The Dominican Republic Wants to DOUBLE Its Economy. Is It Actually on Track?

Thinking about moving to or investing in the Dominican Republic? Join 1,400+ members inside the DR Inner Circle: https://www.jamiegruber.com The Dominican Republic has a plan to double its economy by 2036. It’s called Meta RD 2036, and most people who focus on DR have never heard of it. In this video I break down the five biggest goals inside that plan and give you my honest read on where the country actually stands two years in. The plan was set in motion in 2024 under President Abinadair’s administration. The headline goal is to grow GDP per capita from $11,600 to $25,400, which requires the economy to grow at about 6% per year for 12 years. The 30-year average for DR is 5.1%, so this is asking the country to outperform its own historical pace for over a decade. Right now it’s tracking around 4%, which puts it at roughly half the pace needed. At the current trajectory, the economy would be about 70% bigger by 2036, not 100%. The second goal is to create 1.7 million net new jobs, which works out to 140,000 per year. This one is actually on pace, with 142,000 added between 2024 and 2025 and 147,000 by the second quarter of 2026. What’s interesting is that 87% of those new jobs went to women, which tells you something about where this administration is putting its focus. The challenge is that over 80% of new jobs are still informal, though that number is improving. On salaries, the goal is to triple the average wage by 2036, which requires 10% growth per year. In 2025, nominal salaries grew 8.8%, which sounds close, but real salary growth after inflation was only around 5%. Whether the plan is measuring nominal or real salary growth matters a lot here and I don’t have a definitive answer on that yet. Extreme poverty is moving in the right direction by the government’s own numbers, dropping from 3.2% to 2.2% and overall poverty down to around 14% in the first half of 2026. But the opposition party, the FP, argues that by international income standards the real poverty rate is closer to 60%. The truth is probably somewhere between the two. Finally, on investment grade: Fitch currently has DR at BB minus, which is three rungs below investment grade. The more meaningful signal to me is that the risk premium on Dominican debt has been cut almost in half over the past decade, dropping from 3.5% to 1.8%. That tells you sophisticated capital markets are seeing less risk in this country over time, even if the rating agencies haven’t moved the needle yet. I’m actually about to sit down with Juan Ariel Jimenez, the former minister of the economy and a Harvard professor, and this is exactly the kind of thing I want to dig into with him. So consider this my warm-up. If you’re watching this because you’re thinking about moving to or investing in the Dominican Republic, this is the context I think you need. The plan is ambitious. Some of it is on track, some of it isn’t, and understanding the difference matters whether you’re buying property, relocating a business, or just trying to figure out where this place is headed. Topics covered: Meta RD 2036, Dominican Republic economy 2036, DR GDP growth, Dominican Republic investment grade, DR economic plan, DR real estate investment, Dominican Republic jobs, DR salary growth, Dominican Republic poverty rate, Fitch credit rating Dominican Republic Disclaimer: This reflects my personal analysis and opinions at the time of recording. This is not financial or investment advice. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.