September 2, 2011
This publication was produced by Amex International and its Subcontractor, DevTech Systems, Inc., for the United 
States Agency for International Development. It was prepared Manuel Vanegas and Edith Bermudez, AMEX 
International, and Phillip Church, DevTech Systems, under Contract No. RAN-I-00-09-00008.-00
EVALUATION
USAID/Dominican Republic 
Tri-Project Performance Evaluation 
The Dominican Republic Sustainable Tourism Alliance 
(DSTA)
USAID/Dominican Republic
Evaluation of the Dominican Sustainable Tourism 
Alliance Program (DSTA)
DSTA Project – AID-517-11-000002
DRAFT Submitted July 2011
This publication was produced by AMEX International and its Subcontractor, DevTech Systems, Inc., for the 
United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared under Contract No. RAN-I-00-09-00008.
USAID/Dominican Republic
Tri-Project Performance Evaluation
The Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance
(DSTA)
September 2 2011
This publication was produced by Amex International and its Subcontractor, DevTech Systems, Inc., for the 
United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared Manuel Vanegas and Edith Bermudez,
AMEX International, and Phillip Church, DevTech Systems, under Contract No. RAN-I-00-09-00008.-00 
USAID/DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
TRI-PROJECT PERFORMANCE 
EVALUATION
THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC SUSTAINABLE TOURISM 
ALLIANCE (DSTA)
USAID/DR TRI-PROJECT 
EVALUATION
Volume III: DOMINICAN SUSTAINABLE TOURISM 
ALLIANCE PROGRAM (DSTA)
DISCLAIMER:
The contents of the following report are the responsibility of the authors and represent our best efforts to 
complete the SOW given. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors only, we accept 
responsibility for their accuracy and in no way do these opinions represent the policy of USAID, The 
Department of State, or the Government of the United States of America.
CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
EVALUATION DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY.............. Error! Bookmark not defined.
FINDINGS ........................................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.
CONCLUSIONS............................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
RECOMMENDATIONS .................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
LESSONS LEARNED AND BEST PRACTICES........................................................24
ANNEXES
ACRONYMS
ADAVIT Asociación Dominicana de Agencias de Viajes y Turismo
ADOMPRETUR Asociación Dominicana de Prensa Turística/Dominican Association of 
Tourism Press
AED Academy for Educational Development
ASONAHORES Asociacion de Hoteles y Restaurantes/National Association of Hotels and 
Restaurants
ATAS Alianza de Turismo Alternativo y Sostenible/Dominican Alliance for 
Alternative and Sustainable Tourism
BID/IDB Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo/Inter American Development Bank
CBO Community-based Organization
DR-CAFTA Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement with the US
DSTA Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance
CDCT Consorcio Dominicano de Competitividad/Dominican Consortium for 
Tourism Competitiveness
CNC Nationla Competitiveness Counsel/Consejo Nacional de Competitividad
CPP Competitiveness and Policy Project of USAID
DR Dominican Republic
DSTA Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance
DT Dominican Treasures
FOMIN Fondo Multileral de Inverciones/Multilateral Investment Fund
GODR Government of the Dominican Republic
GSTA Global Sustainable Tourism Alliance
GWU George Washington University
IMF International Monetary Fund
INFOTEP Instituto Nacional de Formación Técnica y Profesional
LWA Leader With Asssociates Award
MC Ministry of Culture/Ministerio de Cultura
MA Ministry of the Environment/Ministerio del Medio Ambiente
MITUR Ministry of Tourism/Ministerio de Turismo
MPA Marine Protected Areas
OPETUR Association of Receptive Tour Operators of the Dominican Republic
PPS Programa de Pequeños Subsidios/Small Subsidy Program
SINAP Sistema Nacional de Areas Protejidas/National Protected Areas System
SME Small and Medium Enterprise
SOL Solimar International
TNC The Nature Conservancy
TIC Tourist Information Center
UNDP United Nations Development Program
UNIBE Universidad Iberoamericana
UNWTO United Nations World Tourism Organization
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USFS United States Forest Service
WSR Whole-System-in-the-Room
WB World Bank
WTTC World Travel and Tourism Council
WTO United Nations World Tourism Organization
1 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
OVERVIEW OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This performance evaluation presents documented findings that the USAID/DR-funded 
Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance (DSTA) program is making progress – if somewhat 
delayed progress – toward reaching its goal of better equipping local small, medium-sized and 
community-based tourism enterprises and organizations. This outcome is most notable in the 
nine existing tourism clusters created with USAID support under its earlier Competitiveness and 
Policy Project (CPP) which offers an alternative vision for sustainable tourism in the Dominican 
Republic (DR). 
Further, the evaluation concludes from these findings that the DSTA program’s five-component 
strategy was soundly designed – if at times unevenly executed – for implementing a cluster 
approach to developing sustainable community-based organizations and micro, small and 
medium enterprises that can compete effectively in marketing tourism products and services, 
including the niche market of eco-tourism. This cluster approach has made noteworthy, if 
occasionally halting, progress toward achieving the DSTA’s five-year life of program targets and 
is worthy of examination and consideration for replication in other development settings. Still, 
some design and implementation flaws have emerged, as has been recognized and largely 
addressed by USAID and DSTA implementing partners during the initial three years of Program 
execution.
From these findings and conclusions the evaluation recommends that in the short run
USAID/DR continue its financial support at programmed funding levels through the remainder – 
approximately one year – of the Program’s five-year implementation period. To enhance the 
prospects of reaching DSTA targets and goals, this final year of funding should be accompanied 
by adjustments in the Program focus, putting relatively more effort into the components that 
support: a) developing market-led nature-tourism-based products and services; b) building
cluster managerial and financial viability; and c) training, particularly women and youth, for 
employment in sustainable tourism endeavors. The final year should focus on these 
components while discontinuing components geared towards environmental awareness and
strengthening GODR tourism institutions. Activities under the components we suggest be 
eliminated can either be cut back or integrated into the three proposed for retention and re￾direction. 
The evaluation also recommends that in the long run USAID/DR, as part of its new strategic 
development and implementation plan, include funding for continued engagement of some
DSTA institutions it has been supporting – particularly the CDCT and the more eco-tourism 
oriented community-based tourism clusters – in order to continue to build the capacity of these 
institutions and entities to become more sustainable as both nature tourism products/services 
providers, as agents for conserving the DR’s biological diversity under the USG’s Global 
Climate Change (GCC) Initiative, and as vehicles for generating jobs and incomes that can 
improve food security – particularly in ecologically rich but economically poor and low-income 
areas – under the USG’s Feed the Future (FtF) Initiative. This longer-term engagement of 
tourism clusters and supporting GODR institutions under the new USAID GCC and FtF 
initiatives promises to further secure the sustainability –financial viability and managerial 
capacity – of cluster participant organizations and firms that will further validate the robustness 
2 
of the Dominican cluster approach to small-scale local nature tourism enterprise development
and contribute to placing the Dominican Republic on a firmer course of economically broad￾based and environmentally sustainable growth. 
PROGRAM BACKGROUND
The purpose of the USAID-funded Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance (DSTA) Program is 
to “Increase small and medium business growth in an environmentally sustainable manner 
through market-driven tourism, ecotourism development, cluster linkage programs and 
activities, and environmental protection to reduce poverty for the less advantaged”1 which 
contributes to USAID/DR’s Economic Growth Strategic Objective of “increased sustainable 
economic opportunities for the poor.”2
The DSTA program is jointly implemented under a USAID/DR-funded Leader With Associates 
(LWA) Cooperative Agreement by the Academy for Educational Development3
The goal of the DSTA program, which began in November 2007 and ends in September 2012, 
is better equipped and strengthened local small, medium-sized and community-based tourism 
enterprises – most notably existing or new tourism clusters – and public and non-governmental 
tourism entities, each with the capacity to sustain operations once USAID funding ends. 
(AED) as the 
lead with fellow GSTA partners, Solimar International, The Nature Conservancy (TNC), George 
Washington University (GWU), and – most recently – with the newly formed Dominican 
Consortium for Tourism Competitiveness (CDCT, by its Spanish acronym). 
The DSTA Program has five primary components: 
1) Institution Strengthening (led by AED) with a focus on supporting the CNC and 
launching and supporting the CDCT and related institutional capacity building; 
2) Private Sector, Competitiveness and Market Access (led by Solimar International)
with a focus on continuing to build the business capacity of clusters for providing 
tourism products and services; 
3) Conservation and Environmental Stewardship (led by TNC) with a focus on raising 
awareness and understanding about the country’s rich terrestrial and marine 
biodiversity, how to mitigate the threats to those terrestrial and marine ecologies and 
on protected areas planning and management; 
4) Workforce Development (led by GWU) focused on training and skills transfer 
workshops, including technical and university-level curriculum development, with 
special emphasis on equipping women and youth for tourism sector employment; 
and 
5) Social Development and Networking (led by AED) with support for cluster 
networking, print and electronic media communications.
