CABEI grants US$80 million to the Dominican Republic for Eastern Highway Corridor

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) granted a US$80,200,000.00 loan to the Dominican Republic for the Program, “Improvement and Expansion of the Eastern Highway Corridor.”

This program involves improving and expanding three highway stretches, totaling 78.0 km. The target area is on the eastern region of the Dominican Republic, where the major tourism centers are located with approximately 60.0% of the country’s hotels. In 2012, 2.1 million tourists visited the area, equivalent to 63.8% of foreigner visitors to the Dominican Republic that year.

CABEI is dedicated to promoting the balanced economic and social development of its member countries in the region, including the Dominican Republic.

CABEI Executive President Dr. Nick Rischbieth explained that objective of the loan is to finance a high-priority strategic public investment project that will benefit the country's development.

"The corridor is expected to streamline mobility and safety for users and have a positive impact on the area’s tourism development, which is the country’s main pillar of economic activity. In addition, the corridor will also facilitate commercial trade with Central America," added Dr. Nick Rischbieth.

The CABEI loan will partially finance the execution of the Program, “Improvement and Expansion of the Eastern Highway Corridor,” specifically for the San Pedro de Macorís-La Romana stretch, the La Romana ring road and the Bulevar Turístico del Este stretch.

The Program will also:

• Reduce travel time between Santo Domingo and the eastern region.
• Reduce maintenance costs of light and heavy vehicles that use the Eastern Corridor on a daily basis.
• Facilitate the transportation of tourists from the Santo Domingo, La Romana and Punta Cana airports, which receive approximately 85.0% of total tourists visiting the country every year.
• Increase local tourism to the eastern region, increasing the region’s hotel occupancy levels.
• Contribute to reducing car accidents throughout the Eastern Highway Corridor.
• Improve the Dominican Republic’s  trade competitiveness by the linking the Southern ports with the eastern region, which will help strengthen the region’s foreign trade because the majority of products imported to and exported from the eastern region pass through these ports,.
• Expand the demand for the region’s products with reduced prices resulting from lower transportation costs.