The Dominican Republic’s Council of Ministers, presided over by President Luis Abinader, approved the draft General Budget Law for 2025 on 26 September 2024.
According to Finance Minister José Manuel Vicente, the government’s plan for economic management in the coming year allocates over DOP 1.484 trillion (USD 24.7 billion). The session also revealed that projected revenues will reach DOP 1.233 trillion, resulting in a fiscal deficit of 3.1% of GDP.
The 2025 budget is expected to be around 4% greater than 2024, an increase of approximately DOP 65 billion.
The finance minister emphasised that the 2025 budget marks the first application of the newly enacted Fiscal Responsibility Law. This legislation aims to limit government spending growth to stabilise and ultimately reduce debt to no more than 40% of GDP by 2025.
The 2025 budget allocates significant funds for social programmes, including DOP 54 billion for various initiatives, DOP 83 billion for electricity subsidies, and DOP 10 billion for fuel subsidies. It also prioritises infrastructure, including a DOP 24 billion for the Santiago Monorail project.
The details of the 2025 budget will be made public after it is submitted to Congress by the end of September or early October.