AED also oversees with the CDCT a Grant Awards program aimed at short-term capacity 
building events for which matching funds are mobilized and channeled in support of the other 
DSTA components.
 
1 DSTA Annual Report, 2010
2 USAID Strategic Development Plan, 2004-2007 3 During the fourth year of DSTA implementation , AED was purchased by another firm and changed names. However for the 
purposes of this evaluation the name AED uses used throughout. 
3 
EVALUATION METHODOLOGY
This is a performance evaluation conducted before DSTA program completion; assessment of 
the ultimate impacts attributable to the program must wait for a final evaluation after program 
completion. The focus of this evaluation is on the progress, to date, attributable to the DSTA 
program and the effectiveness with which the program went about achieving that progress. The 
performance evaluation has used a mixed methods approach (documentation review, ‘ground 
truthing’ through site visits, and key informant interviews) to address the range of questions in 
the Tri-Project scope of work or task order.
4
MAJOR EVALUATION FINDINGS 
Although the DSTA Program was designed and 
launched before the new USAID Evaluation Policy, the evaluation has applied this new USAID 
guidance in its information collection, analysis and reporting.
Program Achievements. Despite implementation challenges that understandably beset a 
program with the number of moving parts and range of targets that characterize the DSTA, the 
program has made some notable achievements: 
1) USAID and DSTA Program records document that: (a) there has been a gradual but 
noticeable uptick in the numbers of tourists that purchase tourism products and services 
– excursions, handicrafts, food and lodging – from the target populations of tourism 
clusters; (b) more than 700 jobs have been created; (c) SMEs and CBOs have 
generated more than US$3 million in new tourism products development investment; (d) 
more than 4,000 people have received or participated in short training courses, 
seminars, workshops, and conferences; (e) more than 400 SMEs and CBOs have been 
administratively and technically supported; (f) more than 100 public-private meetings, 
dialogues, and consultations have been implemented; (g) more than 20 alliances, 
agreements, concessions, and co-management agreements have been signed; and (h) 
more than 100 environmentally sustainable practices and processes have been adopted.
2) The DSTA aided the nine original tourism clusters in legally incorporating and making 
progress in: (a) spreading the concept of working together through cluster development, 
(b) building administrative, financial and marketing capacity; and (c) providing their 
SMEs and CBOs with grant-funded technical and logistical assistance. 
3) The DSTA Program has established links and cooperated with, or complemented a 
number of other multilateral and bilateral programs and initiatives, among others the 
United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Small Subsidy Program and the Inter￾American Development Bank (IDB) with its Fondos Multilaterales de Inversion (FOMIN)
to achieve similar goals in the small sustainable tourism sector. 
4) The DSTA Program approach has begun to open spaces for cluster stakeholders to 
engage in a national dialogue on the participation of SMEs and CBOs in the provision of 
tourism and eco-tourism products and services. 
Program Design and Implementation Strengths and Weaknesses. Among the most significant 
strengths and weaknesses are: 
 
4 See Annexes 4 and 5 for the Spanish language questionnaires used for collecting information during June-July 2011from 
interviews with respondents familiar with the DSTA Program.
4 
1) The DSTA design comprises so many inter-related ‘moving parts’ – components, 
thematic areas, and activities subject to a wide spectrum of operational assumptions 
external to the Program (e.g., timeliness of USAID and GODR approvals where 
required) – that early implementation became difficult to coordinate effectively among 
Program implementers. 
2) Awareness-raising events and training workshops were not systematically followed up 
with participant surveys and evaluations to document the extent to which participants 
have benefitted or changed. Largely, only numbers of event participants were recorded 
and reported. Site visits and talks with cluster participants, GODR representatives and 
key informants indicate that, despite meetings and workshops, there remains an uneven 
understanding of the sustainable tourism concept and the importance of developing and 
competitive tourism products and services as well as how to conduct effective marketing 
and promotion. 
3) DSTA component activities were not implemented on a cluster-by-cluster basis. Instead, 
Program activities followed a similar cookie-cutter schedule of implementation rather 
than be customized and scheduled to reflect the respective conditions and preparedness 
of each individual cluster. 
4) On-site visits confirmed that most of the tourism products financed by the DSTA 
Program grants funding (e.g., DESTINOS or INNOVATION) have yet to be completed; 
further, no tourism information centers (TICs) have been established. 
5) The approval processes by USAID for program work plans and sub-contracts, and by 
the GODR (e.g., SEMARENA) for concessions, were much longer and more protracted 
than expected; this delayed implementation progress and threw component activities off 
schedule. These delays, combined with the lack of coordination between DSTA
implementers, precipitated a course correction by USAID/DR in which the participation of 
Solimar, GWU, and the Nature Conservancy ended and implementation responsibility 
was put under both AED and CDCT. 
6) The Program’s accomplishments at tourism cluster strengthening among the nine 
original CPP and newer DSTA clusters have varied, as is to be expected from the range 
of rural conditions and variable membership capacity and understanding of cluster 
concepts and commitments. 
a. The clusters of Barahona, La Altagracia, Puerto Plata, Romana/Bayahibe, and 
Santo Domingo have made good progress in member participation, work planning, 
management structure, tourism product development and marketing capacity 
building. At this juncture, their economic and competitive sustainability, beyond the 
end of DSTA Program support in 2012, is sound and expected to continue. 
b. Despite progress made in their formation and advancement towards self-sufficiency, 
the Constanza, Jarabacoa, Pedernales, and Samana tourism clusters remain weak 
in their managerial, product development and marketing skills. They will require a 
continuation of DSTA or other funding support for at least the short-term and perhaps 
beyond to achieve financial viability and organizational sustainability. 
5 
7) The effectiveness of efforts to advance more inclusive eco-tourism development 
opportunities by strengthening local talent and community-based groups or SMEs was 
constrained by limited engagement tourism groups (tourism operators, travel agents, 
specialty channels or hotels) in building collaboration within the tourism sector. The 
marginalization of these tourism sector players in DSTA component activities has limited 
the scope of opportunities for using their channels of distribution and commercialization
of cluster products and services (e.g., excursions, food concessions, handicrafts). 
MAJOR EVALUATION CONCLUSIONS
1) There is a need for continued technical and management support to the CDCT to 
increase its leadership, coordination, and technical capability for the remainder of the 
program. 
2) Although the Program has been formally presented in workshops and gatherings to most
of the direct and indirect tourism cluster stakeholders, continued efforts are needed to 
strengthen cluster capacity to engage in the DSTA process. Implementing partners can 
often achieve more by working through participatory and representative processes and 
institutions that already exist to engage stakeholders in DSTA programs. 
3) Continued efforts are also needed to identify and build working relationships with key 
public, private and NGO stakeholders in each cluster to improve public/private 
partnerships for marketing and promotion. 
4) Operationally, the large number and frequency of awareness-raising, training and 
capacity building events implemented appears to have overburdened DR institutions, 
clusters and DSTA staff resources, and has reached a point of diminishing returns. 
MAJOR EVALUATION RECOMMENDATIONS
Two principle recommendations emerge from the evaluation: 
1) In the short run, employ these evaluation findings, conclusions and 
recommendations along with other DSTA Program resources to set priorities for 
re-directing and reducing the five component interventions from five to perhaps 
three during the final implementation year through September 30, 2012. In light 
of experiences from spreading DSTA staff resources too thinly, the Program 
should focus on eco-tourism development directly, not tangentially as has been 
done so far. The DSTA Program components pertaining to tourism/eco-tourism 
development in the DR should start with the creation and development of a 
tourism product with all its pieces together in order to market it successfully. 
2) In the long run, utilize DSTA experiences and progress to date to construct a
pragmatic foundation on which USAID/DR can strategize, prioritize, and design 
future tourism development assistance using funding from either – or both – the 
USG Global Climate Change (GCC) and Feed the Future (FtF) Initiatives to
foster sustainability of Dominican terrestrial and marine biological diversity (in the 
case of GCC support) and to generate jobs from tourism employment among 
poor and marginal income areas of the country most at risk of food insecurity for 
lack of income and purchasing power (in the case of FtF). This longer-term 
engagement under these new USAID GCC and FtF initiatives offers the 
6 
opportunity to further secure financial viability and institutional sustainability of 
these organizations and firms, further testing the robustness of the Dominican 
cluster approach to small-scale local nature tourism enterprise development 
while placing the Dominican Republic on a firmer course of economically broad￾based and environmentally sustainable growth. 
