DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic
DR1.com is the leading English news source in the Dominican Republic for over 30 years.
Showing articles from the past 7 days. To read past articles, visit our DR1.com Daily News Forum.
Click here for DR1 Travel News
Reynol Osorio / Diario Libre
It’s the kind of story everyone likes to read. The tale of Reynol Osorio, a Dominican bodybuilder who worked as an instructor at a famous gym chain in Santo Domingo, who married Spanish social worker Sonia Prieto Almazan whom he met in the DR and migrated with her to Spain. Osorio recently won the award for best chef in Aragon, northeast Spain.
Diario Libre tells his story, detailing that Osorio was born in the tourist town of Boca Chica but grew up in nearby San Pedro de Macoris with his parents.
The couple decided they would live in Spain and for Osorio, the flight to Madrid would be his first time on a plane. He credits the support of his wife’s family with his today success. He lucked out when he was warmly received by the Prieto Almazan family that owned a restaurant and encouraged him to advance professionally. The restaurant served...
Reports are that the Police has arrested the pick-up driver suspected of harassing women drivers in the capital city.
Diario Libre reported that a wave of disturbing incidents had gripped Santo Domingo with multiple women reporting a recurring pattern of vehicular harassment and assault. The common denominator: a white pickup truck, allegedly driven by a man who specifically targets female drivers.**
The alarm raised by chef Cristina Báez went viral on social media, after she detailed how she had been pursued and rammed by the driver on Sarasota Avenue. Dashcam footage obtained by Báez identified the vehicle as a white Ford F-150 with license plate number L515467.
“He’s been tailgating me for three blocks, honking his horn,” Báez wrote on Instagram. “At the traffic light, he did this and then backed up to prevent me from getting his license plate number...
While Mother’s Day is a globally celebrated holiday, its date varies widely across countries. In the Dominican Republic, it falls on the last Sunday of May – a tradition with deep historical roots, Diario Libre explains. The advertising and promotions of major stores remind Dominicans Mother’s Day this year is on Sunday, 25 May 2025.
Unlike the United States, where Mother’s Day is observed on the second Sunday of May, the Dominican Republic’s celebration was established later and independently. The origins trace back to 1926, during the presidency of General Horacio Vásquez. His wife, Trina de Moya, and educator Ercilia Pepín spearheaded the creation of the first “Pro-Mother’s Day Committee” in Santiago de los Caballeros. The aim was to establish a dedicated day to exalt mothers, mirroring global trends but with a uniquely Dominican flavor.
That same year, the committee...
Miguel Collado Di Franco / Acento
According to economist and professor Miguel Collado Di Franco, the Dominican Republic’s labor market saw a modest increase of only 2.5% (or 4,355 jobs) in the 12 months between the first quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025.
Analyzing recent data from the Central Bank, Collado Di Franco, Vice President of the Regional Center for Sustainable Economic Strategies (CREES), noted that 27% of the 176,581 new jobs cited by the institution were in the public sector. This means that 47,049 individuals were hired by the government. “In other words,” he explained, “without the use of public funds for these hirings, the growth would have been limited to 129,533 new jobs, and the occupation levels between 2023 and 2024 would not have been reached.”
Collado Di Franco contrasted these figures with those from the first quarter of 2023 to the...
Human remains and small ceramic fragments scattered on Arzobispo Nouel Street, opposite the Church of Nuestra Señora del Carmen, are being examined by archaeologists to determine their ethnic origin and the century they may have belonged to.
The National Monumental Heritage Agency (DNPM) announced on 21 May 2025 that, according to historical records, it was customary to bury believers’ bodies on the outskirts of churches, a practice that began to change formally with the inauguration of the cemetery on Independencia Avenue in August 1824.
The Church of El Carmen was built on the grounds of the San Andrés Hospital in 1615 by the Brotherhood of Los Remedios and El Carmen through donations.
“The earliest records of burials at this temple date back to the second half of the 1660s; however, there are no preserved plaques or epitaphs for any of the...
Haiti is enduring the worst crisis in its history with no immediate hopeful improvement in sight.
The Organization of American States (OAS) announced it will host a high-level symposium on Haiti’s security crisis, following public rebukes from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio over the organization’s inaction amidst escalating violence and instability in the Caribbean nation.
