A presentation on the relationship between Canada and the Dominican Republic by new arrival Ambassador Georges Boisse at the Unibe University on Monday 29 October reveals the importance of duty free export industries in the DR’s trade with Canada. Medical and scientific instruments (US$38.5 million) electronic and electrical machinery (US$35.4 million), clothing (US$14.7 million), pharmaceuticals (US$5.3 million), jewelry (US$3.3 million) and tobacco (US$3.2 million) from free zones make up most of the exports. The DR also exported almost US$17 million in farm produce to Canada. Boisse was speaking as part of the series of talks by Commonwealth Roundtable ambassadors to students and the general public on bilateral relations.
Bilateral trade between the Dominican Republic and Canada totalled C$297.3 million in 2011. Of this, Canada imported C$148.8 million and the Dominican Republic exported to Canada C$148.5 million. Principal imports from Canada are smoked fish, fertilizer, paper and steel.
Canada had made progress towards the signing of a free trade agreement with the Dominican Republic, when DR-CAFTA became more important for local negotiators and the treaty with Canada was put off for future.
Ambassador Boisse stressed that Canada is the second most important foreign investor in the DR with US$4.5 billion from 1993-2011, behind the United States. Most importantly, Canada is the second largest source market for tourists for the country, again behind the US.
Canadian investment is only second to US with four billion from 1993-2011 in US$.
Canadian investment is likewise balanced among commerce 21.1%, tourism 14.8%, mining 14.2%, telecom 13.1%, electricity 10.5%, real estate 12.5%, finance 4.9%, free zones 4.9%, transport 2.9% and others 1.1% over the 1993-June 2012 period.
During the presentation, Ambassador Boisse highlighted the quality of life in Canada and the high ranking of Canadian universities of special interest to Dominican students for graduate studies.
The conference was also supported by the Dominican-Canadian Chamber of Commerce and president Eduardo Dominguez Imbert. Dominguez urged the Dominican Republic to negotiate a partial scope trade agreement with Canada.
Also attending was Unibe Rector Julio Cesar Castanos Guzman, Loraine Amell, international director of the university. Fernando Gonzalez Nicolas, president of the Commonwealth Roundtable and Fernando Rainieri, secretary, represented the organization. Also attending was Jabar Singh of the Chamber of Commerce of India.