Central air is available in the DR. Meaning the hardware is available and some suppliers even have the computer programs to calculate and draw the duct layouts. There are also companies who custom build solid (aluminum foil coated styro foam panel ducts) and install them.
You will find central air systems installed mostly in commercial applications like offices and stores and some hotels and luxury apartments in the two main cities.
Installing central air requires PLANING and the ability of builders and their subcontractors to STICK to the plans... abilities many if not most architects, engineers, builders and contractors building private homes off the two main cities and the few luxury locations of this country (Punta Cana, La Romana) dearly lack. Adding (planned or not) split individual A/C units is so much easier to them.
One also has to understand the building technology mostly used in this country, where roofs a mostly solid poured concrete, not leaving space for ducting without hanging false ceilings or doubling up with drywall.
An other thing, around the coasts, is, that most homes which boast more than one or two bed rooms, may over the year be quite under-occupied, as additional bedrooms may turn out only to be vacant guest rooms. Thus, it seems to many to be more economical to use individual units here and there, so to be able to only cool the most used places.
Electric power in the DR is not only sparse but also expensive.
... J-D.