The event, organized by Haiti’s Presidential Transition Council (CPT), is scheduled for Thursday, 22 May 2025 at 9am in the Americas Hall at the OAS headquarters in Washington. It will gather Haitian authorities, member state representatives, and international experts.
According to a statement on CPT’s official X (formerly Twitter) account, the symposium was arranged after counselor Smith Augustin met with OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro in April.
“In a context marked by the proliferation of armed...
President Luis Abinader has issued Decree No. 268-25, creating an advisory committee to study the migration legal framework of the Dominican Republic. The committee will subsequently present suggestions deemed relevant based on its analysis to the President.
The temporary and honorary committee is coordinated by former president of the Constitutional Court Milton Leónidas Ray Guevara, alongside specialized public and private law jurists Jimena Conde Jiminán, Justo Pedro Castellanos Khoury, Juan Manuel Rosario, Belén Catalina del Toro, Lenis García Guzmán, Javier A. Suárez, Félix Tena de Sosa, and Jatzel Román González.
The Presidency says that the committee’s establishment underscores the government’s commitment to thoroughly examining and potentially updating the country’s migration laws and policies.
Read more in...
Journalist Jorge Gonzalez of El Nacional typifies what indigent and undocumented Haitians go through as the violence and chaos in Haiti expels them to cross the 391 km land border in search for the living they cannot make at home.
He tells the story of 24-year old Haitian Ariel Jean, a lanky young adult, who has found work here in construction. He tells of the constant fear that accompanies Jean now that the Migration Agency has stepped up efforts to curtail the increasing flow of Haitians to this side of the island.
“The clandestine life of Haitians in the Dominican Republic is a constant struggle for survival,” he writes. He writes about the many times Ariel Jean has been caught by Migration agents, and loaded on the migration van that will begin his deportation process.
Ariel Jean says he was 15 years old when he sought out a relative who had been living in...
It’s a very tough life if you are a Haitian migrant. In addition to the new checks on those who do not have regularized legal status, in the DR Haitian migrants have to deal with long delays at the Haitian mission in their quest to renew or secure passports, Diario Libre reports.
Haitians need the document to regularize their status in the Dominican Republic. Diario Libre reports the Haitians interviewed say major sums of cash is needed to fast-track the issuance. For decades, Haitians here have had to wait long years to get the document. Others have found out that connections within the consulate can make a difference.
Many told Diario Libre the only way to bypass the delays is to pay substantial bribes ranging from RD$35,000 to RD$50,000 (approximately US$650 to US$925).
“I paid 35,000 pesos and received my passport in 15 days. Others have paid up to 50,000, but...
An undocumented Haitian identified only as Gago Fabela is accused of stealing US$6,000 from his employer’s residence in the municipal district of Arroyo Salado Payita, in Maria Trinidad Sanchez province on the northeastern coast.
According to the Police report, the victim, Ramón González, reported the robbery to a local patrol. González stated that the money was kept in his closet and that the worker took advantage of a moment of inattention to steal it.
As reported, the Police immediately launched an operation, apprehending the suspect in the Los Solares neighborhood. Upon his arrest, Fabela was found in possession of US$5,900 and RD$4,650.
The detained man was transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (Dicrim) in Payita and will later be taken to the police station in the municipality of Cabrera, under the supervision of...
Ambassador Juan Bolívar Díaz and President Claudia Sheinbaum / Listin Diario
Dominican ambassador to Mexico, Juan Bolivar Diaz Santana presented credence letters to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo on 20 May 2025. Diaz Santana took advantage of the occasion to invite the Mexican President to attend the Summit of the Americas scheduled to take place in Punta Cana in December 2025. The DR is hosting the event that is organized with the backing of the United States Secretary of State.
Prior to his career as a diplomat during the Abinader administration, Diaz Santana was active as a professional journalist.
During the ceremony at the Mexican Presidential Palace, the new ambassador explained his close ties in Mexico where he studied and began his journalism career.
Read more in...
Source: Noticias SIN
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) froze US$147 million allocated to 38 credit unions in Puerto Rico for solar, electric vehicle and energy efficiency projects, El Dia reported on 21 May 2025. Reports are that some of the funds will be used instead to improve the transmission lines.
Reports are that the US Department of Energy (DOE) is moving ahead with a major initiative to improve power service on the island contracting power generated in the Dominican Republic. A decision to cut red tape procedures seems to be in place prior to the installation of a submarine electric cable between Puerto Rico and the DR.
