Interrelations between Public Policies, Migration and Development in the Dominican Republic
Interrelations between Public Policies, Migration and Development in the Dominican Republic is the result of a project carried out by the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Sociales (CIES) in the Dominican Republic and the OECD Development Centre, in collaboration with the Ministerio de Economía, Planificación y Desarollo (MEPD) and with support from the European Union. The project aimed to provide policy makers with evidence on the way migration influences specific sectors – the labour market, agriculture, education, investment and financial services and social protection and health – and, in turn, how sectoral policies affect migration. The report addresses four dimensions of the migration cycle that have become an important part of the country's social and economic contexts: emigration, remittances, return and immigration.
The results of the empirical work confirm that even though migration contributes to development in the Dominican Republic, the potential of migration is not fully exploited. One explanation is that many policy makers in the Dominican Republic do not sufficiently take migration into account in their respective policy areas. The Dominican Republic therefore needs to adopt a more coherent policy agenda to do more to integrate migration into development strategies, improve co-ordination mechanisms and strengthen international co-operation. This would enhance the contribution of migration to development in the country.
Also available in: Spanish
The Dominican Republic's migration landscape
OECD Development Centre
The Dominican Republic is a country of both emigration and immigration. An estimated 12% of its population currently resides abroad, while immigrants constitute about 4% of the population. The country benefits from a large volume of remittances, representing around 7% of its gross domestic product and easily exceeding foreign direct investment. This chapter paints a broad picture of the Dominican Republic’s migration landscape, drawing from the literature, censuses and surveys. It gives a brief overview of the country’s history of migration and current trends: its drivers and impacts, who the immigrants and emigrants are and where they have gone, how they remit and the impacts on their household and country. Finally, it lays out the legal, policy and institutional framework relevant to migration.
Also available in: Spanish