President Luis Abinader designated his Customs Agency director, Eduardo “Yayo” Sanz Lovaton to be his Minister of Industry & Commerce and Small Business. Nelson Arroyo is sent to head the Customs Agency for the remainder of the Abinader presidency with Decree 3-26.
Sanz Lovaton is a graduate in law from the PUCMM with a masters in international law from the Centre d’Études Diplomatiques et Stratégiques (CEDS) in Paris, France. He is a long-standing professor of law from 2003 to 2016 and was managing partner of the law firm Staff Legal from 2004 to 2020.
Sanz Lovaton is included among the aspirants to be the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) presidential candidate in the 2028 presidential elections. He is also the current national secretary of finances of the ruling PRM party and as a member of the board of the PRM, he was political director of the Abinader presidential campaign in 2020.
Sanz Lovaton replaces Victor (Ito) Bisono Haza who was named Minister of Housing and Edifications.
Victor (Ito) Bisono is a graduate of the Unibe business school and has been commended for his successes at the helm of Industry and Commerce where he spearheaded programs to foster economic growth, digitalization and business climate improvements. Bisonó is known for promoting key legislation, founding the Center for Public Policy Analysis (CAPP), and leading Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA). He is a long-standing public administration officer who also was four times deputy for the National District (from 2002 to 2020).
Both Sanz and Bisono had been in their posts since the start of the Abinader government in August 2020.
Nelson Arroyo who had previously been at the Telecommunications Institute (Indotel) and for a year at the Banco de Reservas insurance company now replaces Sanz Lovaton at the Customs Agency. Arroyo is a politician who previously worked as deputy in Congress (from 2006 and 2016). Earlier he had served as governor of San Pedro de Macoris (2000) and as councilman for the city of San Pedro in 1998. He is a doctor in law from the Universidad Central del Este and founder of the law firm Arroyo & Asociados.
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Presidency
7 January 2026