The submarine cable project intended to transmit electricity from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico is advancing steadily, with US federal environmental permits expected to be approved by November 2025...
Hot noon temperatures are expected due to warm easterly/southeasterly winds and light Saharan dust particles for most of the Dominican Republic. The forecast for Thursday, 22 May 2025 includes some scattered showers but mostly the country will be under the impact of Saharan dust.
The Dominican Weather Institute, Indomet says that the combination of a light layer of Saharan dust and an anticyclonic system will result in hazy skies, hot temperatures, and minimal rainfall across most of the Dominican Republic. However, isolated showers are possible as early as morning in provinces such as La Altagracia, La Romana in the East, to Barahona and Pedernales in the Southwest.
During the afternoon and into the evening, expect scattered clouds with localized downpours and isolated thunderstorms in areas including El Seibo, Hato Mayor, Monte Plata, Azua, La Vega, Santiago...
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged the Organization of American States (OAS) to take a leadership role in actions to end the control of the violent gangs in Haiti.
The Miami Herald reports that Rubio suggests OAS play a greater role in Haiti, including mobilizing ‘a force.’
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested on Tuesday, 20 May 2025 that the Organization of American States play a greater role in Haiti, where he acknowledged the country is being overtaken by criminal gangs and a US-backed mission led by Kenya is struggling to restore peace and stability.
“If ever there was a regional crisis that you would think an organization like this could step forward and provide a force or a group of countries that, working together, could help solve, it would be the OAS,” Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Tuesday about the hemispheric entity.
He said the...
Walking the streets of Santo Domingo has become a perilous undertaking for residents, who must navigate not only traffic but also the ever-present threat of falling into treacherous sinkholes caused by stolen manhole covers.
The theft of these vital infrastructure components has reached alarming levels, creating a serious public safety hazard, reports Diario Libre. Criminals steal the covers to sell the metal, leaving gaping holes in the street that expose pedestrians and drivers alike to potentially devastating accidents.
Some communities have resorted to makeshift solutions, filling holes with tires, rocks, or old car parts. However, these temporary fixes fail to address the root problem. Sinkholes plague neighborhoods across the economic spectrum, endangering everyone.
The daily experience of Santo Domingo’s pedestrians is a constant dodging of these...
In South America, Brazil and Chile have banned the construction of upstream dams due to their inherent risks, yet the demand for minerals continues to drive the need for tailings storage facilities.
In the Dominican Republic, the leading gold mining venture, Barrick seeks to build a second tailings dam and while this has been cleared by the Abinader administration the implementation is meeting with community rejection. Barrick has not announced it will implement alternative technologies for tailings management, such as dry stacking or dewatering, to reduce risks.
The very real risks of environmental, health and life risks of the current tailings dam in the province of Sanchez Ramirez are high up in the concerns of community activists. Communities in other provinces categorically have rejected the installation of a tailings dam, leading the mining company to...
As the Interamerican Development Bank-funded renovations of the historic Colonial City of Santo Domingo continue, historic findings continue to be made. One of the most recent findings is that of human bones located when workers dug to install underground new pipes and electric and telecom connections.
Read more in Spanish:
The Ministry of Interior and Police reports that there is a significant increase in foreigners acquiring Dominican citizenship.
For instance, a Ministry of Interior & Police press release explains that in a recent oath of allegiance ceremony, 82 individuals from 30 countries officially became Dominican citizens on 20 May 2025. The event was held at the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra auditorium, with the participation of Minister of Interior & Police Faride Raful taking the oath.
The newly naturalized citizens hail from across the globe, with origins as far-flung as Pakistan, Bulgaria, South Africa, Vietnam, Russia, and Croatia, alongside those from Spain, Italy, France, and the Netherlands. The Americas were also well-represented, with individuals from North, Central, and South American nations.
Nations with the highest number...
Investigative journalist Alicia Ortega presented a follow up TV report questioning the actions of National District prosecutor Julio Saba Encarnación, assigned to the Plan Piloto that deals with seized vehicles.
In her Monday, 19 May 2025 sequel to a first El Informe con Alicia Ortega program on perceived irregularities in Saba Encarnación’s actions regarding seized vehicles, Ortega presented new evidence of alleged mishandling. She again urged an official investigation by the Attorney General higher-ups.
Ortega points to a complex judicial imbroglio that reveals a pattern of contradictions and potential abuse of power within the Public Ministry, the prosecution arm of the Attorney General Office.
