The Italian Legacy in the Dominican Republic

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It is in fact undoubted that the Italian contribution

to the Dominican industry of the tourism is worthy

of note both in terms of flow of tourists and in terms

of development of tourist infrastructure. In addition

to the already mentioned case of Punta Cana and its

creator Frank Rainieri, to whom a chapter is dedicated

(Chapter 40), there are other cases of successful entre-

preneurs, including Roberto Casoni

in Puerto Plata

and Matteo Scandiani

in Bayahibe.

2020

•

On January 30, together with the artist Lid-

ia León and under the patronage of the Ministry of

Culture, the Dominican Republic initiated its first ex-

hibition at the Architecture Biennale in Italy by pro-

moting cultural events in Santo Domingo and at the

Centro Le

n in Santiago de los Caballeros.

On February 5, an invitation to tender was an-

nounced for the design of a new embassy and resi-

dence on the historic premises of the former ambassa-

dor’s residence on Avenida Rafael A. Sánchez, in the

central sector of Naco. Italy decided to valorize the

historic site of the old residence on Avenida Rafael

Augusto Sánchez, which had been donated to Italy by

Angiolino Vicini

(Chapter 43). On the 2019 national

holiday, I publicly announced a project for creating a new complex, a home of Italy, which would combine

not only the official residence and the diplomatic and consular offices, but which would also serve to show-

case new technologies and the “Made in Italy” brand, thus offering a fusion of well-known and respected

Italian and Dominican architects.

On that occasion, I announced that the new complex would be christened under the name of Angiolino

Vicini and his family in commemoration of the symbolic role that he played as a bridge between the two

countries and of the example of love for Italy shown by Angiolino Vicini and his descendants.

On March 12, a day dedicated to conveying the message of deep friendship between the two countries,

events were held not only in the capital city but also in the city of Santiago at the newly inaugurated confer-

ence center at UTESA. These events were marked by the opening of the exhibition

Italia y la Republica Do-

minicana, construyendo puentes vivos entre historia y futuro

(Italy and the Dominican Republic, Building Living

Bridges between the Past and the Future), articulated as a collection of five exhibitions, including the world

premiere of the traveling photographic exhibition

Historias italianas. Interiores y arquitectura de autor

(Italian

Stories. Signature Interiors and Architecture) by the illustrious photographer Andrea Vierucci, which was set

to remain open to the public for six months.

Also worthy of mention is the focus in recent years on the cooperative initiatives between universities to

create “living links” by bringing students, professors, and scientists into closer contact, thus creating deeper

ties. From 2017 to 2020, a total of 35 agreements were signed between Dominican and Italian universities

and research centers to link educational institutions from both countries. The Embassy of the Dominican

Republic in Rome, headed by Ambassador Peggy Cabral,

who personally worked on the promotion of

cultural agreements between universities of the two countries, worked assiduously to achieve the objective

of strengthening relations with Italian universities. With resources from the Italian Embassy, an Italian lan-

guage-teaching program was started in 2019 at INTEC University and staffed with native-language instruc-

DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS. PART TWO. DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS IN THE PRESENT: 2017-2020

Italy Avenue in

Santo Domingo.