“This government has decided to declare San Juan and the southwest region in a state of emergency. To give you an idea of the state of poverty here, in this province alone, just under 7,000 homes still have dirt floors,” tweeted President Luis Abinader after visiting the province over the weekend.
President Luis Abinader promised to implement a comprehensive development project that calls for investing more than RD$4 billion in the province.
Abinader says that poverty in the country’s southwest region, especially San Juan de la Maguana and Elías Piña, is at 68% percent. He said public policies have had no impact in that area.
“San Juan, which was among the 10 most productive provinces in the country, is now among the 10 poorest,” said Abinader, after leading a council of ministers in the mayor’s office of the capital municipality. Former President Danilo Medina is from San Juan de la Maguana.
President Abinader met with his ministers in San Juan de la Maguana over the weekend. He expects the development plan will return the province to being a national leader in farming.
As part of the state intervention in this province, special incentives will be given for greenhouse agricultural production in the municipalities of San Juan, Bohechío, El Cercado, Juan de Herrera, Las Matas de Farfán and Vallejuelo.
The plan also contemplates the construction and reconstruction of local roads, health centers. the National Institute of Drinking Water and Sewerage (Inapa) will implement drinking water systems for RD$1 billion.
Abinader said public-private alliances will be implemented in the southwest. He mentioned the projects include forestry development in the river basins especially in zones surrounding the Sabaneta Dam.
During the Council of Ministers’ meeting, The Mijo River hydroelectric project was presented to be implemented by the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (Indrhi), Inapa, and the Dominican Hydroelectric Generation Company (EgeHID).
The President said that all these projects will be under the coordination of the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Development and that he will personally assume their follow-up because he considers that it is a duty given the deplorable situation that this once productive zone is going through.
He pointed out that several government institutions will be involved in these projects together with the ministries of Industry and Commerce, Public Works, Agriculture.
Read more in Spanish:
Presidency
El Nuevo Diario
El Caribe
Listin Diario
15 March 2021