2021 – Page 258

The Customs Agency (DGA) reports that imports were US$17.28 billion in 2020, for a 16.47% decline compared to January-December 2019. Fuel imports were down 10.59%, accounting for most of the reduction in imports. Of the total, 47.68% were consumer goods, 35.02% raw materials and 17.29% capital goods. Consumer goods were down 18.42%, raw materials 15.56% …

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The Chamber of Deputies has begun interviews to find the replacement for ombudswoman Zoila Violeta Martínez. A special commission at the Chamber of Deputies is interviewing 95 aspiring candidates through 29 January 2021. The interviews are streamed online The candidates have 10 minutes to introduce themselves and talk about why they should be chosen. Then …

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With hours before the end of his Presidency, then US President Donald Trump signed the accreditation papers for Dominican ambassador to the United States, Sonia Guzmán. Guzmán was named to the position from the start of the Abinader administration in August 2020. There was no in person ceremony. She received a personal letter from the …

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The World Bank announced Michel Kerf is the new director for the six Central American countries and the Dominican Republic, effective 18 January 2021. The World Bank says the seven countries represent a portfolio of 43 projects worth US$4.7 billion. Project areas include education, health, disaster risk management, violence prevention, social protection, rural competitiveness, land …

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The BHD León announces remittances sent via their affiliates Ria and Flexienvíos can be withdrawn at bank ATMs. The BHD León is the first financial entity in the Dominican Republic to include ATMs as a channel for receiving remittances in Dominican pesos. Bank vice president Edigarbo García says the new service is part of the …

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President Luis Abinader suspended the director of the Dominican Agrarian Institute (IAD), Leonardo Faña. Minister of Women Mayra Jiménez had recommended the suspension after a former employee at the IAD, María Isabel Flores Encarnación, accused Faña of sexual harassment. Abinader says he responded to a letter received from Faña. Faña was named to the position …

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Argenis Contreras, a key man among those accused in the murder of lawyer and university professor Yuniol Ramírez Ferreira in 2017, is expected to be deported here from New York this Wednesday, 20 January 2021. While Contreras was arrested in the US in 2018, it was not until this week that a US court authorized …

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The Ministry of Public Health announced the state-owned Dr. Defilló National Laboratory now has equipment that can identify the genetic code to differentiate between one strain and another in the case of the Covid-19. Until now, suspect samples had to be sent to the US Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Now, health …

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The Dominican government has contracted enough vaccinations to cover the population. In the “We Are Changing” five-month government overview staged on 18 January 2021 and televised to the nation (Estamos Cambiando), President Luis Abinader said there are vaccinations for all Dominicans. The population of the Dominican Republic is estimated at 10.9 million. This week the …

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The Ministry of Public Health’s Epidemiology Department Coronavirus Bulletin #306 reports 1,625 new PCR cases for the Monday, 18 January 2021 deadline. This compares to the 7-day nationwide average for PCR confirmed cases that is 1,686. The past seven days have been a record week since the start of the new administration in August 2020. …

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