7 
INTRODUCTION
PROGRAM BACKGROUND 
USAID/DR, through its Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance (DSTA) Program – also 
referred to in this report as “the Program” – is providing technical assistance to clusters of small 
private firms (SMEs), community-based organizations (CBOs) and selected government entities 
engaged in sustainable tourism projects in the Dominican Republic (DR). The ultimate goal of 
this five-year program is to better equip tourism SMEs and CBOs and their clusters – most 
notably those existing tourism clusters started up under an earlier USAID Competitiveness and 
Policy Project (CPP) – to become sustainable within the next five years. To achieve this goal, 
the Program is focusing on developing public-private collaboration as well as outreach to new 
development partners at the national, regional, and global levels that are led by stronger, more 
capable GODR agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
The purpose of the USAID-funded Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance (DSTA) Program is 
to “Increase small and medium business growth in an environmentally sustainable manner 
through market-driven tourism, ecotourism development, cluster linkage programs and 
activities, and environmental protection to reduce poverty for the less advantaged”
5 which 
contributes to USAID/DR’s Economic Growth Strategic Objective of “increased sustainable 
economic opportunities for the poor.”6
Services and support under the DSTA Cooperative Agreement are provided by AED – the prime 
grant recipient and management partner – working under a Leader with Associates (LWA)7
The expected results (outcomes) of the DSTA program, which began in November 2007 and 
ends in September 2012, are better equipped and strengthened local small, medium-sized and
community-based tourism enterprises – most notably the existing or new tourism clusters – and 
public and non-governmental tourism entities, each with the capacity to sustain their operations 
once external funding from USAID/DR ends. 
Cooperative Agreement in partnership at the outset with fellow GSTA management group 
grantees George Washington University (GWU), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Solimar 
International (SOL) and most recently the newly formed the Dominican Consortium for Tourism 
Competitiveness (CDCT, by its Spanish acronym). Eleven other international and Dominican 
conservation and tourism development organizations, academic institutions and consulting firms 
have been engaged in DSTA implementation but not as LWA grantees. 
The DSTA Program’s development hypothesis is that appropriately designed and targeted 
interventions can build the sustainable capacity of local small firms, community based tourism 
organizations, and relevant tourism clusters to be self-sustaining, highly competitive participants 
within the DR’s highly competitive tourism market.8
 
5 DSTA Annual Report, 2010
In order to convert the development 
hypothesis into a working project, the DSTA implementers prepared a Life of Program 
Implementation Plan, 09/10/2007-09/30/2012, and a Revised FY2011 Work Plan Matrix, 
4/28/11. The implementation plans detail the steps and procedures for providing technical 
6 USAID Strategic Development Plan, 2004-2007 7 LWA awards are designed also to strengthen implementing partners themselves, particularly the CDCT in the case of the DSTA, 
during the course of Program execution. Under the LWA agreement between the AED and USAID, associate awards were issued 
without going through a competitive or sole-source justification process to quickly and easily access technical support from the 
partner grantees. 8 See USAID/DR Tri-Project Evaluation Scope of Work. 
8 
A cluster
Tourism Cluster
(comunication, cooperation, commitment,
empowerment, continuity)
Boat 
Captains
NGOs
Artisans
Park 
guards
Tourism 
shop 
owners
Ministry of
Environment
Fundemar
Small
Restaurants
Real 
State
Ministry 
of Tourism
Taxi 
drivers
Dive 
Schools
Hotel 
owners CEPEM Municipalities
assistance and financial (grant awards) support to strengthen local small firms, community￾based tourism (most notably in the existing tourism clusters) and relevant public and NGO 
entities. 
All the work has been programmed through building the capacity of individual tourism clusters
and assisting the formation of the Dominican Consortium for Tourism Competitiveness (CDCT) 
to independently sustain efforts once external funding from USAID/DR ends and to create 
lasting synergies among key stakeholders in the tourism sector. The DSTA is designed to 
enable the clusters and the CDCT to manage sustainable tourism initiatives throughout the 
country, support the diversification of tourism offerings, and develop a shared vision among the 
public and private sectors as well as the broader population for sustainable tourism in the DR. 
Figure 1: Tourism Cluster Composition Structure and Definition
The DSTA Program has five primary components: 
1) Institutional Strengthening (led by AED) with a focus on supporting the CNC and 
most recently the newly launched CDCT and related tourism cluster institutions; 
2) Private Sector, Competitiveness and Market Access (led by Solimar International) 
with a focus on continuing to build the capacity of tourism clusters to develop, 
finance and market tourism products and services; 
3) Conservation and Environmental Stewardship (led by TNC) with a focus on raising 
awareness and understanding about the country’s rich terrestrial and marine 
biodiversity, how to mitigate the threats to biodiversity and how to better conduct 
tourism activities for sustainability of fragile natural ecologies; 
Tourism Clusters Definition --
DSTA Project:
Clusters are geographic 
concentrations of interconnected 
companies in a specific industry, 
their specialized suppliers, 
service providers, and 
associated institutions. They go 
beyond a simple supply or value 
chain to involve centers of higher 
learning, civil society, 
communities, and all 
stakeholders associated with the 
given industry.
USAID’s Competitiveness
and Policy Program
(CPP). Final Report, Dec. 2007
9 
4) Workforce Development (led by GWU) and focused on training and skills transfer 
workshops, including technical and university-level tourism and hospitality industry 
curriculum development with a special emphasis on equipping women and youth for 
tourism sector participation as employees of micro and small entrepreneurs; and
5) Social Development and Networking (led by AED) with support for cluster 
networking, print and electronic media communications in support of tourism sector 
promotion. 
AED and CDCT also administer a Grant Awards program with separate USAID funds aimed at 
short-term capacity building events for which recipients’ matching funds are mobilized and 
channeled in support of the other DSTA components.
PURPOSE OF THE EVALUATION
This evaluation is designed to determine whether the technical assistance is meeting the stated 
objectives and to provide a detailed picture of the major accomplishments and weaknesses of 
the DSTA Program since its startup. The Program includes tasks directed towards institutional 
strengthening and technical capacity building efforts, which necessitates considering a broad 
range of outside and possibly pre-existing factors.
In addition, the DSTA Program evaluation is designed to assist the USAID Mission by providing 
findings that will inform and respond to a practical evaluation question: “Should the United 
States Government (USG) increase, reduce, or otherwise focus its assistance to the DR in the 
area of building greater capacity for sustainable tourism in local SMEs, CBOs, and tourism 
Clusters?” 
Overall, the DSTA evaluation serves as a mid-term assessment of project implementation and 
execution by measuring accomplishments against targets and deliverables. The timing of this 
evaluation is propitious for making recommendations regarding the utility and potential content 
of a fifth-year extension. In addition, the evaluation will provide a more informed basis on which 
USAID/DR can begin to formulate new strategies and design future assistance for the 
Dominican Republic (See Annex 1 for a full description of the Evaluation SOW).
10
EVALUATION DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
The evaluation has used a mixed methods approach (documentation review, ‘ground truthing’ 
through site visits, and key informant interviews) to address the range of questions in the Tri￾Project scope of work or task order.
9 Although the Program to be evaluated was designed and 
launched before the new USAID Evaluation Policy, the evaluation applied the new USAID 
guidance in its information collection, analysis and reporting here. This is a performance 
evaluation conducted before DSTA program completion; assessment of the ultimate impacts 
attributable to the program must wait for a final evaluation after program completion.10
The focus of this evaluation is on progress to date in developing sustainable tourism clusters
attributable to the DSTA program and the effectiveness with which the Program went about 
achieving that progress. The evaluation also assesses the performance of implementers in 
working together – their cooperation in planning, coordination in execution and their 
communication of critical management information. Equally, the evaluation examines the
efficacy of the implementing team members’ relationships with GODR tourism and 
environmental entities and with the private tourism sector, SMEs, and CBOs engaged in or 
supportive of the Program.
 
As a performance evaluation, the methodology was aimed at helping to identify implementation 
problems and document progress. Furthermore, it has served to answer USAID’s specific 
evaluation questions. The evaluation methodology was implemented using a sequential-stages 
framework as follows:
First, review of pertinent documentation. Available secondary information, reports and
documents produced as part of the DSTA Program have been particularly useful sources of 
information. Among others, the evaluation reviewed the following reports: the DSTA Preliminary 
Life of Program Implementation Plan, Preliminary Life of Program Implementation Matrix, 
Mapeo del Contexto Nacional (Corral, 2008 - Mapping the National Context), Todos Bajo un 
Mismo Techo (Corral & Weiss, 2008 - Whole-System-in-the-Same-Room), DSTA Annual, Semi￾Annual, and Quarterly Reports, FY 2011 Annual Work Plan (revision 4/29/2011), and 
Performance Monitoring Plan (PMP).
Second, site visits to collect additional data and information, verify the status of activities in the 
field and to conduct a short survey to collect information about the project. The data were 
collected using the qualitative “Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices” (KAP) Analysis. A sample of 
the direct and indirect beneficiaries was drawn with the collaboration of local (DR) USAID 
officers and AED-DSTA project staff, and interviews were scheduled with these beneficiaries 
during the period of in-country evaluation fieldwork. 