The Public Ministry has stated it cannot comment on prosecutor Saba Encarnación’s situation, citing an ongoing investigation. The unfolding events...
The Migration Agency (DGM) reports it has already filed 102 cases involving 144 individuals charged with assisting the illegal entry of 686 undocumented foreign nationals. The number is a significant increase from the single case brought to court by the DGM in the first nine months of 2024.
Of the 144 individuals charged, judges have ordered preventive detention for 14, while 42 have been granted economic bail and ordered to report periodically. Travel bans were issued for 20, and 32 are required to report periodically without additional conditions. Coercive measures for the remaining 36 defendants are still pending.
Laura Mariñez, the DGM’s legal director, stated that the primary offenses cited in these submissions include illegal immigrant trafficking (80 cases), document forgery (9 cases), and extortion and fraud (3 cases).
The DGM’s efforts span across...
The creativity of drug traffickers continues to impress, yet the local authorities are getting better at catching unusual exports. The National Drug Control Agency recently reported the seizing of 334 packages with suspected cocaine disguised in a shipment of plastic resin squash exports.
The DNCD reports it continues to increase its capturing of shipments in the border provinces with Haiti. Pedernales and Dajabon are the two main entry points from Haiti, with most cocaine known to enter by sea.
7 Dias reports that Dominican authorities have dealt a significant blow to cross-border drug trafficking, seizing over 6,224 packages of narcotics in three major operations within a mere 72-hour span. The busts, concentrated in the southwestern province of Pedernales and the northwestern region of Dajabón, underscore an intensified effort to combat the flow of illegal drugs into...
The Dominican Republic football national team that is participating in the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup has submitted its preliminary roster for the 18th edition of the Confederation’s premier tournament for men’s senior national teams will take place this summer, from 14 June to 6 July 2025, across 14 stadiums and 11 metropolitan areas in the United States and Canada.
Concacaf stands for the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football. It’s one of the International Federation of Football, FIFA’s six continental governing bodies for association football. Concacaf oversees football in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.
The tournament will feature 16 national teams: the best 15 from the Concacaf region, all of whom qualified through the latest edition of the Concacaf Nations League or the 2025 Gold Cup Prelims, along with one invited guest team, Saudi Arabia.
The opening match between the reigning champion team of Mexico and the...
Dominican music is catchy and tourists regularly learn to dance the tropical beats when staying at a resort or vacationing here. In a recent video, Hollywood actor Tom Cruise gets an advance dancing class with Dominican former beauty queen and TV personality, Genesis Suero after being interviewed by the Telemundo host.
Genesis Suero is a successful television personality and property expert who helps buyers and sellers throughout New York City achieve their real estate dreams. She was one of the first Dominican immigrants to win the title of Miss New York USA in 2018.
She competed for the Dominican Republic in Miss Universe 2019 and was one of the finalists of the Univision reality, Nuestra Belleza Latina.
She has since joined Telemundo’s “En Casa Con Telemundo” as a correspondent focusing on stories and interviews in and around New York.
She migrated to NYC with her...
The Banco Popular Dominicano has launched the book “Marileidy Paulino: Camino al sueño olímpico” (Marileidy Paulino: The Road to the Olympic Dream), which showcases the discipline and achievements of Dominican athletics’ leading figure, culminating in her triumph at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Since 2024, the Banco Popular has sponsored the leading track athlete.
The Banco Popular is distributing a select number of physical copies of the hardcover book, while a virtual copy is available online.
The book was written by photographer and cultural manager María Elena Moré and is a visual testament to Paulino’s effort, faith, and perseverance, making her an inspiration for current and future generations.
During the book launch event at Torre Popular, Banco Popular’s CEO, Christopher Paniagua, stated that the initiative “honors not just a champion, but a woman...
Guido Gómez Mazara, president of the Board of Directors of the Dominican Telecommunications Institute (Indotel), outlined a series of strategic initiatives aimed at revolutionizing the nation’s telecommunications landscape. On 19 May 2025, speaking at “La Semanal con la Prensa,” Gómez Mazara emphasized the new government efforts to place technology at the service of the population and bridge the digital divide in communities across the Dominican Republic.
To highlight the fast-paced advances, he said that for the first time in Dominican history more people were added to connectivity, 6.5%, than those who achieved reading skills. He spoke of advancing the Indotel program to bring connectivity to populations, schools and hospitals in areas that had been ignored by telecoms because of their low financial yields.
