On 27 February 2026, the Dominican Republic celebrated its breakaway from Haiti in 1844. Part of the protocols for the day require the President of the Dominican Republic to address the Congress in what is called “a rendering of accounts.” The speeches, nearly always long by definition, recount the previous year’s challenges and how the administration dealt with them.
This year, President Luis Abinader spent a historic amount of time listing his administration’s accomplishments for the entire two terms of his government, including major roadworks. Nevertheless, capital investments are at a low, as part of the challenges that lie ahead. The President mentioned proposals that will deal with the key issues.
The President cannot run for re-election in 2028, nevertheless, his speech this time was the most vote-seeking style of his previous renditions. The press reported on a record-breaking 130 standing ovations by members of the PRM majority Congress.
The central theme of the discourse was “DR 2026 Goals,” and the President outlined his plans for such mainstream features such as technology, jobs, health, education, foreign investment, decentralization, and institutional reforms.
First on the list was establishing a goal of doubling the nation’s GDP within 10 years. This was the central pillar: make the Dominican Republic a developed country by 2036, using productivity, innovation, and Dominican human capital. Of course, the arrival of a Google digital transfer/exchange center here, with an investment of US$500 million, along with an agreement with Nvidia to create a center for AI research were very big points.
Perhaps the biggest surprise was the announcement of the creation of a spaceport in Pedernales province, with space launches predicted before the end of his term. This is a US$600 million project.
More mundane topics such as jobs, were also covered, with the announced objective of creating many more jobs in the formal sector, something that has been on the menu for decades, especially knowing that 54% of all jobs are currently in the informal sector where no taxes are paid, but services are demanded. The opposition was first to criticize most of the jobs created were in government.
One of the trickier issues is dealing with a minimum wage that covers the household food basket. The President highlighted also that for the very first time, the Dominican Republic surpassed the US$5.0 billion-mark in direct foreign investment. Abinader said that he wants to improve on that record.
The President also noted a reduction in that national debt that fell from 69.1% of GDP in 2020, to 58.5% of GDP in 2025. An easy bit of data was the fact that the 2025 tourism numbers were a record, and he called for a diversified and sustainable tourism in the coming years.
He was also happy to announce a reduction in poverty, with a 2.2% drop at the poorest levels.
Health was an important sector and the fact that there were no fatalities from dengue fever was a highlight, as was the inauguration of 30 health centers throughout the country. He had praise for the Ministry of Health under Minister Victor Atallah and the global leadership the country has obtained in recognition to disease preventive actions here.
The focus on the Dominican version of STEM education (STEAM: science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) was yet another major point of the speech. He stressed the positive contribution of the expansion of the vocational training centers (Infotep). In recognition for a job well done, the former head of Infotep, Rafael Santos Badia, was promoted to Minister of Higher Education and the deputy director Maira Morla Pineda appointed.
Finally, the President once again said that corruption would not be tolerated and that there were no “untouchables” in the fight against corruption. The government faces one of the largest corruption scandals, impacting the government health insurance plan (Senasa) and the public health network (SNS). Both institutions now have new heads.
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2 March 2026