Dominican Republic: strengthening the national framework for public health and agri-food competitiveness

The country has just adopted its National Policy on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures. This major strategic framework is designed to modernise the protection of human, animal and plant health while facilitating agri-food trade and promoting sustainability.

This policy was developed in collaboration with the Ministries of Agriculture, Industry and Trade, Foreign Affairs, and Health (via the SPS Committee). It was developed within the framework of the SIA project (Sanidad e Innovación Agropecuaria), which is being implemented by COLEAD. The policy responds to new challenges, such as emerging health risks, stricter international market requirements, and increasingly demanding multilateral commitments.

The policy is built on seven strategic pillars:

The policy comprises seven pillars and 73 lines of action, ranging from legislative harmonisation and inter-institutional coordination to strengthening technical capacities, modernising laboratories and implementing a digital traceability system. The policy also adopts an integrated ‘One Health’ approach, linking human, animal, plant and environmental health.

Concrete expected impacts

Implementation will:

• better protect public health and ecosystems;
• ensure food safety and consumer confidence;
• enhance the competitiveness of Dominican products in international markets;

It will also contribute to climate resilience and sustainable development.

This ambitious policy sets out a clear roadmap for a modern, coherent and internationally recognised SPS system for the Dominican Republic.

This activity is supported by the SIA project (Sanidad e Innovación Agropecuaria), implemented by COLEAD on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Dominican Republic and financed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) under loan no. BID-4909/OC-DR. This publication has been produced with the financial support of the IDB. The contents are the sole responsibility of COLEAD and in no way reflect the views of the Dominican Ministry of Agriculture or the IDB.