 
9 See Annexes 4 and 5 for the Spanish language questionnaires used for collecting information during June-July 2011from 
interviews with respondents familiar with the DSTA Program.
10 Performance evaluations focus on descriptive and normative questions: what a particular project or program has achieved (either 
at an intermediate point in execution or at the conclusion of an implementation period); how it is being implemented; how it is 
perceived and valued; whether expected results are occurring; and other questions that are pertinent to program design, 
management and operational decision making. Performance evaluations often incorporate before-after comparisons, but generally 
lack a rigorously defined counterfactual. (USAID, Evaluation Policy, January 2011)
 
11
Third, conduct interviews and meetings to obtain information from tourism sector stakeholders 
to gather their respective views and assessments (See Annex 3 for a list of interviewees and 
Annexes 4 and 5 for interview instruments used). Interview respondents included cluster 
executive directors/non-members and member representatives, cluster participants and 
beneficiaries, representatives of the Consorcio Dominicano de Competitividad Turistica, Inc. 
(CDCT), representatives of the Ministry of Tourism and leaders and team members of the 
implementers – AED, GWU, SOL, and TNC. The tourism cluster’s channels of distribution and 
commercialization were explored and informal interviews were conducted with anonymous 
citizens. Importantly, the USAID/DR CTO and Chief Economist, who developed the Program, 
provided in-depth interviews as well as time to respond to analysis and findings.
Because the DSTA-funded activities entail comparatively long gestation periods, the evaluation 
results have been couched in terms of how much progress has been made and how effectively 
interventions were carried out to achieve interim targets. The evaluation, therefore, focuses 
mainly on the management of the process and on assessing the rate of progress in moving 
toward longer-term objectives, and when possible, on the attainment of specific, tangible results.
In this context, the evaluation of the DSTA Program provides feedback on the progress, 
potential challenges (barriers, constraints and problems), implementation, and coordination of 
its thematic areas and its corresponding activities. It also gives feedback on the likely outcome 
by the completion of the program and lessons for the future. Additionally, the evaluation 
examines whether the DSTA approach to cluster development has been effective, and hence, 
whether or not to provide further financial support for the DSTA Program in the short-run – its 
remaining fifth year of implementation – and in the long-run for further sustainable tourism 
activities in support of other emerging USAID strategic program priorities. 
12
FINDINGS
Program Achievements. Despite design and implementation challenges that understandably 
beset a program with the number of moving parts and range of targets that characterize the 
DSTA, the program has registered some noteworthy achievements: 
1) Program records in USAID/DR and the DSTA implementers’ files, as well as 
interviews with key informants, document that: (a) there has been a gradual but 
noticeable uptick in the numbers of tourists that purchase tourism products and 
services – excursions, handicrafts, food and lodging – from the target populations of 
tourism clusters; (b) more than 700 jobs have been created; (c) SMEs and CBOs 
have generated more than US$3 million in new tourism products development 
investment; (d) more than 4,000 people have received or participated in short 
training courses, seminars, workshops, and conferences; (e) more than 400 SMEs 
and CBOs have been administratively and technically supported; (f) more than 100 
public-private meetings, dialogues, and consultations have been implemented; (g) 
more than 20 alliances, agreements, concessions, and co-management agreements 
have been signed; and (h) more than 100 environmentally sustainable practices and 
processes have been adopted.
2) DSTA records also show that the Program aided the nine original CPP tourism 
clusters in legally incorporating and making progress in: (a) spreading the concept of 
working together through cluster development; (b) building administrative, financial 
and marketing capacity; and (c) providing their SME and CBO memberships with 
grant-funded technical and logistical assistance. 
3) The DSTA has established links and cooperated with, or complemented, a number of 
other multilateral and bilateral programs and initiatives, among others, the United 
Nations Development Program (UNDP) Small Subsidy Program (for example, the 
Angostura project in Jarabacoa cluster), as well as some of the Romana/Bayahibe 
cluster activities financed by the Interamerican Development Bank (IDB) with its 
Fondos Multilaterales de Inversion (FOMIN). There have also been links with other 
bilateral and multilateral programs. 
4) Interview respondents confirm that the DSTA approach has been effective in raising
awareness about what makes for sustainable tourism with regard to both financial 
capacity and environmental (ecological) viability. It has catalyzed a process of 
strengthening tourism cluster development and has better equipped local small firms 
to budget and manage their operations to assure their costs are covered and they 
begin to realize a return on their investments. Some selected courses, seminars and 
workshop activities undertaken to date are also increasing GODR awareness about 
the advantages of working with tourism clusters to increase tourism activities without 
risk to local land and marine ecologies. 
5) Recent participation of the Santo Domingo cluster at the tourism fair in Spain (Feria 
Internacional de Turismo - FITUR) demonstrates a good performance in cooperative 
marketing, building up promotion and communication, and enhancing public 
domestic and international private partnerships to foster exposure and sell Santo 
13
Domingo as a colonial and cultural tourism destination. This collaborative type of 
tourism marketing activity has allowed the Santo Domingo cluster to launch its brand 
campaign to the public and attract interest in the region. 
6) Completion of a small investment project in Jarabacoa, “Art Gallery and Local Artisan 
Commercial Center (Vida Para Todos Movimiento Universal Unidad Valores Arte￾MWVA,” where project identification and development were well executed, technical 
and financial assistance was timely delivered, and monitoring put firmly in place, 
demonstrates that a program like the DSTA Program can, indeed, effectively provide 
the needed framework to bring coherence to setting and implementing SME/CBO 
priorities. 
7) Although the nature of participation has varied depending on institutions’ political 
structures, traditions, institutional capacities, and their respective starting points, the 
DSTA Program cluster approach has opened space for stakeholders to engage in a 
national dialogue on tourism/eco-tourism development, SMEs, CBOs and poverty 
reduction.
8) Five of nine clusters have advanced in economic sustainability. The clusters of 
Barahona, La Altagracia, Puerto Plata, Romana/Bayahibe, and Santo Domingo have 
made progress in membership participation, work direction, structure, tourism 
product development and marketing capacity building. At this juncture, their 
economic and competitive sustainability, without DSTA Program paying salaries, is 
sound and expected to continue.
Program Design and Implementation. The evaluation highlights several well-documented 
design and implementation weaknesses and challenges. Among the most significant of these 
are the following: 
1) The DSTA Program design comprises so many inter-related ‘moving parts’ – 
components, thematic areas, and activities – that it becomes impossible to assign 
accountability between implementers, USAID DR, tourism clusters, participants, and 
the tourism value chain stakeholders. As a consequence, the complexity of the 
design did not translate into concrete and focused terms of reference for integrated 
work plans by the consortium members. These terms of reference are vital for 
achieving cluster development and sustainability, building relationships as well as 
SME and CBO tourism development results, and enhanced GODR tourism 
institutional capacity building at the national level.
2) The design of the DSTA’s work program was primarily based on two workshops: 
“Mapeo del Contexto Nacional” of 31 March 2008, and “Todos Bajo un Mismo 
Techo” of 18-20 April 2008 which gave low priority to building knowledge of tourism 
products and their marketing and promotion. Consequently, the Program’s 
development hypothesis, “appropriately designed and targeted interventions,”11
 
11 For the complete hypothesis see Corral, 2008, p. 30; DSTA, 2011a, 2008.
was 
sidelined. 
14
3) All of the activities proposed under the DSTA Program were accorded equal weight 
and implemented at the same time in spite of the priorities identified in the initial 
“Whole-System-in-the Room” planning exercise. It was found that the requirements 
of the clusters are different, and the particular activities implemented were not 
selected on a cluster-by-cluster-case basis by the DSTA team. The risk of attempting 
too much too quickly was not recognized, and the emphasis was on starting multiple
activities, simultaneously. In addition to lack of coordination among the 
implementers, the DSTA Program has not been systematically monitored beyond 
reporting progress toward its seven basic results targets. In this context, when 
progress or results were deemed to be unsatisfactory, its activities were not reduced 
or discontinued on time. On the contrary, more activities were added – among 
others, tangential seminars and workshops, Dominican Treasures (DT), Alianza de 
Turismo Alternativo y Sostenible (ATAS), and Destination Management 
Organizations.
4) On-site visits confirmed that none of the tourism products financed by DSTA 
Program grants (namely DESTINOS and INNOVATION) have been completed and 
no tourism information centers (TICs) have been established. 
5) Due to lack of focus and diversion of staff resources to the support of other activities 
(e.g., DR/ATAS, DMO), very little has been done in advancing the TICs’ activity. 
Moreover, some of the clusters did not participate in this process. In this context, 
what has been done in Santo Domingo, Romana/Bayahibe, and Barahona could be 
replicated. For example, in the case of Barahona, under an INNOVATION grant, its 
TIC can be expanded in physical infrastructure, tourism networking, communication 
material, and services.
