A landmark initiative to deepen economic and cultural ties between the Dominican Republic and France has officially been announced: Dominican Week in France (SD26), scheduled to run from October 17 to 22, 2026 in Paris. The event is a joint collaboration between three key stakeholders: the Franco-Dominican Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIFD), the Embassy of the Dominican Republic in France, and ProDominicana, the Dominican Republic’s national investment and export promotion agency.
A key strategic advantage of SD26 is its timing: the event will run concurrently with SIAL Paris 2026, the world’s preeminent food industry trade exhibition hosted at Paris Nord Villepinte. This overlapping schedule creates a unique, high-value opportunity for Dominican producers and exporters to gain international visibility, showcase their signature food and beverage products to a global audience, and forge direct connections with qualified international buyers and distributors. A dedicated ProDominicana pavilion will be set up within the SIAL exhibition grounds specifically for this purpose.
Conceived as a multifaceted engagement platform, SD26 builds on the recent high-level diplomatic meetings between Dominican President Luis Abinader and French President Emmanuel Macron, with the core goal of strengthening bilateral trade and investment relations between the two nations. The full event program integrates three core pillars: economic and trade diplomacy, cross-party political and parliamentary dialogue, and public cultural exchange to deepen people-to-people connections.
The business track of SD26 is structured around targeted sector-focused convenings that highlight the Dominican Republic’s evolving global economic role. Key topics on the agenda include the country’s position as a strategic trade and logistics hub in the Caribbean, untapped opportunities in renewable energy development and foreign direct investment, and growth prospects for emerging sectors including fintech, innovative technologies, and cybersecurity. Beyond panel discussions and policy dialogues, the business program will include structured one-on-one B2B matchmaking sessions between Dominican entrepreneurs and global industry leaders, as well as dedicated networking activities for food sector buyers and Dominican exporters tied to the SIAL Paris exhibition.
Alongside its business agenda, SD26 will feature a curated series of cultural events designed to share Dominican art and cultural heritage with French audiences. The cultural program opens with the inauguration of “The Dominican Worlds of José Castillo”, a major solo exhibition of the artist’s work hosted at the Maison de l’Amérique Latine in central Paris. It will also mark the official launch of the Dominican Republic–Cité internationale des arts Artistic Residencies Program, an initiative supported by the Dominican Ministry of Culture that will create long-term exchange opportunities for Dominican artists to create work in France.
SD26 has secured broad support from both public and private stakeholders. Leading private sector sponsors include major Dominican and international firms: BHD, Banco Popular Dominicano, Sofratesa, Soletanche Bachy, SunMind, and TotalEnergies. Additional backing comes from a range of institutional partners from both the Dominican Republic and France, underscoring the widespread cross-sector commitment to making the event a success.