The Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) began working in the Dominican Republic in 2008, when the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology (MESCyT) led the country’s first Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW). The campaign grew quickly into a nationwide fixture. In a landmark moment for the ecosystem, the National Congress declared November 12 as “Dominican Entrepreneur Day,” anchoring in an extended week of countrywide entrepreneurial celebrations each year. Over time, GEW in the Dominican Republic has been carried by a succession of dedicated host organizations.
Government engagement has been central to GEN’s work in the country. In 2012, the creation of a Vice Ministry for MSMEs within what is now the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs (MICM) — together with a dedicated Entrepreneurship Directorate and its National Ecosystems Development Division — gave the campaign a new institutional home. Key figures included Ignacio Méndez, Vice Minister from 2012 to 2020, and José Miguel Checo, Director of Entrepreneurship from 2012 to 2021, who led a large Dominican delegation to the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Congress (GEC) in Medellín. The Dominican Republic began participating in GEN’s Startup Nations policy community in 2015, with the Minister of Industry and Commerce, José del Castillo Saviñón, among the country’s representatives. Cristina A. Fernández represented GEN at the Ministry’s Entrepreneurship Public Policy Congress as GEN's Vice President for Research and Policy alongside international experts, such as Sebastián Vidal of Puerto Rico’s Parallel18, formerly of Start-Up Chile.
The country has also hosted significant regional knowledge-sharing milestones. In 2014, the PRODEM seminar-workshop for Latin American entrepreneurial-ecosystem professionals was organized outside Argentina for the first time, convening in the Dominican Republic as the government launched its National Entrepreneurship Strategy. More than a decade later, in 2026, Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE) brought the PRODEM seminar back to the Dominican Republic for the 15th edition of the regional event, where Patricia Acosta and Cristina Fernández again participated on behalf of GEN.
GEN has also connected Dominican founders in its global programs. For example, two Dominican startups have reached the Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC) global Top 100: Eco Trofeos, led by founder Modesto Ventura, which advanced to the Top 100 at the 2019 EWC Global Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; and SOS Carbon, the sargassum-harvesting venture founded by Andrés Bisonó León, which reached the Top 100 in 2021. The Dominican Republic has also been home to a chapter of Startup Huddle — GEN’s peer-driven program of monthly meetups for early-stage founders — including the launch of a chapter in San Cristóbal. Dominican founders and investors have additionally taken part in regional GEN activities such as Pitch at the Beach, which convened startups and investors from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Guyana, Chile, Ecuador, and Panama.
GEN maintains extensive relationships with key Dominican ecosystem stakeholders, including the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs (MICM), the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, the Caribbean Associates Startups Academy (C.A.S.A), CREE Banreservas, Pyhex Work, EMPRENDE Incubadora de Negocios Tecnológicos, the Red Nacional de Emprendimiento, and the Alliance for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. These partners span government, finance, incubation, and grassroots community building, reflecting the breadth of the network GEN has helped knit together over more than 15 years.
GEN's relationship with Dominican entrepreneurs continues to deepen. Most recently, GEN's Cristina Fernández and Patricia Acosta joined a May 2026 gathering of Hackers & Founders Santo Domingo, reconnecting with long-time ecosystem champions including Jose Migue Checo, Orlando Perez, and Ignacio Mendez. The reunion highlighted not only enduring leadership but also the emergence of a new generation of founders and ecosystem builders, reflecting the continued growth and increasing dynamism of the Dominican entrepreneurial community.
GEN’s ongoing mission in the Dominican Republic is to connect the country’s founders, institutions, and policymakers to leading research, proven programs, and a global community of peers, helping ensure that Santo Domingo and cities across the country become recognized hubs for high-impact entrepreneurship in the Caribbean and Latin America.