Foreign Relations Minister Roberto Alvarez and Economy Minister Pavel Isa were present for the First Meeting of the Joint Dominican Republic and China Commission for Economic, Commercial and Investment Cooperation. The International Trade Negotiations and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Commerce of China, Wang Shouwen represented the People’s Republic of China at the meeting.
The Ministry of Foreign Relations described the meeting as “historic.” The parties reviewed bilateral economic and trade relations, advantages to investing in the Dominican Republic and priority cooperation projects.
Foreign Minister Roberto Álvarez highlighted the importance of strengthening trade and investment ties between the Dominican Republic and China. He also stressed the commitment of the Dominican government to foster a favorable environment for foreign investment and promote the increase of Dominican exports to that market, as an essential part of Dominican foreign policy.
For his part, Wang Shouwen for China affirmed that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries [1 May 2018], the volume of bilateral trade and investment has increased considerably. Shouwen highlighted what he described as the immense potential between the two nations to explore new trade, investment and other opportunities of common interest. “China is willing to work with the Dominican Republic to further our overall relationship and continue to produce tangible results,” said the deputy minister, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Relations.
During the discussions, the Dominican Republic presented various initiatives to increase the presence of Dominican agricultural products in China. The parties reviewed the key sectors of interest to both parties, namely energy, infrastructure, tourism, agribusiness, technology and sustainable development.
The Dominican participation in the meeting included representatives of the ministries of the Presidency, Industry & Commerce, Agriculture, Energy and Mines, ProDominicana, the National Council of Free Export Zones, the Public-Private Alliances Agency, the Customs Agency, the Development and Export Bank (BANDEX), and the National Institute of Transit and Land Transportation (Intrant).
Meanwhile, on the same day of the press release on the joint Dominican-China meeting, Diario Libre editorialized on the problems with Chinese businesses and unfair competition in the Dominican Republic. The Association of Industries of the Dominican Republic and merchant organizations have protested the Chinese businesspeople frequently resort to bending the law and taking advantage of weak institutions to compete for market share and carry out businesses plagued with irregularities. Recently, Diario Libre covered the case of Chinese business people that have gone ahead to build a motel on the iconic Malecón of Santo Domingo, despite three resolutions of the city government of the capital city impeding this construction. Diario Libre has been covering these irregular situations.
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Jose Peguero and the irregular construction of a motel by Chinese investors on the Malecon
5 July 2023