Dominican Republic.- The general director of the Dominican Institute of Civil Aviation Idac, stated that the goal of 10 million visitors achieved this December 26 has been the result of the sum of efforts and will of all the sectors that are part of the national tourism industry, under the leadership of President Abinader.
Hector Porcella congratulated President Abinader, Minister of Tourism David Collado, the private tourism leadership, led by ASONAHORES, and the civil aviation sector, for making possible a goal that only three years ago seemed unattainable.
He said that the president’s decision to create the Tourism Cabinet, just as he did in other areas of public administration, was an accurate and timely strategy to accelerate the recovery of the economic sector with the greatest impact in the country.
“The teamwork led by President Abinader and Minister Collado was a key factor for our country to achieve the feat of leading the recovery of tourism and traffic in Latin America, after the impact of the pandemic,” Porcella noted.
He recalled that last July, when he ratified his support for the aviation sector, President Abinader proclaimed that in 2023 the goal of 10 million would be achieved, to turn the country into the air Hub of the Caribbean and Central America.
Minister of Tourism received the 10 million visitor
The Minister of Tourism, David Collado, reported that this December 26, the Dominican Republic received its 10 millionth visitor in 2023, which marked an unprecedented milestone in tourism in the country and the entire region.
Collado indicated that the long-awaited figure was reached for the first time in the country’s history thanks to the strategic work developed jointly between the public and private sectors, as well as the vision of President Luis Abinader and the trust that the president placed in professionals. of the ministry to carry out unprecedented work.
In an event held at the Punta Cana International Airport, it was reported that the country managed to exceed 10 million visitors thanks to an arrival of 7,863,542 tourists who arrived by air, plus some 2,168,209 cruise passengers who arrived in the country by sea.
Mitur presented the figures of the economic impact that tourism has had this year in the Dominican Republic with more than 620 thousand direct jobs and an estimated generation of foreign exchange of more than 11 billion dollars.
“Reaching 10 million tourists between air and cruise ships is a fact that should fill the entire country with pride, regardless of political flags, since each of these visitors are friends of the country who contribute to development, employment, to the countryside, to construction and to the entire productive apparatus of the country continuing to grow,” said Collado.
From 2019 to date, the Dominican Republic is the country that has grown the most in tourist arrivals in the entire Caribbean region, going from 6.4 million visitors to more than 10 million; In addition, it has been recognized by several international organizations as the number 1 country in terms of post-COVID tourism recovery.