Government surpasses housing goals and strengthens structural safety with new regulations

Santo Domingo.- The Ministry of Housing and Buildings (MIVIENDA) has surpassed its home construction goals and is leading a comprehensive effort to modernize the country’s public infrastructure, while working on a regulatory framework aimed at ensuring the safety of existing buildings. This was reported by Minister Carlos Bonilla during his intervention in the Business Forums 2025: Governmental Management, Challenges, Objectives and Goals, organized by Gala Media Group. Bonilla highlighted that, only through the “Mi Vivienda” plan, the Government has built almost 10,000 homes, a significant figure if compared to the approximately 10,000 to 11,000 built by the private sector each year. This represents an increase of around 40% in the annual average of new homes during the last two years. In addition, he reported that more than 50,000 homes have been repaired, benefiting about 200,000 people through essential improvements such as replacing dirt floors with cement and rehabilitating roofs. The minister highlighted the centralization of housing programs under MIVIENDA, after several institutions previously managed projects in parallel. The law that created the ministry granted a clear legal framework that allows it to coordinate these initiatives exclusively. As an example, he cited the transfer of the “Happy Family” program from the Ministry of the Presidency to MIVIENDA, carried out three months ago, which, in his opinion, optimizes resources and improves efficiency in the execution of housing policies.

Public infrastructure and health

Beyond housing, Bonilla emphasized that MIVIENDA is also responsible for the construction of public buildings. Among the delivered projects, he mentioned:

• Universities: Extensions in Baní, Azua and Hato Mayor.
• Hospitals: Works in Villa Hermosa, Padre Billini and the completion of the Mario Tolentino Hospital, which had been under construction for more than 15 years and added more than 300 beds to the health system, reaching a total of more than 600 new beds.
• Penitentiary centers: The first phase of the Las Parras penitentiary center, which will be inaugurated on August 10 and will house 2,500 inmates, contributing to decongesting La Victoria prison. The minister clarified that the investment of 2,000 million pesos was allocated to complete pending works, denying that the center was finished in previous administrations.

Structural safety and new regulations

In response to recent incidents related to buildings, Bonilla announced that MIVIENDA is working on a bill to establish the regulation of structural safety of public and private spaces for collective use. This initiative contemplates the creation of “habitability certificates” with periodic renewals, according to the use and occupancy capacity of the property. The incorporation of specific regulations for the maintenance of elevators is also being analyzed, a safety aspect that currently lacks formal supervision.

Labor and mechanization

The minister also addressed the labor situation in the construction sector. He pointed out that the regulations allow up to 20% of the workers on a construction site to be foreigners and acknowledged the sector’s dependence on Haitian labor. However, he assured that the Government is promoting programs for process mechanization and training of Dominican workers, with the aim of increasing the availability of local personnel with well-paid jobs.