A visitor to Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic (DR), ight come away with two broadly positive impressions: the DR has a very rich history and a bright future. The historic centre of Santo Domingo, founded by Bartholomew Columbus in 1498, is a UNESCO world heritage site; this was the original seat of Spanish power in the New World and features the earliest cathedral, monastery and university in the Americas. Surrounding this is the hyper-modern city of today, with shiny new shopping malls catering for the growing middle class as well as for the numerous tourists that have made this the most visited country in the Caribbean.
On the face of it, the Dominican Republic has been doing quite well. The economy has rebounded from the global financial crisis and grown consistently over the last few years, thanks to tourism, free trade zones and mining exports as well as the significant remittances sent from the Dominican diaspora. This is the largest economy in the Caribbean and the ninth largest in Latin America.
