Spanish
The Association of Industrialists of the Northern Region (AIREN) stated that the growth of the industrial sector of Cibao responds to an increasingly integrated productive ecosystem, where local industry, export manufacturing, formal employment and productive linkages converge, consolidating the Northern region as one of the main engines of the Dominican economy.
AIREN noted that this industrial strengthening is expressed in the high concentration of manufacturing activity in the region, particularly in Santiago and other provinces of Cibao, where a significant part of the country's installed capacity operates. In this context, free trade zones today represent a structural component of the industrial sector in the North.
"For AIREN, free zones are not an isolated sector, but an integral part of the industrial fabric of the North. Their presence reflects the real weight of regional manufacturing in employment, exports and the competitiveness of the country," expressed Luis Jose Bonilla, president of AIREN.
The guild highlighted that this integrated industrial structure has allowed the Northern Region to position itself as a key hub for national manufacturing, with leadership in subsectors such as tobacco and derivatives, medical devices, clothing, packaging, agribusiness, and higher value-added manufacturing, strengthening the export capacity of the Dominican economy.
AIREN underscored that the impact of the industrial sector in the North is directly reflected in formal employment. As of October 2025, the free zone regime reached 200,134 direct jobs nationwide, the highest historical record, with a cumulative growth of 67% compared to the lowest point of the pandemic. A significant proportion of these jobs are generated in the Northern Region, where the industry has evolved towards increasingly technical and specialized profiles.
From a broader economic perspective, AIREN indicated that the industrial dynamism of the North generates a multiplier effect on the region, by strengthening the demand for local suppliers, transportation, logistics, energy and financial services, expanding the impact of the industry beyond the parks and manufacturing plants.
Likewise, the association highlighted that the industrial expansion of Cibao has contributed to deconcentrating economic growth, bringing investment and formal employment to different provinces in the Northern region and consolidating a more balanced territorial development model.
