The Dominican Republic has placed food systems transformation at the center of its development agenda, beginning in San Juan, one of the country’s most important agricultural regions. Supported by the Joint SDG Fund, the initiative aims to strengthen food security, climate resilience, and sustainable agricultural production through a territorial approach rooted in local realities. Led by national institutions and coordinated with the UN system, the programme represents a USD 2 million investment over two years.
A technical mission to San Juan went beyond formal meetings, with representatives from UN agencies, government institutions, and local actors visiting communities, schools, and productive areas. These visits highlighted urgent challenges such as water scarcity, which threatens both household life and agricultural production, and raised concerns about the social and environmental impacts of mining in the watershed.
The programme also focused on schools as central to food systems, observing both challenges and opportunities in nutrition, food education, and resilience. Some schools are already building healthier environments through gardens and local food initiatives, while discussions explored how school feeding systems could connect local agricultural production to public procurement, strengthening diets and local economies.
Community discussions reinforced the importance of tailoring solutions to territorial realities. Farmers and local actors emphasized that production models and interventions must reflect environmental and social conditions. San Juan’s strategic role in agriculture, combined with its exposure to climate variability and water stress, makes resilience in the Yaque del Sur basin a national priority.
The mission concluded with planning for the next phase, including diagnostics, producer mapping, and strategies to strengthen coordination across sectors. The initiative aligns with the Dominican Republic’s National Development Strategy and Zero Hunger agenda, while showcasing how catalytic investments can move countries from policy ambition to systemic transformation. In San Juan, this transformation is beginning directly within communities, where local leadership and realities shape the path forward.
