Dominican Week in the United States is an initiative that plays a key role in promoting the Dominican market as a destination for investment, trade, and tourism. As part of the week's thirtieth edition, Dominican Republic Minister of Foreign Affairs Roberto Alvarez will share his perspective and discuss challenges ahead for the Alliance for Development in Democracy. A joint effort by Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic, the initiative seeks to promote democracy and economic growth by strengthening the four countries’ commercial, demographic, and cultural ties. Barbara Kotschwar, Georgetown adjunct professor will moderate de discussion.
This event is co-sponsor by the Cámara Americana de Comercio de República Dominicana (AMCHAMDR) and the Georgetown Americas Institute
Featuring
Roberto Alvarez (L'76) is the foreign minister of the Dominican Republic. He served in the foreign service of the Dominican Republic from 1966 to 1970, and between 1970 and 1978, he worked at the Organization of American States (OAS) as deputy chief of protocol, staff attorney in the legal department, and in the secretariat of the human rights commission. Mr. Alvarez has worked as a consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), as coordinator of the First Forum on Private Investment in the Americas, and for the Latin American Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders (ILANUD) of the United Nations. Between June 2005 and September 2008, Mr. Alvarez held the position of Permanent Representative of the Dominican Republic to the OAS with the rank of ambassador. He was a member of the Advisory Committee of the Latin American Program of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars from 2012 until 2020. He writes frequently for Dominican newspapers and magazines and has also published occasional op-ed pieces in the Washington Post, Miami Herald, and El Pais (Spain). Mr. Álvarez received a master's degree in international relations (1982) from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and completed all course work toward a Ph.D. in U.S. foreign policy. He also holds a J.D. degree from the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (1968) and a master's degree in comparative law from Georgetown University (1976).
Barbara Kotschwar (moderator) is Executive Director of Visa’s Economic Empowerment Institute (VEEI) where she manages a research team dedicated to stimulating ideas and discussion on digital payments, digital trade and digital equity. She represents Visa on the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the New Agenda for Economic Growth and is a member of WEF’s expert group on trade policy and data flows as well as part of the community supporting the Africa E-Commerce Agenda. She previously served on the GFC on Trade and Investment. Dr. Kotschwar has worked at various international organizations, including the World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank and Organization for American States and has advised governments across the globe on trade, investment and regional integration. At the Peterson Institute for International Economics her research focused on trade, investment and regional integration as well as the political economy of Latin America. Dr Kotschwar has taught economics and Latin American studies at Georgetown University since 1998 and has published on a wide range of issues relating to trade, investment and political economy. She holds a PhD from Johns Hopkins SAIS and undergraduate degrees in economics and political science from McGill University.