The Dominican Republic is not an adherent to the Stockholm Agenda for Action. There are however, plans to develop a National Plan against the abuse of children and adolescents. No concrete date has been set for this. In 1999, it was reported that the government of the Dominican Republic concentrated on drawing up policies on domestic violence. It was reported that dealing with domestic violence was now the priority for the Dominican authorities, as it is a major social problem affecting all sectors of the population.
The frequent changes in personnel and postings within government departments have hindered the rapid development of a National Plan. It is also anticipated that once a plan has been drawn and adopted, these frequent personnel changes will adversely affect its implementation. Another problem cited is the lack of government support for the few NGOs working to combat CSEC. It was also stated that there is no clear government policy that recognises CSEC as a problem and the extent of CSEC in the Dominican Republic.
The government departments which are involved in the drafting of the National Plan are: The National Planning Office (ONAPLAN); Ministry for Public Health and Assistance (SESPAS); Department for the Promotion of Women’s Affairs (DGPM); Attorney General by way of the department responsible for children’s affairs; The National Police by way of the unit referred to as The Achievements of the Friends of the Woman; the Ministry of Labour Affairs; the Ministry of Tourism and; the Ministry of Education. It appears that the initiative to develop a National Plan is being led by the Secretaría Ejecutiva del Organismo Rector de protección de niños, niñas y adolescentes.
In 1999, UNICEF stated that though no National Action Plan against CSEC had been developed, precise actions had been taken against Child Sex Tourism in three of the Dominican Republic’s main tourist areas. UNICEF hoped that these initial actions would reveal the best strategy to deal with this problem.