that Judge Francisco Ortega Polanco is to prepare the first phase of the Odebrecht corruption scandal. The decision was taken on Thursday, 25 October 2016, after the Supreme Court justified reviewed the request of the lawyers for Jesus Vasquez, who had accused the judge of partiality.
Judge Ortega needs to set a new date for the case against Conrado Pittaluga Arzeno, Senator Tommy Galán Grullón, former senator Jesus Vásquez, businessman Ángel Rondón Rijo, former Public Works Minister Víctor Díaz Rúa, Senator Andrés Bautista García and former Inapa officer Juan Roberto Rodríguez.
https://elnuevodiario.com.do/scj-ra...-ortega-polanco-para-que-siga-caso-odebrecht/
Old wives’ tale comes true: man electrocuted by refrigerator
For nearly a century now, many people have believed that a refrigerator can electrocute a person, causing spasms and death. The tale is based on the fact that early refrigerators, together with local wiring lacked proper grounding, and with many people walking barefoot, contact with anything electrical could prove “shocking.” Over the weekend, a man did indeed die after receiving a high electrical shock as he opened an icebox to retrieve as soda.
This accident occurred in a colmado in the community of El Corrazal Abajo in San Jose de las Matas, according to police sources. Farmer José De Jesus Rodriguez, 72, died as he made contact with the refrigerator, according to the report by the owner of the colmado, Antonio Alfredo Brisita, to the police. While electric shocks are still very common in housing without proper grounding, death by electrocution is a rare event. However, the site of towels hanging from the handles of most refrigerators indicates the persistence of the belief that opening of a refrigerator can cause spasms and death.
https://elnacional.com.do/hombre-muere-electrocutado-al-hacer-contacto-con-una-nevera/
ProConsumidor fines apartment developer for misleading buyers
ProConsumidor ordered CBS Developments Nuevas Terrazas, builder of the Residencial Nuevas Terrazas, to pay its customers RD$25 million for having not fulfilled contracts they entered into with their customers. The customers complained of irregularities in false advertising, lack of safety, breach of contract, construction vices, sanitary issues, and other problems affecting the neighborhood. The promotion had offered the construction of a clubhouse, recreational areas, basketball and soccer court, parks and a pool, none of which has happened yet. The project calls for the construction of over 400 apartments.
ProConsumidor said the company needs to deliver to each purchaser guarantees of the repairs and constructions that need to be carried out, as well as plans for the construction of adequate water and sewage systems duly approved by the Ministry of Public Works and following Santo Domingo potable water (CAASD) guidelines. The company has 120 days to deliver.
http://proconsumidor.gob.do/2018/10/25/impone-multa-de-mas-de-25-millones-a-constructora-cbs/
Happy Birthday, a baby bison is born at the zoo
After many years, the National Zoo of the Dominican Republic has announced the birth of a baby bison, the first one to ever be born in this country. The National Zoo put up a video of the bison cow during birth and witnessed by several other members of the herd. Manuel Hichiez, one of the vets at the zoo, observes the birth and said the new baby is a male. The bison is a very large bovine, which once lived in huge herds throughout North America and Europe. The number of bison has fallen greatly because of a loss of habitat and illegal hunting for its meat and hide.
Motoconcho drivers tried to lynch assailant of a comrade
A group of motoconcho drivers tried to lynch an alleged criminal who had shot a fellow driver twice in order to steal his motorcycle in the sector of Los Girasoles in the National District. The authorities identified the alleged criminal as Danny Roa, 21, who received injured as a group of montoconcho drivers struck him with rocks, baseball bats and knives after having discovered that this lowlife had shot their comrade Miguel Rosario Mendes. Mendes was hospitalized at the public health center in Los Girasoles.
Meanwhile, Roa was transferred out of the sector to the Vinicio Calventi hospital in Los Alcarrizos by the police. The motoconcho drivers followed the police unit that was transferring Danny and during the short trip they tried to take him away from the police. Once in the hospital, the mob tried once again to take him away from the authorities, but the police agents frustrated the attempt. Because of the incident police and military security at the hospital was doubled in order to provide protection to the medical personnel and nurses as well as the injured suspect who was being treated by the doctors.
In the meantime, the regional director of West Santo Domingo for the National Police, Colonel Julio Cesar Lorenzo Pulinario, said that although this incident occurred in the sector of Los Girasoles, it was being investigated by officials from Criminal Investigation within his jurisdiction.
https://elnacional.com.do/motoconch...-herido-de-bala-companero-para-quitarle-moto/
Seacology Prize recognizes Patricia Lamelas’ lifetime Samana activism
Dominican Patricia Lamelas, a longtime environmental champion of the province of Samana, was the recipient of the 2018 Seacology Prize during the awards ceremony held at the David Brower Center in Berkeley, California on 4 October 2018.
The Seacology Prize is underwritten by Seacology’s president Ken Murdock, in honor of his mother, Lalovi Fish Murdock. Each year, the Seacology Prize to an islander for exceptional achievement in preserving the environment and culture of his or her home country. Winners receive US$10,000 and are brought to the United States for the ceremony.
Lamelas has worked with the nonprofit CEBSE, the Center for the Conservation and Eco-Development of Samaná Bay and Surroundings, for more than 25 years. She is recognized as her voice has been influential in the movement to conserve the rapidly changing region. She has advocated for protection of the bay, which is home to countless bird species and an important breeding and birthing ground for humpback whales.
