Beneficiaries of the FEDA’s “Return to the Countryside” program concentrated up to ten cows

Most participants in the “Return to the Field” program in Santo Domingo Norte and Guerra received between one and three cows. However, the analysis of the records identified two cases that far exceed that average. One of them is Ysidro Encarnación Mateo, an employee of the Dominican Agrarian Institute with a salary of RD$50,000, who received five cows. Taking as a reference the cost paid by the State, RD$50,176 per head of cattle, that allocation represents approximately RD$250,880. The second case corresponds to Jorge Mercedes Suero Echavarría, who received ten cows, the highest figure identified in the analyzed universe. At the same unit value, that amount is equivalent to approximately RD$501,760. According to the revised party register, Suero Echavarría appears registered in the PRM, while Encarnación Mateo does not appear in that record.

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For Wandelpool, these cases force a review of the program’s criteria. “There must be clear conditions in the selection criteria because people linked to institutions in the sector may have advantages over other producers,” he explained.