Washington D.C., May 21, 2007—
IFC
,
the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, provided a long-term financing package to Sans Soucí Ports, S.A., to expand and operate the Sans Soucí and Don Diego cruise ship terminals in Santo Domingo, capital city of the Dominican Republic. IFC’s $21 million financing will help reintroduce the cruise industry to the city and support tourism, which is essential for economic growth and job creation in the country.
Salem Rohana, IFC Country Manager for the Dominican Republic, said, “We are very pleased to be working with Sans Soucí on this important project, which will further help develop the country’s infrastructure and tourism sectors. IFC’s involvement will encourage international investors to extend private financing to local companies like Sans Soucí Ports.”
Supporting private sector participation in the tourism and infrastructure sectors is a key priority in IFC’s strategy for the Dominican Republic. In 2005, tourism contributed $3.5 billion to the country’s income, and generated more than 125,000 jobs.
Lisandro Macarrulla, President of the Board of Directors
of Sans Soucí Ports, said, “IFC’s financing will help position Santo Domingo as a world-class tourism port by developing the needed infrastructure to provide a service level of the highest standard to guests and clients. We are very excited at the prospects of the Santo Domingo destination and look forward to building a long-term partnership with IFC to help develop this project.”
Sans Soucí Ports is executing a 40-year build-operate-transfer concession that will renovate the existing infrastructure at the terminals, manage pollution issues that affect the Ozama River basin, and the upgrade the navigational channel. This plan will enable the company to provide better support to cruise ships, resulting in an influx of tourists. A boost in tourism will generate foreign currency revenues and support local businesses that serve the tourist market.
Expanding the Sans Soucí and Don Diego ports is part of a larger urban revitalization plan that includes a marina and a real estate development to create a multipurpose attraction on the Santo Domingo waterfront.
IFC in the Dominican Republic
IFC’s strategy in the Dominican Republic focuses on supporting projects that generate growth and improve the country's competitiveness. As of March 2007, IFC’s investment portfolio in the Dominican Republic was $358 million, including $93 million in syndications.
IFC’s investments in the country are diversified across a wide range of sectors, including health care, telecommunications, infrastructure, tourism, general manufacturing, and the financial sector. Companies and projects that IFC has supported in the country include Aerodom, Banco Adopem, Banco BHD, Banco Leon, Caucedo Investments, Consorcio Energético Punta Cana-Macao, Domicem, Grupo M, Occidental Hotels, Orange Dominicana and Pasteurizadora Rica.
About IFC
IFC is the private sector arm of the World Bank Group and promotes open and competitive markets in developing countries. IFC supports sustainable private sector companies and other partners in generating productive jobs and delivering basic services, so that people have opportunities to improve their lives. Over the past 50 years, IFC Financial Products has committed more than $56 billion in funding for private sector investments and mobilized an additional $25 billion in syndications for 3,531 companies in 140 developing countries. IFC Advisory Services and donor partners have provided more than $1 billion in program support to build small enterprises, to accelerate private participation in infrastructure, to improve the business enabling environment, to increase access to finance, and to strengthen environmental and social sustainability. For more information, please visit
www.ifc.org
.
