The Dominican Republic government broke ground on Saturday, August 8, 2026, to begin construction of the Tilorí Binational Market along the Carretera Internacional near Haiti.
The project is part of a comprehensive border development, security, and infrastructure plan named Strong Border, which covers several state interventions across the northern frontier zone.
Ministers, military commanders, and local authorities gathered for the groundbreaking ceremony near the municipality of Restauración in the northwestern province of Dajabón. Minister of the Presidency José Ignacio Paliza and Minister of Defense Carlos Antonio Fernández Onofre led the event.
The new facility will provide dedicated spaces for producers and traders, alongside infrastructure designed to improve sanitary standards, security, and government regulation of border commerce. It aims to organize and modernize informal trade that has operated along the border for decades.
Infrastructure and border security controls
The Tilorí market sits directly on the Carretera Internacional, an international border highway separating the Dominican Republic and Haiti. It is situated close to the Haitian community of Tilorí and roughly 15 kilometers from Restauración.
Beyond the market building, the Dominican government has ordered the reconstruction of the Guayajayuco ford and the construction of border control posts and access checkpoints along the highway. An informative note stated that the Guayajayuco ford will work alongside a new bridge currently under construction over the Artibonito River by the Ministry of Public Works and Communications.
Fernández Onofre explained during the ceremony that the suite of projects is intended to improve regional connectivity, structure trade flows, and expand state control and operational capacity along the frontier. President Luis Abinader first announced the border initiative following a meeting at the National Palace on June 9, 2026.
Other senior officials attending the ceremony included Dominican Republic Army Commander General Jorge Iván Camino Pérez, Migration Director General Luis Rafael Lee Ballester, and Border Development Executive Director Jorge Zorrilla Ozuna.
Weekly border trade dynamics
The Dominican Republic shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, and the frontier region relies heavily on informal weekly markets where merchants from both countries buy and sell goods. Dajabón serves as one of the primary commercial gateways between the two nations.
Commercial activity in Tilorí brings together Dominican and Haitian vendors and consumers every week to trade items produced in border communities on both sides of the frontier.
A report on trade flows in the Dajabón border area, conducted by the United Nations Development Programme with financial support from the European Union, documented the distribution of commerce in the zone.
According to the report, approximately 79 percent of the value of merchandise traded in the area flows into Haitian communities, including La Miel, Tilorí, and Cerca La Source. Meanwhile, around 21 percent of the trade value remains within Dominican territory, mainly in Dajabón and to a smaller degree in Santiago Rodríguez.
Merchandise brought from the Dominican side includes broken rice. Haitian sellers supply pilon rice, goats, household items, personal care products, and both new and used clothing.
