A high-level trade mission comprising 15 Puerto Rican companies is visiting from 13 to 17 April 2026. The delegation seeks to secure new investment opportunities and establish strategic partnerships with local firms to market Puerto Rican goods and services while positioning the “Island of Enchantment” as a prime destination for Dominican investment capital.
ProDominicana indicates that total Dominican exports to Puerto Rico were US$706.9 million in 2025, making Puerto Rico the fifth largest destination for Dominican goods, following the United States (US$7.12 billion), India, Haiti and Canada. Dominican imports from Puerto Rico were approximately US$476 million last year.
Nelson Rafael Torres Martínez, executive director of the Puerto Rico Government Office in the Dominican Republic, emphasized in an interview with Listín Diario that the Dominican Republic remains Puerto Rico’s most vital trading partner in the Caribbean.
The mission will participate in the Puerto Rico Investment Forum that will take place on Tuesday, 14 April 2026 starting at 9am at the Hotel JW Marriot in Santo Domingo. Puerto Rico government officers will also participate as part of the next door island delegation. For more information, contact 809 549-6363 or info@puertorico.org.do
Strategic goals and institutional backing
The mission is a direct result of public policy established by Governor Jenniffer González-Colón and orchestrated by the Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce, Sebastián Negrón Reichard. The Dominican Republic is already a gateway to broader Latin American markets.
“The objective is clear: to take the commercial relationship to a superior stage,” Torres Martínez stated. He noted that the mission is not exploratory but transactional, with over 100 pre-validated business meetings already on the agenda.
Diversifying the export portfolio
While pharmaceutical products and medical devices traditionally account for over 50% of Puerto Rico’s global exports (totalling US$62.4 billion in 2025), this mission highlights emerging sectors:
• Traditional rubrics: Electrical equipment, medical instruments, food, and construction materials.
• Emerging sectors: Software, professional services, consultancy, and creative industries.
• Target profiles: The mission seeks local distributors, institutional buyers in healthcare and tech, and strategic partners for regional scaling.
Two-way investment: The Mayagüez factor
A key component of this diplomatic push is the promotion of the Investment Forum sponsored by the Municipality of Mayagüez. Puerto Rico is actively courting Dominican investors by offering:
- Access to the United States market under federal legal protections.
- Competitive tax frameworks.
- Advanced port infrastructure in the western region (Mayagüez).
- A highly skilled, bilingual workforce.
By utilizing Puerto Rico as a bridge, Dominican firms can effectively “nearshore” operations into a US jurisdiction while maintaining geographic proximity to Santo Domingo. The arrival of these 15 companies suggests that the “shared production” model, where components are manufactured in the DR and finished in Puerto Rico to benefit from US incentives, remains a cornerstone of the bilateral agenda.
The office serves as the commercial and diplomatic bridge between the two islands, operating under the Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC). The local office of Puerto Rico is located at Edificio Biltmore, Av. Abraham Lincoln esq. Av. Gustavo Mejia Ricart.
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Puerto Rico
13 April 2026