Gómez Mazara proudly detailed the sector’s...
President Luis Abinader announced during his weekly press conference on Monday, 19 May 2025 that a major road security pact will be soon announced as a major step towards the reduction of traffic accidents and reduction of traffic jams. Abinader said the initiative seeks to unify efforts among the government, private sector, and civil society to tackle the nation’s pressing challenges in traffic management and road safety.
“The pact is quite advanced; some arrangements are being made to launch it in the coming weeks. I believe it should be launched in June,” President Abinader stated. He emphasized that the pact will be supported by extensive studies designed to improve both road safety and traffic flow, noting that “the two things go hand in hand.”
A first “National Pact for Road Safety” was initially unveiled by the government in November 2024, following the...
Starting this Monday, 19 May 2025, the Tax Agency (DGII) is enforcing a 2% retention on all sales made via credit and debit cards, regardless of the business’s size.
The measure is outlined in General Norm 06-2023 and its supplementary regulations, and is part of recent adjustments to the ITBIS (Value Added Tax) retention scheme. This means that every electronic transaction made with a card at a business is now automatically subject to this deduction by the tax office.
While authorities justify the move as a step towards greater economic formalization and a crackdown on tax evasion, the 2% retention is already sparking concerns among productive sectors. There’s worry that it could discourage the use of credit and debit cards, potentially impacting electronic transactions across the country.
In recent years, businesses are encouraging payment via bank transfers.
Read...
The Tax Agency (DGII) issued Notice 12-25 extending the deadline for the mandatory implementation of Electronic Invoicing for Large Local and Medium Taxpayers by six months. The notice moves the deadline for obligatory compliance from 15 May 2025 to 15 November 2025.
The DGII, nevertheless, announced that the extension applies only to taxpayers who have already initiated the implementation process. Those who have initiated the process will automatically get the extension.
The DGII says that after the six-month extension period has expired, taxpayers who have not completed the process to become electronic invoice issuers will be subject to the penalties established under Law 32-23.
This is the second extension given to large and medium-sized companies. The first was in April 2024.
There is concern about the implementation of the system in small businesses...
The “Juan Sebastián de Elcano,” the Spanish Navy’s emblematic training ship, sailed into Santo Domingo’s port on Monday, 19 May 2025, with the Spanish royalty heiress Princess Leonor of Borbón on board as part of her military training. Her father, today King Felipe VI had also visited on the same tallship during his training years.
The brigantine-schooner, one of Spain’s most iconic vessels, traveled here from Colombia.
Princess Leonor is the elder daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain. As such, she is the heir presumptive to the Spanish throne, holding the title of Princess of Asturias. This means that upon her father’s eventual abdication or death, she is next in line to become Spain’s Queen. Her military training, including this transatlantic voyage, is a crucial part of her preparation for her future role as head...
Former President Leonel Fernandez was in Washington, D. C. for the 17 May 2025 graduation of his 21-year-old daughter, Yolanda America Maria Fernandez Cedeño. This is his daughter with former Vice President Margarita Cedeño, born in 2003 during his third term in office. Cedeño would go on to be the vice president in the Danilo Medina’s governments.
Yolanda Fernandez Cedeño received a master’s degree in Educational Psychology from George Washington University in Washington DC.
For the occasion, her parents took to social media to celebrate this significant achievement, with Leonel Fernández stating: “It fills me with pride.”
Diario Libre reports that the daughter of the former President and Vice President has always been kept out of the news, contrary to her half-siblings, Nicole Fernandez, known for her love of designer bags, and now married to...
The Dominican Institute of Civil Aviation (IDAC) announced the operation of a state-of-the-art Doppler weather radar on the iconic Isabel de Torres Mount in Puerto Plata, at 793 meters. The Presidency says this C-band, dual-polarization, solid-state radar marks a significant step by the government to modernize the national meteorological system and enhance operational safety within Dominican airspace.
Previously, the DR has depended on the radar in San Juan, Puerto Rico for much of its weather forecasting.
The commissioning ceremony was led by Puerto Plata-born Minister of the Presidency José Ignacio Paliza and IDAC director general Igor Rodríguez Durán. Both officials emphasized the strategic importance of this new equipment in the context of the country’s technological transformation in risk management and air navigation systems...