Seacology acknowledges that awareness of the importance of mangrove forests is now growing worldwide, but Lamelas was ahead of the curve, having worked for the preservation of these vital ecosystems for more than two decades. At CEBSE, she has worked with local communities, where many people relied on cutting mangroves for charcoal, to find sustainable livelihoods. She has helped to secure legal protections for mangroves, established the first mangrove nursery in the province, and led programs to educate many Dominican youth about their local environment and climate change. CEBSE is a valuable partner in one of Seacology’s first projects in the Dominican Republic, working to promote ecotourism and protect mangroves in the community of Las Garitas.
https://www.seacology.org/about/seacology-prize/
https://listindiario.com/vida-verde...logy-2018-para-la-dominicana-patricia-lamelas
There is a Dominican behind of the show windows at Saks Fifth Avenue
Raylin Diaz Suarez, an architect and designer from Santiago, traveled to New York as a child and with his mother visited the famous stores on Fifth Avenue. The store’s famous shop windows facing the street always seemed to catch his attention. After jobs with well-known designers such as Sully Bonelly and Diane von Furstenberg, he first became the creative director of rSquared and connected with the head visuals of different clients (among them Saks Fifth Avenue), as tells a story in Diario Libre. Eventually, he would become the design chief for the 32 windows at Saks Fifth Avenue.
In talking with Diario Libre, Diaz Suarez described how he went about preparing for the great window displays at Saks. He tells of examining clothes, studying trends, knowing the brands, creating “mood boards”, and even looking at street styles all before doing a mockup of the window. The feature explains that the architect makes it sound so easy.
Diaz Suarez describes what he does as “fleeting or momentary architecture” because it allows him to do projects at a rapid pace and back-to-back. When he was asked about the importance of these windows, he stressed the magnitude of the visual merchandising, especially for a company such as Saks, which uses the windows to attract customers. Diaz Suarez says the windows are big scale invitations.
When asked about taking the famous Santiago “Lechones” to the windows of a world-famous clothing retailer, he responded that it was part of his culture and it happened to fit in with a momentary trend called “embellishments.” He admits he brings his culture, education and way of thinking to his work every day.
Diaz Suarez has also worked with the Metropolitan Opera during the event known as the Met Gala, one of the most important fashion shows in the industry, and he received an invitation from Vogue magazine to work with them on a display window dedicated to the Met Gala.
https://www.diariolibre.com/estilos...s-escaparates-de-saks-fifth-avenue-PA11110843
Dominican fashion designer Jorge Diep passes away
Dominican designer Jorge Diep denied of respiratory arrest at 3:26pm on Sunday, 29 October 2018. He suffered from chronic kidney failure, hypertension and obesity. He was 61 years old. Dominicana Moda 2018 that ended on Sunday, had been dedicated to him.
Diep had been admitted to intensive care at the Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine Diagnostic Center (Cedimat) for several days for suffering from a large infection. He was an obese patient and had to be dialyzed and was a candidate for kidney replacement. His remains will be exhibited at the Blandino Funeral Home on Abraham Lincoln Avenue.
Diep was born in Nagua, María Trinidad Sánchez and was a major promoter of Dominican fashion design. He was the creator of the first Dominican Republic Fashion Week in Santiago in 2012.
http://hoy.com.do/fallece-disenador-dominicano-jorge-diep-era-hipertenso/
Vicente García was inspired by Juan Luís Guerra, now sings a duo with Guerra
Rollingstone online magazine has reviewed the new single, “Loma de Cayenas” by Latin Grammy-winning young performer Vicente García where he sings with Juan Luis Guerra.
García said he would tour next year with the legendary Dominican singer to promote his third solo album. He explains how Guerra has been an inspiration to him all along in his career and the production of his three albums (Melodrama, A la Mar and Loma de Cayenas). García was awarded three Latin Grammys in 2017, including Best New Artist.
Rollingstone says that now the singer is able to interact more directly with his lodestar: García’s latest single, “Loma De Cayenas,” is a nimble merengue collaboration with Guerra himself. The publication explains that the two singers trade light-footed verses about love at first sight as a guitar tumbles and cascades and an agile brass section adds weight to the driving beat. In the song’s final third, wordless backing vocals arranged by Janina Rosado swell prettily just beneath the drums.
García explains initially he was into punk rokc and other genres. But when playing with Calor Urbano, Guerra invited the group to open for him on tour. “That’s when I realized that Dominican music has this power to make people dance and saw how people got really interested in our culture [through Guerra’s music],” García told Rollingstone.
“I went back to the Dominican Republic after that tour, realized I wanted to work with Dominican music and with our culture,” he continues. “I was really influenced not just in terms of music and rhythm, but in the way [Guerra] writes songs, trying to bring Dominican expressions and make people get curious about the things said in Dominican Spanish.” García left Calor Urbano to pursue a solo career in 2010.
His first two albums were bachata and bolero explorations. But now, García has set his sights on merengue. “I think merengue is our best known rhythm, our music flag,” he says. “But I didn’t want to do it before because I thought I wasn’t ready to do it — it’s a really specific way of singing. So I started to look into the origins of the merengue and see how I could get my own voice,” he told Rollingstone.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/...rcia-juan-luis-guerra-new-single-tour-746655/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAEGTNrfmmo
Winter baseball championship update
With the Leones del Escogido defeat on Sunday of the Gigantes del Cibao, the weekend concluded with a triple tie in the Dominican Winter Professional Baseball Championship. The Aguilas Cibaeñas also positioned themselves in first place after defeating the Tigres del Licey (1-0) to the delight of their fans in Santiago. The Aguilas Cibaeñas, Gigantes del Cibao and Leones del Escogido are now in first place with 8 wins and five losses. The Estrellas Orientales are 7-6, the Toros del Este 5-8 and the Tigres del Licey 3-10.
http://estadisticas.lidom.com/Estadisticas/Inicio
See the upcoming games schedule at:
http://www.lidom.com/home/calendario/