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Representatives from the Budget Office and the European Union They exchanged impressions of the program and mission work that DIGEPRES develops in the economic sphere of the country.
The General Directorate of Budget (DIGEPRES) and representatives of the European Union's Inclusive Societies program technical mission held a meeting to discuss sustainable mobility in public transportation in the Dominican Republic, addressing its structure, services, and social aspects. The meeting allowed mission representatives and Budget officials to share their impressions of the European program and DIGEPRES's work within the country's economic sphere.
The activity was led by Rafael Jovine, Director of Economic Studies; Odilys Hidalgo, Director of Budgetary Services; Juan Portalatín, Head of Financial Management for Formulation and Execution; María Victoria Ortiz, Head of Standards and Methodologies; and Yeimi Brown Mendieta, Budget Planning and Gender Equality Analyst. Also participating in the mission were Bárbara Gómez Valcárcel, Technical Specialist for the Governance and Citizenship component of the Inclusive Societies program; Galia Meléndez, Technical Specialist in Gender and Women's Empowerment; Ana Pérez, Expert in Gender, Social Law, and Social Protection for Inclusive Societies; and Páscuale Tórtola, from the Just Transitions component of the same initiative, representing the ITILA organization.
Barbara Gomez, in presenting the program, indicated that it seeks to prioritize the country in the area of sustainable mobility, recognized as fundamental for the development of the Dominican Republic and key to citizen well-being. She also stated that the European Union in Latin American countries is working alongside other European institutions in these territories, paying special attention to women, young people, and the poorest segments of the population to ensure they are not left out of the improvement processes.
In response to the mission's presentation on the work they are doing to promote gender equality, María Victoria Ortíz, from DIGEPRES, showcased the actions within the framework of the 2026 General State Budget and the work carried out in coordination with international organizations based in the country. “At DIGEPRES we work on gender labeling and thematic classifiers, a methodology that identifies and classifies data related to gender equality and estimates statistical units”. Ortiz indicated. He also noted that the Budget Office is a benchmark in this type of methodology, and provided a general overview of the regulations, monitoring, and budget evaluation within the process.
During the meeting, Rafael Jovine explained DIGEPRES's role in the budget cycle, the institutional starting point for linking transportation, inclusion, and the budget. He also discussed public investment projects and tools for transparency and social participation, noting that the Dominican Republic has received significant international recognition in the latter, solidifying its position as a leader in the Central American and Caribbean region.
For his part, Norvin Berges highlighted the work that the Budget Office carries out in the area of Local Governments and showed images of the dashboard which centralizes, organizes and displays key indicators, metrics and data of the municipality that could be future inputs to the Inclusive Societies program.
Finally, the representatives of the European Union program's technical mission assessed the data provided by the Budget Office. They also outlined the agenda of activities and future meetings with state institutions.
The Inclusive Societies program is developed within the framework of a Global Strategy launched in 2021, which establishes an agenda of investments and alliances of the European organization with different countries of the world using tools such as development cooperation under the 360 approach, to guarantee the social dimension and inclusion policies in favor of vulnerable populations within its borders and other regions.