6) The approval processes by USAID for program work plans and sub-contracts and by 
the GODR (e.g., SEMARENA) for concessions were much longer and more 
protracted than expected; this delayed implementation progress and threw 
component activities off schedule. These delays, combined with the lack of 
coordination between DSTA implementers, precipitated a course correction by 
USAID/DR in which the participation of Solimar, GWU, and the Nature Conservancy 
ended and implementation responsibility was put under both AED and CDCT. 
7) Despite the overall progress made in cluster development, those of Constanza, 
Jarabacoa, Pedernales, and Samana remain weak and fragile in terms of structure, 
organization, tourism product development and marketing capacity building. At this 
juncture, their economic and competitive sustainability, without continued DSTA 
Program funds and support, is in doubt. In part, this is the result of dependency on 
DSTA Program-provided salaries and weak structural configuration. The other 
significant part is low membership. Key constraints identified by the evaluator are 
extensively documented. The cluster development problems include poor tourism 
physical infrastructure, inadequate tourism product development capability, weak 
marketing capacity, weak organizational capacity of key private and public 
institutions in the tourism value chain, poorly trained workers and lack of quality 
standards. 
15
8) There is a delay in tourism infrastructure investment and thus completion dates for 
some SME and CBO tourism products could be carried out or extended until 
September and for some perhaps until December, 2011. 
9) The effectiveness of efforts to advance more inclusive eco-tourism development 
opportunities by strengthening local talent and community-based groups or SMEs
was constrained by limited engagement tourism groups (tourism operators, travel 
agents, specialty channels or hotels) in building their collaboration with and support 
for the nascent DSTA-supported tourism clusters. Aside from the WSR activity at 
project launch, there has been only tangential engagement of important tourism
stakeholder groups, notably, those that control important commercial distribution 
channels for tourism products and services – tourism operators, travel agents, 
specialty channels, hotels and other groups. This has limited the scope of 
opportunities for tourism clusters to use these channels of distribution and to 
commercialize cluster products and services (e.g., excursions, food concessions, 
handicrafts.) 
10) Dominican Treasures (DT) and the Dominican Alliance for Alternative and 
Sustainable Tourism (ATAS) are not trusted by members of the tourism community.
Over the period of the evaluation, extensive consultations (See Annex 9 for 
quotations) were held with all members of the tourism value chain regarding the 
thrust of the new activity effort called Dominican Treasures (DT) and Alianza 
Dominicana de Turismo Alternativo Sostenible (ATAS-Dominican Alliance for 
Alternative and Sustainable Tourism). The consensus among respondents is that (i) 
DT/ATAS development is not a good idea; (ii) its premise is false – it will not improve 
cluster coordination and development, it will not have tourism value chain 
stakeholders’ participation and support, and it is not sustainable; (iii) it does not have 
a solid, sustainable economic foundation; (iv) its tourism demand analysis in support 
of its business plan is flawed at best; and (v) it will not support progress for the 
overall clusters’ objective. On the contrary, DT/ATAS will ultimately alienate the 
tourism value chain stakeholders. Furthermore, the majority of the clusters do not 
agree with the ATAS, and many of the staff who work for the clusters – and are paid 
by the DSTA Program – know very little of the ATAS.
16
CONCLUSIONS
The evaluation findings lead to the following conclusions: 
1) While the DSTA Program has been formally presented to many of the direct and indirect 
tourism value chain stakeholders, continued efforts are needed to strengthen cluster 
capacity to engage in the DSTA process. Implementing partners need to be aware of 
(and not bypass) participatory and representative processes and local institutions that 
already exist.
2) Little progress has been made in public/private partnerships, alliance build up, or co-op 
marketing and promotion between the DSTA Program, MITUR, and private tourism 
sector operators – domestic and international, and (ii) continued efforts are needed to 
identify stakeholder groups that are important in each cluster and to put processes in 
place for their engagement in the DSTA Program. Meaningful alliances can help 
enhance the quality of tourism development management strategies. It is important to be 
clear with the DSTA Program implementers that they understand that establishing their 
core tourism foundation requires establishing relationships, educating and working with 
partners, creating appropriate infrastructure, and ensuring the proper resources to 
ensure the right tourism growth is in place. For the fifth year, enhancement and 
improvement in those areas (building relationships) will position the DSTA Program’s 
created and developed tourism products and services to contribute to job creation, 
income growth, economic development in SMEs and CBOs, and improved standards of 
living in DR.
3) The large number of awareness raising and training events conducted – short courses, 
seminars, workshops, and conferences - has overburdened DR institutions, clusters and 
available staff resources. I has even stretched the capacity of GODR and tourism cluster 
entities to assure adequate member attendance. The Program technical assistance is 
often perceived as supply-driven, or imposed as a price for financial assistance rather 
than a response to the demand of or response to the specific needs of tourism clusters. 
At least that was the way that this was expressed by some of the clusters and other 
tourism cluster stakeholders.
4) Not nearly enough local skills and institutions are being systematically built, technologies 
are being transferred effectively, and lasting indigenous capacities are not being 
developed. Efforts towards and commitments to tourism/eco-tourism capacity-building 
need to be better focused and coordinated. At the same time, the commitment of 
clusters to those same capacity building goals as well as their willingness to utilize 
management skills must also be reaffirmed. Implementing partners can support cluster 
efforts to refine goals, targets and indicators, as well as strengthen links to public 
actions, through coordinated, demand-driven support for tourism product development 
and capacity building. Training should be re-directed in support of SME and CBO 
capacity building, for example, marketing plans, means-tested Familiarization Trips, an 
operational website, and promotional material that will give SMEs and CBOs direct 
access to new markets in order to increase sales.
17
5) By working in a cluster mode, the implementing partners are chipping away attitudes that 
have been barriers/impediments to cluster development in the DR. Working under the 
cluster umbrella has created a space for dialogue and has promoted communication and 
stakeholder collaboration. DSTA Program investments in tourism product development 
have set the stage for SMEs and CBOs to be integral parts of overall tourism 
development in the DR.
6) Tourism product identification and development. Timely completion of the small 
investment project in Jarabacoa, Art Gallery and Local Artisan Commercial, where 
project identification and development were well executed, technical and financial 
assistance promptly delivered, and monitoring put firmly in place, demonstrates that the 
DSTA Program can provide the needed framework to bring coherence to supporting 
SMEs/CBOs in prioritizing effectively.
7) Although the tourism product development grants (DESTINOS, INNOVATION) 
experienced delays relating to legal matters, procedures and execution challenges, it is 
expected that all the tourism products can be completed by the end of 2011.
8) Parallel implementation generated very little coordination and leadership. The perception 
that the implementers are working individually in a parallel motion needs to be 
eliminated. In this context, implementers’ teamwork and close coordination is a must. 
Because the CDCT does not have the appropriate technical capability at this juncture, 
there is need, during a short period, for added technical support to guide it during the 
fifth and final DSTA Program year. 
9) Tourism/eco-tourism development in the Dominican Republic should start with the 
creation and development of a tourism product with all its pieces together in order to sell 
it. This is probably the most difficult facet of the entire DSTA Program relationship. As 
suggested by the President of OPETUR (Tovar, 2011), and other clusters and members 
of the tourism value chain, the DSTA Program Dominican Treasures should develop one 
or two products at a time. Create the alliances and above all the knowledge of “how to 
sell” this type of product and before taking on other products.
10) Joint tourism product development and marketing is a must. In most cases, joint 
cooperative tourism cluster stakeholder efforts – public/private, domestic/international – 
will be both the most effective and the most profitable. However, many of these 
stakeholders are in competition with each other. Such activities are vital for the DSTA 
Program SMEs and CBOs. 
18
RECOMMENDATIONS
Two principle recommendations emerge from the evaluation: 
SHORT-RUN – REMAINING IMPLEMENTATION YEAR 5
In the short run, employ these evaluation findings, conclusions and recommendations along with 
other DSTA Program resources to set priorities for re-directing and reducing the five component 
interventions from five to perhaps three during the final implementation year through September 
30, 2012. In light of experiences from spreading DSTA staff resources too thinly, the Program 
should focus on eco-tourism development directly, not tangentially as has been done so far. The 
DSTA Program components pertaining to tourism/eco-tourism development in the DR should 
start with the creation and development of a tourism product with all its pieces together in order 
to market it successfully. 
This is probably the greatest challenge for the DSTA Program. As suggested by the President of 
OPETUR (Tovar, 2011), and other clusters and members of the tourism value chain, the DSTA 
Program “Dominican Treasures” should develop one or two products at a time, create alliances, 
and above all cultivate the knowledge of “how to sell” this type of product before moving on to 
other products.
