The economy orange–named after the set of activities that generate added value through creativity, knowledge and culture– increasingly expands its export potential in the Dominican Republic, thus attracting the interest of the banking in financially supporting the entrepreneurs of this productive segment.
Between 2020 and 2024, the exports of services modern, an activity that encompasses activities linked to information technologies and creativity, reached 6.2 billion dollars in that period, said the executive director of the Export and Investment Center of the Dominican Republic, Biviana Riveiro.
Only in 2023, these exports were 1,806 million dollars, for a growth of 125% more compared to 2019, said the Minister of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs, Víctor Bisonó, within the framework of the Orange Caribbean Forum 2024an event that brought together artists, entrepreneursofficials and international personalities to discuss the potential of the industries creative in the country.
Added to this are the exports of the estate creative – a classification of the National Copyright Office (ONDA) that covers products generated by industries creative–, which reached 1.6 billion dollars in the last four years.
This is an increase of 38% regarding the four-year period 2016-2020, according to ProDominicana.
Riveiro indicated that these figures are “much smaller” to the reality of what is happening in the Dominican Republic, given that this is a sector in which, because it has an intangible nature and is often generated informally, it is “difficult” to quantify its real value.
Its weight in economy dominican
Iván Duque, former president of Colombia and a well-known promoter of economy orange in his country and in Latin America, he indicated that the economy orange In the Dominican Republic it represents 2% of its gross domestic product (GDP).
In this way, the economy orange exceeds by eight percentage points the 1.2% represented by the industry tobacco, one of the main agricultural and cultural products of the country.
“If the economy orange “It is so important, so different in our countries (…), we understand that the Dominican Republic is, in itself, an expanding cultural power,” said Duque during his keynote lecture “Economy orange in the era of artificial intelligence.
As an example of this potential, Duque highlighted that only the “Entre mares y palmeras” tour, by the singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerrahas generated more than 15 million dollars in foreign currency, while the collections under the brand of the Dominican designer, Oscar de la Rentagenerate around 150 million dollars each year.
“We are talking about only two iconic cases very recognized from the Dominican Republic,” he stressed.
He indicated that the economy creative is capable of integrating the archaeological and national heritage of the nation, through activities as:
- The carnivals
- Archaeological centers
- Museums
- Heritage places
- Performing and visual arts
- Digital arts
- digital animation
- Photograph
- The creation of content through mass media
- The design
- advertising
- creative education
- gastronomy
He explained that all of these activitiesput in synergy show that Latin America has a “transformative engine” in the economy orange and that, in the case of Quisqueya, it can potentially be combined with the industry tourism, generating “a perfect marriage” between the culture and tourism.
Duque recommended that the Dominican authorities promote the economy orange as a national strategy and not reduce it solely to the budget managed by the Ministry of Culture. He proposed a strategy based on eight key factors: Information, institutions, cultural infrastructure, digital infrastructure, industryintegration, inclusion and inspiration.
The support of the banking
The banking Dominican Republic has played an important role in promoting the growth of the economy orangeboth in the sponsorship and promotion of artistic and cultural events, as well as to offer financial support to new entrepreneurs.
Only in the cinemaone of the industries creative most thriving in the country, the BHD has supported more than 80 film projects from 2012 to date, representing an investment of more than 1,195 million pesos in films, which have been presented outside the country, highlighted the second vice president of Corporate Communication of the bank, Alicia Puello, within the framework of the event.
The Dominican Popular Bank has done the same, which has financed projects of the industry cinematographic valued at 2,000 million pesos in recent years, stated its vice president of the Communication and Reputation Area, Luis Esteban Martínez-Murga, who highlighted the role of the financial entity in supporting post-production companies. cinematographican export sector that serves Hollywood productions from the Dominican Republic.
Likewise, he highlighted that the bank has the platform Orange Entrepreneurs, –which provides tools to help entrepreneurs to formulate their projects as viable businesses – as well as the platform Impulsa Popular – for more formalized companies and with access to multiple resources for all types of SMEs, including orange SMEs.
Regarding the Reserve Bank, this entity allocates more than 100 million pesos a year to sponsor activities cultural and creativehighlighted the vice president of Marketing of the financial entity, Yubelkis Ramírez Viñas, to Diario Libre.
“We are making great efforts to support, from different areas of the bank,” he stated, highlighting the support to the industries creative from the departments of International Business and Tourism.
He recalled that Banreservas has a budget for its Cultural Center – the first of its kind for a financial entity – dedicated to promoting the industry culture and creative.