The White Marlin Tournament Cap Cana is set to kick off this Thursday, 22 May 2025 with the participation of 30 yachts. Silvano Suazo, director of Marina Cap Cana, says the actual fishing action will commence on Friday, May 23rd, following the social event marking tournament’s official inauguration.
The competition will run through Saturday, 24 May, with participants competing in both Sonar and Non-Sonar categories.
To date, a significant 70% of the registered boats hail from Puerto Rico, with another 20% from the United States. The remaining participants are arriving from Brazil, Italy, Cuba, and the host nation, the Dominican Republic.
Prizes will be awarded to the top three boats overall. Individual accolades will also be given to the overall top angler, the highest-scoring female angler, and the most outstanding junior angler (under 17 years...
The government’s program to develop the Colonial City of the National District will take a big step forward as it undertakes the refurbishment of over 140 houses in the area. The new areas to undergo renovations include the nearby barrios such as San Lazaro, Santa Barbara, and San Anton. Additional financing for the ambitious project will come from the European Union.
An extension of this initiative, the government’s program to support the smallest of businesses will recondition some 20 small businesses in the area to make them more appealing to tourists.
The “Paint Your City” program, financed by the InterAmerican Development Bank is yet another component in the overall plan to make the Colonial City as attractive as possible. The program enables the use of multiple colors, in contrast with the previous white or ochre colors.
Among the steps to be taken are new stone...
Víctor Cabral Amiama / Diario Libre
The late President Antonio Guzman chose Victor Cabral Amiama to be the country’s first Secretary of Tourism (1978-1981). Previously, tourism had a low participation in the economy, in a land where sugar and cacao exports prevailed. Cabral is credited with the firm start of major tourism development in the country.
Cabral has served as the president of Casa de Campo, the pioneer of tourism in the country, and internationally as president of Sheraton Latin America. In Mexico he also served as adjunct director of the Fondo Nacional de Fomento al Turismo (Fonatur).
Cabral today lives in Mexico. Diario Libre interviewed him when he visited and picked his brains as to where tourism in the DR is headed and what should be improved.
When asked about the DR’s positioning in Caribbean tourism, Cabral remarked that the DR isn’t just competing...
The Ministry of Tourism published a sponsored report highlighting the country’s consolidating and up-and-coming tourism destinations.
The advertorial was part of the US tourism campaign undertaken by the Ministry of Tourism that complements the road trips, the tourism presentations at leading hotels in key US cities held this year.
The promotion highlights the new luxury tourism destinations, with the participation of Aman, Four Seasons and St. Regis brands. Also mentioned are up-and-coming destinations such as Santiago, Miches and Pedernales and the popular Punta Cana, Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata, La Romana, Bayahibe and Samana vacation areas.
Read More:
Tourism Minister David Collado and former MLB superstar Alex Rodriguez jointly announced on Monday, 19 May 2025 a massive luxury tourism investment exceeding US$1 billion at the Playa Grande complex in María Trinidad Sánchez province, on the northern coast.
The ambitious project will introduce new hotel accommodations and residential properties as part of an initial ultra-luxury development phase. Collado emphasized that this significant investment underscores the private sector’s strong confidence in the Dominican Republic and its commitment to developing new niche markets within the national tourism landscape.
“This investment is an unprecedented initiative for our country that will bring extraordinary development to our nation’s luxury tourism sector, as well as to the northern region and the communities of Río San Juan and Cabrera,” Collado...
Sports tourism continues to add leading regional events. Juan Dolio Beach, less than 40 minutes from Santo Domingo or La Romana, is the center of two Norceca competitions back-to-back, gathering top beach volleyball competitors from North, Central America and the Caribbean. The first tournament, from 15 to 19 May, concluded with wins of Mexican men and Puerto Rican women with the participation of 17 women’s teams and 19 men’s teams.
Norceca reported that Puerto Ricans Allanis Navas and María González claimed the gold medal after defeating Mexico’s Susana Torres and Atenas Rodríguez in a thrilling match 2-0 (21-19, 21-19) in the second stage of the 2025 Norceca Beach Volleyball Continental Tour. The bronze medal went to Mexico’s Yeray Vidaurruzaga and María Ramírez, who defeated Corine Quiggle and Megan Rice from the United States 2-1 (18-21, 21-19, 15-12).
The...