While the original DSTA Program’s basic objectives are long-term, the chances of success will 
be improved if the Program continues to achieve tangible results in its fifth and final year of 
implementation. Therefore, it is important to generate enough momentum to demonstrate 
effectiveness. The final fifth year (until September 2012) should focus on establishing visibility 
and relationships with tour operators, travel agents, and media; educating and working with 
partners; creating infrastructure appropriate to target tourist clients; and ensuring quality tourism
product availability
The ultimate goal of the five-year program remains unchanged: “to better equip and strengthen 
local small firms, community-based tourism organizations, and the existing nine clusters to 
make significant progress to become sustainable.” To achieve this DSTA goal, the Program’s 
fifth year should focus on accomplishing three principal objectives: (1) enhanced cluster 
capacity to identify and develop tourism products and services that appeal to domestic, regional 
and overseas tourists and to launch and operate tourism information centers; (2) better cluster 
capacity to market their tourism/eco-tourism attractions; and (3) improved technical, 
administrative, communications and advocacy skills, particularly among women and youth to 
function effectively in the tourism sector as employees or SME owners/operators.
The proposed fifth year or final phase of the current DSTA Program should include substantive 
corrections in its direction and interventions which will strengthen and build on those activities 
that currently are functioning effectively in achieving those three objectives. From the 
standpoint of DSTA organization and operations, the Evaluation proposes that the Implementers 
reduce current Program components from five to three. Activities under the components we 
suggest be eliminated can either be cut back or integrated into the three proposed for retention 
and re-direction. 
Specifically, the evaluation suggests that the following two components are better addressed as 
cross-cutting themes with their relevant activities incorporated into the three components that 
should be retained and redirected towards clusters that focus directly on nature tourism, econ-
19
tourism and green tourism products and services. The two components recommended for 
integration into the other components in Year 5 are: 
Component 1 – Institutional Strengthening. (Eliminate and integrate activities 
elsewhere). Certainly, there are needs for additional administrative and technical 
capacity building within a new entity like the CDCT, which is only now emerging from the 
embryonic stage of its launch to become a fledging organization still to make its mark in 
the tourism sector. The evaluation does not suggest that CDCT institution building 
support be suspended. Rather, since CDCT is now a partner to AED in DSTA 
implementation, there is a special opportunity for its staff to ‘learn by doing’ and for 
CDCT to build its facilities to respond to its contractual mandate with AED and USAID. 
Component 3 – Conservation and Environmental Stewardship. This component in 
Year 5 becomes a cross-cutting theme that would be integrated into all DSTA activities 
as part of the process of focusing on building sustainable nature tourism capacity within 
tourism clusters. For example, tourism clusters located in communities in or near buffer 
zones around protected areas would be supported with special orientation and skills 
development in sustainable terrestrial and marine habitat management through 
sustainable extraction and use of habitat services (nature guides, recreational and 
adventure use) and products (exotic genetic materials for plant nursery stock, forest 
canopy zip line operation, marine scuba diving and whale watching services). 
We propose that three components be retained, focused and strengthened with activities drawn 
from the two eliminated components. The components to be retained, modified and refocused 
are: 
Component 2 – Private Sector Competitiveness and Market Access. This 
component should focus on addressing recognized shortcomings among tourism 
clusters to develop and implement market strategies aimed at particular target 
populations. Important here would be continued support for trade markets, branding of 
tourism products and services and green (e.g. Rainforest Alliance, Bird Friendly, and 
Fair Trade) certifications that differentiate cluster products and services. 
In order for the Program to realize the potential of tourism and to sustain growth in the 
SMEs and CBOs it must create or produce a tourism product. Having a tourism product 
is a critical need and an area where certain well-focused interventions can yield 
improved results in the short-run at reasonable costs. The overall objective of this 
component is to enhance the clusters’ ability to identify, create and develop tourism 
products that appeal to domestic, regional and overseas tourists. Activities could 
include: 
• Existing inventories will be used to identify potentially ready tourism products. In 
the fifth year, however, all SME and CBO tourism products in the pipeline must 
be completed; examples include Jarabacoa (The Ecolodge Sonido del Yaque, 
Junta Yaque, Salto de Jimenoa 1), Puerto Plata (Loma Isabel de Torres), and
Constanza (Salto de Aguas Blancas).
• Create or refurbish and test one or two websites, brand name and image, logo 
and tagline.
20
• Develop at least one or two cluster tour route packages, create alliances, 
familiarization trips and above all the knowledge of “how to sell this type of 
product,” and then continue with the other products (Tovar, 2011). The chain 
development tour package has to be implemented by the end of the DSTA 
Program’s fifth year.
• Expand/establish at least one tourist information center, for example, the 
expansion and enhancement of the Barahona TIC.
• Compile tourism sector inventory of the cluster and/or a tourism destination. This 
includes hotels/lodges, restaurants, transportation to and within the destination, 
attractions, shopping, and other influential elements that will provide potential 
tourists with clear information of what is being offered within the cluster as a 
tourism destination and how to access it. For example, the DSTA Program 
tourism attractions such as the Upper Yuna Basin - Federacion de Campesinos 
Hacia el Progreso (Bonao, Constanza), Sonido del Yaque and Complejo 
Ecoturistico Angostura (Jarabacoa), and so on.
• Use information gleaned from tourism product development activities or existing 
inventories to identify tourism products. The DSTA Program should then attempt 
to link different tourism products together to form themed tour-routes and 
packages. This should be done in collaboration with private sector domestic tour 
operators. For example, there may be a Salto/Angostura Trail that is already 
identified, but segments may not have any current impact from tourist visits 
because there are currently no trail-site markers. Basic tourist services along part 
of the route may be non-existent – such as the Angostura Trails. The entire 
Salto/Angostura Trails route should be identified and mapped under the DSTA 
Program.
• Configure tour routes of various lengths that can be added together to form 
longer itineraries. The various connections or links of a possible tour package 
chain within the DR can be separated into two or more segments that different 
tourism operators may wish to combine in different ways with other segments, 
possibly from other regions, to create their own tour packages. For example, tour 
route (with the DSTA tourism products) Jarabacoa-Constanza, or Jarabacoa￾Constanza-Barahona, and so on. The strategy here is to develop a number of 
tour itineraries within the DR that have the flexibility to cater to the approaches 
that organized tour operators and their customers prefer.
• Locate, develop and manage tourist information centers in consultation with 
stakeholders, including the Ministry of Tourism, the Office of the Major, the 
clusters and private sector representatives.
Component 4 – Human Resource Development and Institutional Capacity. The 
overall objective remains unchanged, but the focus would be on transfer of knowledge 
and skills that would be particularly suitable for molding employees and business 
operators in the eco-tourism sector. Selected activities under this modified component 
include: 
21
• Help CBOs and SMEs in direct ways by working with a designated tourism 
destination to help and prepare them to become more effective website users 
and e-commerce marketers for increased profitability. Direct advice and 
technical assistance is frequently more efficient than seminars in that tourism 
business challenges can be directly assessed and custom solutions implemented 
immediately. This work should be completed in conjunction and consultation with 
DR channels of distribution and commercialization in order to simultaneously 
enhance the marketing campaigns and planning capabilities of SMEs and CBOs.
• Conduct eco-tourism business development training workshops with the SME 
and CBO participants should consist of intensive evaluations and meetings to 
discuss product offerings, pricing, profitability, operations, marketing and overall 
tourism business strategies.
• Work with universities and technical training institutes to development nature 
tourism-based course curricula targeted in particular towards youth and women.
Component 5 – Social Development and Networking. The re-defined Component 2 
combines parts of components 1 and 4 as well of the original DSTA Program. The 
program should also encourage cooperation and alliances between the public and 
private sectors (domestic, regional, and international) to ensure that the necessary 
infrastructure (both physical and policy) to facilitate tourism development is in place. 
In order for the clusters, SMEs and CBOs to realize the potential of tourism and to 
sustain growth in the sector, their tourism attractions should be marketed effectively to 
the domestic and international markets. Marketing and promotion is a critical need and 
an area where certain well-focused interventions can yield improved results in the short￾run at reasonable costs. In order to establish a strong tourism brand name it is critical to 
put together a very comprehensive, strategic step-by-step approach to establishing the 
appropriate marketing foundation, and then position it in the tourism market place. This 
process is not a quick one.
Recent participation of the Santo Domingo cluster at the tourism fair in Spain (FITUR) 
demonstrated good practices in cooperative marketing, building up promotion and 
communication, as well as enhancing public domestic and private international 
partnerships to plant exposure and sell Santo Domingo as a colonial and cultural tourism 
destination. This co-op type of tourism marketing activity has allowed the Santo 
Domingo cluster to launch its brand campaign to the public and attract interest in the 
region. This is an activity that should be replicated and applied to other clusters and 
tourism destinations.
