In a ceremony held at the Presidential Palace, President Luis Abinader announced that job growth in the nation’s various industrial free zones has grown by 67% over the past half-decade. President Abinader was particularly proud of the fact that the nation was capable of rebounding from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic to such a marked degree.
Between 2020 and 2025, formal employment in the free zones went from 119,974 to 200,134, some 80,000 new jobs.
The sector creates hard currency and the jobs pay taxes and contribute to the Social Security System.
Abinader was gracious with his praise of the private and public investments in the free zone sector of the economy, which in his words, “has made the Dominican Republic a serious, stable and capable partner” for international trade.
Minister of Industry & Commerce Victor Bisono, noted that there were 436 new businesses. He said 45 new Free Zone Parks have been created in the past five years. He also noted that as of November 2025, the country has exported nearly US$8.0 billion from the free zones. 54% of the personnel employed in these factories are female.
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Ministry of Industry & Commerce
Listin Diario
Diario Libre
15 December 2025