SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, (IICA) – President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, awarded the director general of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Manuel Otero, the Grand Cross with Silver Breast Star of the Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez y Mella, the Caribbean country’s highest decoration.
In a ceremony held at the National Palace to honor Otero, President Abinader was accompanied by his government’s minister of agriculture, Limber Cruz, former president Hipólito Mejía, and the CEO of the Agricultural Bank, Fernando Durán.
Argentina’s ambassador to the Dominican Republic, María Sandra Winkler, and architect Amanda Fernández de Otero also attended the ceremony.
The Dominican government honoured Otero for his contributions to sustainable agriculture, food security, and regional integration.
In a meeting lasting more than an hour, Abinader spoke with Otero about the possibilities of increasing IICA’s cooperation with the Dominican Republic on matters such as livestock development and trade promotion.
They also discussed a number of other topics, including the strengthening of agricultural health and generational change in the agriculture sector in Central America and the Caribbean.
The ceremony at the National Palace marked the conclusion of the IICA director general’s official mission to the Dominican Republic, which included presentations, meetings with senior officials, and the visit with president Abinader.
Otero also visited the Loyola Polytechnic Institute, where he launched the Carlos Aquino González Center for the Management of Applied Knowledge and Innovation in Agrifood Systems, along with Osmar Benítez, former minister and President of the Dominican Agribusiness Board (JAD), and Rafael Ortiz, deputy minister of agriculture. The center was launched in honor of the man who was at the helm of IICA from 1995 to 2002.