The overall objective of this component is to enhance the clusters’ ability to market its 
SME and CBO tourism endowments and to develop tourism products that appeal to 
international, regional and domestic tourists. Illustrative activities under this modified 
component include: 
• Develop at least one product of a cluster tour-package chain by the end of the 
fifth year of the Program. Then, it should be promoted to attract a positive 
partnership with domestic and international tour operators. At least, one 
22
Familiarization Trip should be made with tour operators by the end of the fifth 
year of the program. The tour package should be means-tested domestically, 
and, eventually internationally, to ensure that they are indeed the types of 
packages that can be effectively sold to the markets for which they are intended. 
In short, the objective is to create alliances with direct and indirect partners to 
help promote tourism to niche audiences.
• Conduct at least one brand/image-targeted marketing campaign for a defined 
area, such as cultural, gastronomical, spa/health, adventure, canopy, bird 
watching, etc. It should be implemented by the end of the fifth year of the 
program. Increased levels of positive consumer/trade awareness of specific 
cluster(s) and/or the DR as an eco-tourism destination should be the result.
• Devise strategies that support an aggressive marketing campaign. Development 
of a single marketing plan will be the centerpiece of several crosscutting activities 
that will not only contribute to the marketing objective but also to the human 
resource development and capacity building objectives as well.
• Lead familiarization trips for key tour operators, media, travel agents, incentive 
buyers, and trade shows to foster alliances with direct and indirect partners. 
Partnership promotion will cut across all major DSTA Program activities and 
objectives. For example, establish contact and negotiations with targeted 
partners. Set up on-site and conference call meetings with specific tourism 
distributors.
• Target marketing campaigns and media using clusters’ distinctive tourism 
products, such as those which are environmentally friendly, to secure tourists. 
All this will lead to an increased level of positive consumer/trade awareness of 
the DR as a tourism/ecotourism destination through targeted media exposure in 
consumer and trade media.
• Conduct specific training and technical assistance provided to SMEs and CBOs 
and other selected stakeholders on how to market themselves. For example, 
targeted trainings and workshops on website operations and management for 
tourism suppliers and/or on marketing and promotional strategy development, 
including consumer and trade database creation and compilation, sales material, 
consistent messaging and communications.
SHORT-TERM RE-DIRECTION IN MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE
Implementation of these three, more consolidated components affords AED and CDCT
with more scope to work as a unified team. USAID/DR should assume responsibility for 
overall project technical management. The financial management will continue with the 
company that bought the AED. It will provide financial support to the CDCT to finalize a 
smooth transition, oversee procurement and sub-contractual finances, manage the 
budget, track home office and field office expenditures, and develop in conjunction with 
the CDCT (as part of the technical support to the CDCT) formal financial reports as 
required.
23
Further, human and financial resources need to be pooled to meet a variety of cluster 
and region-specific requirements in a short-term and cost-effective fashion. In this 
context, the real test of the re-direction of the DSTA Program, of course, will be how 
effective its implementers work together as one team. The monitoring and evaluation 
system should provide early feedback on the progress, potential challenges, and 
coordination of the components as well as the likely outcome and lessons for the future. 
In this context, the evaluator suggests that the DSTA Program adopts two operational 
principles:
During the fifth year, all DSTA Program activities will have to be framed as projects so 
that implementers and USAID/DR can use conventional project monitoring techniques to 
track project inputs (money, equipment, and staff) and outputs (progress). The 
objective(s) of an activity or project will have to be specified in operational terms to 
permit a meaningful evaluation, such as assessing the use of resources and the 
timetable to make sure that outputs are being produced in a timely and cost-effective 
way.
LONG RUN – AFTER DSTA USAID/DR FUNDING SUPPORT ENDS 
In the long run, utilize DSTA experiences and progress to date to construct a pragmatic 
foundation on which USAID/DR can strategize, prioritize, and design future tourism 
development assistance using funding from either or both of the USG Global Climate 
Change (GCC) and Feed the Future (FtF) Initiatives for fostering sustainability of 
Dominican terrestrial and marine biological diversity (in the case of GCC support). This 
will also generate jobs and incomes from tourism employment among poor and marginal 
income areas of the country most at risk of food insecurity for lack income and 
purchasing power (in the case of FtF). This longer-term engagement under these new 
USAID GCC and FtF initiatives offers the opportunity to further secure the financial 
viability and institutional sustainability of these organizations and firms, further testing 
the robustness of the Dominican cluster approach to small-scale local nature tourism 
enterprise development while placing the DR on a firmer course of economically broad￾based and environmentally sustainable growth. 
This evaluation provides a more informed basis on which USAID/DR can begin to plan 
its strategic approach, set its priorities, and design its future assistance to the DR under 
the Economic Growth Strategic Objective currently being redefined by the Mission. This 
evaluation observes the DR's tourism development, with its longstanding ties to the 
agricultural sector and its developing linkages with other sectors of the economy, as the 
sector that can provide the greatest opportunity to contribute to lasting change in poverty 
reduction through increased employment and business activity.
In this context, the evaluation recommends that USAID/DR continue to engage some of 
the DSTA institutions it has been supporting – particularly the CDCT and some of the 
appropriate (from the standpoints of location and current stage of sustainability) 
community-based tourism clusters – to both: a) improve the island country’s capacity to 
conserve its biological diversity under the USG’s Global Climate Change (GCC) 
initiative; and to b) improve the country’s food security under the USG’s Feed the Future 
(FtF) initiative by generating sustainable tourism-based jobs and incomes, particularly in 
ecologically rich but economically poor and low-income areas of the country.
24
LESSONS LEARNED AND BEST PRACTICES
1. The evaluation points to one important lesson, among others: Ambitious development 
plans, lack of priorities, blurry thematic areas, and too many activities complicated by 
management, financial, and leadership problems and lack of transparency and 
accountability will result in slow progress in reaching objectives. To provide a framework
for supporting ambitious development plans, such as those of the DSTA Program, 
alternative scenarios need to be mapped out to assure that needs like adequate
management, meaningful monitoring, and critical technical skills are addressed. Going 
forward, such a framework calls for viewing sustainable tourism implementation more 
explicitly through an accountability lens and strengthening its approach as a platform for 
scaling up assistance. 
2. Sustainable tourism priorities and goals can be framed against the backdrop of the 
economic growth and poverty reduction strategy, but they need to be customized to 
cluster conditions. A national tourism cluster development strategy can provide the 
context for building up and improving partnerships between the DSTA Program, 
government, external partners, and other domestic stakeholders. 
ANNEXES
ANNEX 1. EVALUATION SCOPE OF WORK................................................................................. i
ANNEX 2: DOCUMENTS CONSULTED AND REFERENCES USED.........................................xxi
ANNEX 3. LIST OF INTERVIEWS/MEETINGS/CONSULTATIONS...........................................xxv
ANNEX 4. GENERAL BENEFICIARY SURVEY INTERVIEW FORM........................................xxix
ANNEX 5: ANONYMOUS INTERVIEW FORM FOR SELECTED KEY INFORMANTS............xxxi
ANNEX 6. CLUSTER DEVELOPMENT ISSUES....................................................................... xxxii
ANNEX 7. CONSULTATION WITH MS. ELIXABETH TOVAR, PRESIDENT OF OPETUR ...xxxvi
i 
ANNEX 1: EVALUATION SCOPE OF WORK
ii
iii
iv
v 
vi
vii
viii
ix
x 
xi
xii
xiii
xiv
xv
xvi
xvii
xviii
xix
xx
xxi
ANNEX 2: DOCUMENTS CONSULTED AND REFERENCES USED
Altés, C. (2006). El turismo en América Latina y el Caribe y la experiencia del BID. Publicación 
del Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo, julio de 2006, Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo, 
Washington, DC.
AMEX. (2011). Response to USAID request for proposals No. SOL-517-11-000002. Policy, 
planning, and learning (PPL)/learning, evaluation and research (LER), February, 11, 2011, 
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Barberia, L. (2002). The glory days of tourism in the Caribbean. Development Culture and 
Identity. ReVista Harvard review of Latin America, Winter 2002. 
CDCT. (2010). Los clústeres turísticos en República Dominicana: Evolución y prospectivas. 
DSTA Associate Award, Marzo 2010, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Cheru, F. (2006). Building and supporting PRSPs in Africa: What has worked well so far? What 
needs changing? Third World Quarterly 27 (2), 355-376.
Corral, J., & Weiss, B. (2008). Todos bajo un mismo techo: Por un turismo Dominicano más 
competitivo y sostenible. Reporte del encuentro para la formulación de planes de acción, 
USAID￾DSTA, 18-20 de Abril, 2008, Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic.
Corral, J. (2008). Mapeo del contexto nacional. Reporte final: Recursos, temas y actores para 
un turismo sostenible. Proyecto DSTA: Apoyo al Turismo Sostenible de la República 
Dominicana, 31 de Marzo, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Craig, D., & Porter, D. (2003). Poverty reduction strategy papers: A new convergence. World 
Development 31 (1), 53-69.
