Dominican Ambassador: The Abu Dhabi Book Fair is a platform to enhance bridges of cultural cooperation with the Emirates
Abu Dhabi, April 27 / WAM / His Excellency Rensu Herrera Franco, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the UAE, stressed that participation in the 34th session of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair constitutes a pivotal opportunity to enhance bridges of civilized communication between the Caribbean, the Arab world and the UAE, stressing the importance of consolidating this cultural interaction and discovering more common denominators between peoples.
His Excellency said, in a statement to the Emirates News Agency “WAM”, that his country is working to push bilateral cooperation with the UAE in various sectors, with a focus on benefiting from the leading Emirati experience in achieving accelerating development.
He pointed out that the Dominican Republic is currently developing a number of strategic projects inspired by the developmental and investment model of the UAE, which contributes to enhancing the strength of the national economy.
He added that the distinguished geographical location of the UAE, which mediates the continents of Asia and Africa, provides a strategic opportunity for the Dominican Republic to use the UAE as a gate to reach new markets, while the central site of the Dominican in the heart of the American continent allows it to be a logistical center for export in the north and south, in order to enhance its economic position regionally and internationally.
The ambassador talked about his country’s cultural characteristics, explaining that the Dominican Republic is located in the heart of the Caribbean, and represents a unique model of ethnic and cultural diversity, as the slopes of mixed origins constitute about 80% of the population.
He stressed that this diversity is the product of the mixing of European, American and African races, in addition to the ancient Arab influences that moved to the Caribbean region during the Andalusian era through culture and architecture.
He added that the Dominican Republic witnessed about a hundred years ago waves of Arab immigration, especially from Palestine, Syria and Lebanon, which strengthened the Arab dimension in the national identity of the country, indicating that the current president of the republic is of Lebanese origin, in an indication of the depth of this cultural impact.
In the cultural context, he pointed out that the Dominican is proud of its international music heritage, pointing out that the music “Merengue” and “Bashata” were included in the UNESCO list of the unimportant cultural heritage of humanity, which is an international recognition of the civilized role that his country provides.
He reviewed the unique character of the Caribbean region, explaining that it consists of a group of countries and small islands, which speak various languages that include Spanish, French, English and Dutch, which made it a region rich in cultural diversity, and an overlapping place that facilitates interaction and openness to the cultures of the world.
On the economic level, Franco explained that the Dominican Republic, despite its small geographical size compared to other Latin American countries, is ranked seventh in terms of the size of the economy among 32 countries in the region, which devotes its position as an emerging economic power that possesses promising capabilities to grow and expand.
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