The Dominican Republic Diversifies its Tourism Offers

Puerto Plata, October 5, 2018 – The Ministry of Tourism, the Technical Professional Institute, the Ministry of the Economy, Planning and Development, and the Japanese International Agency recently presented several community groups that for years have been working to put together an authentic, quality and local proposal to encourage the development of the tourism industry in the country’s North Coast. The project was presented during the Discover POP MarketPlace 2018 event, under the category of Sustainable Community Tourism.

The initiative is part of an overall strategy to diversify the national tourism offer. At the same time, it satisfies the demands being made by the international markets that want to see more cultural and adventure-related activities in the tourism destinations they visit. These initiatives also contribute to the economic development of the local communities.
The initiatives reflected the efforts and advances made in the development and implementation of the project in the Dominican southwest provinces. Also, the organizers presented the routes and circuits created, and discuss the progress of the Productive Units of the northern Cibao region, situated in the very heart of the country. All these efforts will promote tourism-related activities in the region and add important value to the region.

At the same time and under the leadership of the Ministry of Tourism, similar projects are being implemented in the Cibao region. It is expected that by 2021 the 14 provinces in the region will be actively involved in tourism-related activities.

Today, the Community Tourism Project hopes to highlight the important natural attractions that are found in this particular region in the country. The project will include specialized destinations, circuits and products available only in the region and that comply with competitive and sustainable approaches.
During the press conference held to announce the event, organizers quoted from studies sponsored by the World Labor Organization, which revealed that “…tourists in the 21st century will look for more integrated experiences with the communities…and this is why it is so important to [continue strengthening] the Dominican tourism offer in order to continue being the leaders of the tourism industry in the Caribbean region.”

The project is part of the National Development Strategy 2030, and the Government’s goal to bring in 10 million tourists to the country by 2020. The objective is to launch a dynamic that will benefit all Dominicans.
The event ended with a presentation of “Dominican Music,” featuring a special group that masterfully presented the essence of the merengue, the Dominican national dance rhythm and which was declared as the Immaterial Cultural Patrimony of UNESCO in 2016.

On the Sustainable Community Tourism Project
The Project to Strengthen the Development Mechanism of Sustainable Tourism – based in the communities of the country’s northern region – hopes to articulate and consolidate specific attractions situated along the communities of the North Coast. The focus is on “Regional Tourism Destinations,” and the goal is to create and sell the specific attractions of the North Coast.
The project’s objectives are to strengthen the capacities and mechanisms that will facilitate the development of Sustainable Community Tourism, with the support of the public and private sector in the North Coast. Fourteen provinces are participating in this projects, all situated in the country’s northern region. These include the following provinces: Puerto Plata, Santiago, Espaillat, Montecristi, Santiago Rodríguez, Dajabón, Valverde, La Vega, Monseñor Nouel, María Trinidad Sánchez, Hermanas Mirabal, Duarte, Sánchez Ramírez and Samaná.

The National Development Strategy 2030 in the Dominican Republic includes the following goals: diversify sustainable tourism activities; increase the economic and social benefits to the community through these initiatives and empower the communities.

Another important goal is to differentiate the tourism-related activities of the North Coast from other tourism activities in the rest of the country. These activities will provide solid and quality offers in organized communities that are committed and prepared to feature their cultural and natural patrimony.
The sponsoring organizations signed the cooperation agreement in April 2016, in coordination with the Planning and Projects Department and various departments from the Ministry of Tourism.
The project also encourages the inter-institutional work that needs to be carried out in order to successfully carry out the project.