Vice President Raquel Peña traveled to Rome, Italy to represent the Dominican people in the inaugural events of Pope Leo XIV on Sunday, 18 May 2025 in the Vatican See.
The Presidency reported that following her arrival at the Vatican, Peña expressed her hopes for the new pontificate on social media, stating: “May this new era bring more hope, unity, and peace to all humanity.”
Peña joined over 150 delegations and thousands of Catholic faithful at the ceremony in St. Peter’s Square that began Sunday, 18 May at 10am in Italy.
Notable attendees included Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, US Vice President James David Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Italian head of state Sergio Mattarella.
Other Latin American leaders present were Colombian President Gustavo Petro, Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, Honduran...
All last week long, the Dominican press, television, and radio news programs were occupied by the coverage of the Wednesday, 14 May 2025 meeting of the four Presidents — three former Presidents, Leonel Fernandez, Hipolito Mejia, Danilo Medina and current president, Luis Abinader. The topic was simple: Haiti.
Previous to the meeting itself, President Abinader had said that the former Presidents would be informed as to current policies, issues, and possible future actions regarding Haiti. He said that there would be no policy discussions at the meeting.
Everyone has speculated President Luis Abinader had something important to share with the former Presidents. What this would have been has not been shared with the general public.
What is known is that after the two-hour meetings that also included a sit-down with the Minister of Defense and Minister...
The Dominican Republic’s economy generated a net increase of 176,581 employed individuals over the 12 months ending in March 2025, according to preliminary findings from the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic’s (BCRD) Continuous National Workforce Survey (ENCFT).
The report, released by the BCRD as part of its commitment to transparency, highlights a positive trend in the nation’s labor market. Key indicators show record-high levels of employment and a decrease in joblessness. Notably, the informal employment rate reached its lowest point in the ENCFT series, registering at 53.4% of the employed population during the January-March 2025 period.
The unemployment rate also saw a slight decrease, settling at 4.9% in the first quarter of 2025, a 0.2 percentage point reduction compared to the same period last year.
The total number of employed...
In 2011, Harvard’s Center for International Development delivered the results of a study of Dominican public educations as contracted by the administration of Leonel Fernandez.
The report stated, in part, that “the reason for increasing the expenditures on education by itself does not guarantee significant improvements in the quality of the same, and this is because while more will be spent on paying teachers, purchasing books, and building schools), in the literature there have been very few [cases] where increased expenses have had a great effect on student performance, and in many cases they have ended up being insignificant.”
What Harvard was saying was that more money would not help unless serious reforms were put into place.
Today, after 14 years of public education receiving 4% of the yearly budget, a total of over RD$2 trillion or more than US$40...
A young teenager, just 13 years old, was walking home on Thursday, 15 May 2025 at 4pm in the Lavapie sector of San Cristobal during a torrential downpour. Because of the flooded streets, she decided to take a less-known route home. It was a near-tragic decision. She was swept away by the torrential runoff and sucked into a open sewage drain. She was rescued and hospitalized and is now recovering.
For her it was a nightmare that will accompany her for life. For hours and hours, Sheilyn Vizcaíno was trapped underneath the streets of Lavapie barely surviving. To many, her survival is a miracle. According to the girl’s recounting of the events, she managed to find a high spot inside the drainage tunnel, and there she remained until her rescue around 8 hours later, after midnight by two community members.
Civil Defense, the Fire Department, members of the...
After years of planning, the Banco de Desarrollo y Exportaciones (Bandex) has secured the green light from the National District City Council to develop a real estate complex on the land surrounding the iconic Quisqueya Stadium in Santo Domingo.
Diario Libre reports that the project has been backed by three consecutive governments since 2009 and encompasses the entire block around the stadium and includes plans for an apartment tower, a hotel, and a museum. Bandex already holds the property titles to the land, transferred by presidential decrees in 2009 and 2014.
The Council’s decision, through Ordinance 1/2025, reclassified the area as a Special Use Zone, removing it from a list of 12 environmental zones protected from residential development. This change, driven by Bandex and the Dominican government, allows for the construction to proceed despite opposition...
The Presidency has declared public use for the lands where the abandoned Hotel Santo Domingo stands, an iconic structure in the capital that has been closed since 2013. The structure between the Malecon and Av. Independencia avenues is reportedly set for demolition in the coming weeks due to its advanced state of deterioration.
