Day: July 7, 2026

Council of Ministers approves the 2027 Budget Policy

The spending policy prioritizes investment in education, health, infrastructure, productivity, and institutional development. Santo Domingo – President Luis Abinader and Vice President Raquel Peña chaired the fifty-ninth meeting of the Council of Ministers, where the Annual Budget Policy for 2027 was approved, in compliance with the provisions of the Organic Budget Law. At the conclusion of the session, the Minister of the Presidency, José Ignacio Paliza, presented the main guidelines of the spending policy, in his capacity as technical secretary of the Government Council. The 2027 Budget Policy organizes public spending around the strategic objectives of Meta RD 2036, with an emphasis on strengthening human capital, developing physical capital, increasing productivity, and strengthening institutions, while preserving social priorities and public investment. According to Minister Paliza, the spending policy reaffirms the Government's commitment to responsible management of public resources, concentrating investments on projects that have the greatest impact on the well-being of the population and the country's sustainable development. “The 2027 Budget Policy reflects a long-term vision. Every peso of the budget will be directed toward accelerating the country's transformation, strengthening human capital, expanding opportunities for the people, and developing the infrastructure demanded by the Dominican Republic's economic growth,” Paliza stated. In the area of education, the Government will maintain the allocation equivalent to 4.05% of the gross domestic product (GDP) to the education system. Furthermore, it will continue to promote the Horizon 2034 Plan, aimed at increasing effective years of learning, along with the construction and expansion of school facilities, new classrooms, and the expansion of the National School Transportation Program. In the areas of health and social protection, the budget policy includes the continuation and completion of strategic hospitals, the strengthening of Primary Care Units, the expansion of the National Emergency Network, and the continuation of social programs aimed at protecting the population from external shocks. Investment in infrastructure will continue to be a key focus of the 2027 budget, with resources allocated to the development of highways and integrated transportation systems in major urban and interurban centers, the construction of aqueducts and sanitation systems, and the continuation of the national housing improvement program. The budget will also strengthen productivity and institutional capacity through increased resource allocation to the Judiciary to consolidate legal certainty, in addition to continuing investments aimed at strengthening citizen and border security, including the construction of the smart perimeter fence and new correctional facilities. Paliza emphasized that these priorities reflect long-term strategic planning, aligned with the national development vision. “We are building a budget that not only responds to the needs of the present, but also prepares the Dominican Republic to achieve the development goals we have set for ourselves by 2036, with investments that strengthen competitiveness, social cohesion and institutional trust,” he concluded.