The measure was formalized through Decree 214-24, which stipulates that the area will be allocated for the construction of the new Santo Domingo Convention Center — a project deemed critical for boosting business tourism and events in the capital city.
Located at the intersection of George Washington (Malecon) and Abraham Lincoln avenues, the property belongs to Costasur Dominicana, a subsidiary of Central Romana Corporation. Spanning a total of 67,000 square meters, the government plans to utilize approximately 34,000 square meters, according...
The Listin Diario, the oldest of print newspapers, has made the regular plight of media to remove online links, a national crusade. A US company, Network Solutions, has demanded the removal of the link or the media will face serious consequences. The Listin Diario says the link carries correct information. The mentioned party denies they have contracted the service to secure the removal of the link.
In a joint operation, the Specialized Border Security Corps (Cesfront) and the National Drug Control Agency (DNCD), coordinated by the Public Ministry, seized a suspected marijuana shipment weighing 4,836 pounds, along with eleven additional packages of what is believed to be cocaine. The marijuana is suspected to have been smuggled from Jamaica to Haiti and then into the Dominican Republic.
The seizure represents the largest quantity of suspected marijuana ever confiscated at the Dominican-Haitian border and took place after the surveillance and monitoring in Pedernales province on the southern land border with Haiti has been stepped up given the chaos in Port-au-Prince area across the border.
Cesfront and DNCD personnel, as part of enhanced interdiction efforts, intercepted a propane gas tanker truck on the highway between Pedernales and Oviedo, near the...
Investigative journalist Nuria Piera looks into the legal loopholes that have allowed double functions of several businesses, with the focus again on barber shops and beauty salons that are also bars and hidden nightclubs.
Read more in Spanish:
Edickson Herrera Silvestre, a capital city councilor from the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM), has turned himself in to face charges of international cocaine trafficking in a federal court in South Florida. He faces three counts that carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Herrera Silvestre, also known as “El Regidor” (The Councilor), was accused by the South Florida court on 5 March 2025, along with alleged accomplices José Eduviges Aponte Torres (aliases: Buby or Meano) and William Durán Jerez (alias: El General). The charges involve three federal counts related to conspiring to distribute, import, and traffic over five kilograms of cocaine into the United States.
The city councilor had been on the run since 9 April 2025 and had failed to appear for a scheduled testimony in the US court on 19 April. The Florida state indictment alleges that...
There are 31 provinces in the Dominican Republic, and some of them have names that are easy to understand, such as Duarte, for one of the Founding Fathers, Juan Pablo Duarte, or Valverde, or Espaillat, the names of former Presidents back in the 19th Century. Maria Trinidad Sanchez (Nagua) was a political martyr in 1845, and Azua was the name of a Taino chief.
Historically speaking, Santo Domingo was the name of the capital ever since Bartolome Colón founded it way back in 1498, to honor the founder of the Dominican religious order. In the 1930s, 40s, and 50s it was called Trujillo City, for obvious reasons.
The religious theme is also present in the province of La Altagracia, named in honor of the Patroness of the Nation, Our Lady of High Grace. It was formerly a part of El Seibo province.
Barahona was named after a Spanish colonial official...
The heavy rains that have been falling, as troughs make their way through the Caribbean, have caused billions in damages to homes, agriculture and infrastructure in the Dominican Republic. And this is all before the start of the hurricane season.
The director of the Dominican Weather Institute (Indomet), Gloria Ceballos calls for preparation as she expects this to be a year of intense hurricanes. The Atlantic season hurricane season opens in June.
Read more in Spanish:
New York Knicks regrouped and turned the semi-final series around to win 119-81 in game 6 for the right to play in the East Conference finals on Friday, 16 May 2025. The team won the playoff spot in what was a 4-2 semi-final.
Jalen Brunson led and scored 26 points, while Dominican national basketball team member Karl-Anthony Towns chipped in with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Their efforts were key in the game against the NBA defending champion Boston Celtics, with Al Horford, another former Dominican national basketball player, included. Boston was hurting after star player Jayson Tatum was out of play due to a recent Achilles injury.
It was a night when Dominicans watching the game were glued in to follow the two Dominican national team member players – Al Horford, playing for the Boston Celtics, and Karl Anthony Towns, playing for the New York Knicks.
For Towns, it was only his first year playing for the New York Knicks. Towns was born and raised in New Jersey. He had...
To read past articles, visit our DR1.com Daily News Forum.