Croes, R. R., & Vanegas Sr, M. (2008). Cointegration and causality between tourism and 
poverty reduction. Journal of Travel Research Vol. 47, 94-103.
Dijkstra, G. (2005). The PRSP approach and the illusion of improved aid effectiveness: lessons 
from Bolivia, Honduras and Nicaragua. Development Policy Review 23 (4), 443-464.
Drumm, A., Moore, A., Solies, A., & Patterson, C. (2002). Desarrollo del ecoturismo: Un manual 
para los profesionales de la conservación. The Nature Conservancy, Arlington Virginia, USA.
Fuller, A. (1999). Tourism development in the Dominican Republic: Growth, costs, benefits and 
choices. Work Paper, May 1999, Rutgers University.
xxii
Gunduz, L., and Hatemi-J, A. (2005). Is the tourism-led growth hypothesis valid for Turkey? 
Applied Economics Letters 12, 499-504.
IMF., & IDA. (2002). Review of the poverty reduction strategy paper (PRSP) approach. Main 
findings, IMF, Washington, DC.
IMF. (2004). Report on the evaluation of poverty reduction strategy papers and the poverty 
reduction growth facility. Independent Evaluation Office, IMF, Washington, DC.
Izurieta, J., Rodriguez, A., Silva, E., Lindberg, D., & Arias, D. (2009). Valoración económica del 
turismo en el Sistema Nacional de Areas Protegidas: Un estudio de caso en cuatro áreas 
protegidas de República Dominicana. DSTA, Alianza Dominicana para el Turismo Sostenible, 
The Nature Conservancy, Programa del Caribe Central. Santo Domingo, República 
Dominicana.
Ministerio de Turismo. (2011). Memorias del DPP 2008-2010. Ministerio de Turismo, 
Departamento de Planificación y Proyectos (DPP), Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Neto, F. (2003). A new approach to sustainable tourism development: Moving beyond 
environmental protection. Discusion Paper No. 29, Departamento de Asuntos Económicos y 
Sociales de las Naciones Unidas, UNDESA, New York.
Tovar, E. (2011). Subject. Re: USAID-Dominican Sustainable Tourism 
Alliance and ATAS. From OPETUR Presidencia, Electronic Email, Monday 11, July 2011, 
13:07:08, Miami, Florida.
UNCTAD. (1998). Developing countries could target tourism to boost economic growth. 
UNCTAD, Geneva, Switzerland.
UNCTAD. (2008). Development report on least developed countries. UNCTAD, Geneva, 
Switzerland.
DSTA. (2011a). RFTOP-SOL-517-000002 Economic growth program evaluation: Attachment I – 
Statement of work. USAID/DR Tri-Project Economic Growth Program Evaluation, December 23, 
2010, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
DSTA. (2011b). FY11, Annual work plan (revision 4/29/11). Dominican Sustainable Tourism 
Alliance, submited by AED. October 1, 2010 – September 30, 2011, Santo Domingo, Dominican 
Republic.
DSTA. (2011c). DSTA Revised FY2011 Work Plan (4. 28. 11). Dominican Sustainable Tourism 
Alliance, Matrix discussed and submited by Solimar/CDCT: DSTA Associate Award, April 2011, 
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
DSTA. (2011d). 2nd Quarterly report FY11, January 1-March 31. Dominican Sustainable 
Tourism Alliance, submited by AED: DSTA Associate Award, April 2011, Santo Domingo, 
Dominican Republic.
xxiii
DSTA. (2010). Annual report FY 10. Dominican Tourism Sustainable Alliance, submited by 
AED: DSTA Associate Award, October 2010, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
DSTA. (2008). Preliminary life of program implementation. Dominican Sustainable Tourism 
Alliance, submited by AED: DSTA, April 1, 2008-September 30, 2012, 
DSTA Associate Award, April 2011, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
DSTA. (2007). Life of program implementation plan, (9/10/2007-9/30/2012. Submited by AED: 
DSTA Associate Award, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
USAID. (2007). Competitiveness and policy program (CPP). Dominican Republic 
Competitiveness and Policy Program Final Report, December 2007.
Vanegas, Sr, M. (2011). Poverty elimination through tourism dynamics. In M. Uysal., R. Perdue., 
& M. J. Sirgy (eds). Chapter V, Handbook of Tourism and Quality of Life Research. NY: 
Springer. Forthcoming, Summer 2011.
Vanegas, M., & Croes, R. (2007). Tourism, economic expansion and poverty in Nicaragua: 
Investigating co-integration and causal relations. Department of Applied Economics, Staff Paper 
Series # P07-10, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul.
Vanegas Sr, M., & Croes, R. R. (2007). Building an econometric nexus between tourism 
development and poverty in Nicaragua. Invited paper presented at the International Conference 
on Tourism, Growth, and Poverty, Department of Tourism and Hotel Administration, Universidad 
Americana Managua, Holiday Inn Hotel, 25 September, Managua, Nicaragua.AED-DSTA. 
(2011). Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance: 2nd Quarterly Report FY11, January 1-March 
31. DSTA Associate Award, April 2011, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Whitfield, L. (2005). Trustees of development from conditionality to governance: Poverty 
reduction strategy papers in Ghana. Journal of Modern African Studies 43(4), 641-664.
World Bank. (2004). The poverty reduction strategy initiative: an independent evaluation of the 
world Bank’s support through 2003. Operations Evaluation Department, World Bank, 
Washington, DC.
World Tourism Organization. (2010). WTO Barometer. United Nations World Tourism 
Organization, January, Madrid Spain.
World Tourism Organization. (2005). Use tourism on war on poverty: World leaders urge. World 
Tourism Organization, September, UNWTO, Madrid, Spain.
World Tourism Organization. (2004). Tourism and poverty alleviation: Recommendations for 
action. WTO publication, UNWTO, Madrid, Spain.
World Tourism Organization. (2004b). Final report on ministerial conference on cultural tourism 
and poverty alleviation, 11-12 June 2004, Hue, Vietnam. UNWTO, Madrid, Spain.
xxiv
World Tourism Organization. (2002). Tourism and poverty. WTO publication produced for the 
World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburgo, South Africa, UNWTO, 
Madrid, Spain.
World Tourism Organization., & United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. (2001). 
Tourism and the least developed countries. UNWTO, Madrid, Spain.
World Travel and Tourism Council. (2010). Annual reports, progress and priorities 2008-2009. 
The World Travel and Tourism Council, London, United Kingdom. 
xxv
ANNEX 3: LIST OF INTERVIEWS/MEETINGS/CONSULTATIONS
Entities Interviews/meetings, 
people
Selected Comments/Suggestions
A. Implementers, USAID, 
tourism sector value chain 
stakeholders.
AED
George Washington 
University
Solimar Internacional
The Nature Conservancy
CDCT
USAID
MITUR
Margareth Hendrickson,
Katia Rios, Patricia 
Reinoso, Rosa Gil, Kacie 
Sis (Peace Corps)
Gloria Valdez Lazzo
Pilar Constanzo
Eddy Silva
Rafael Collado, Lissette 
Gil, Clara Barriola, Pilar 
Constanzo.
Duty Green, Odalis Pérez,
Josué Ceballo, Luis 
Gonzalez
Luis Simó, Maribel 
Villalona, Amalia Bobes 
Torres, Yamilet Matos, 
→ Recognized the need for a re￾direction of the Program and specific 
focused activities. Grants and financing 
tourism product development (destinos, 
innovation) are advanced and should 
be completed. The networking activities 
already implemented, in the long-run, 
will boost the competitive position of the 
SMEs and CBOs destinations.
→ The human resource development 
agenda to build capacities was there, 
but the agenda keeps changing with no 
justification.
→ In conjunction with CDCT started the 
idea of ATAS.
→ We implemented our tasks as 
planned and are ready to continue our 
collaboration.
→ The DSTA Program needs re￾direction. Too ambitious and too many 
activities diluted both the technical and 
financial resources. Work is progressing 
toward strengthening clusters 
organization and their tourism 
development capacities. Linkages with 
MITUR are important, but often missing. 
ATAS will promote, offer and sell 
Dominican Treasures.
→ Some of the training activities lack 
relevance and a correction was made. 
Tourism products creation and 
development will be completed as 
planned. Partnerships and linkages with 
MITUR and other public institutions 
beginning to take place.
→ Working linkages are so important 
between MITUR and DSTA but are 
missing. We have been invited and/or 
xxvi
Tour Operators/Travel Agents
Hotels/Restaurants/Cruise
Academia, Consultant, 
Practitioner.
B. Clusters.
1. Barahona
2. Constanza
3. Jarabacoa
Ariosto Montisano, Ernesto 
Rymer,
Juan Alfredo Guiliano, 
Jose Santana
Elizabeth Tovar, Patria 
Rodríguez, Musa Mitchell,
Juan Deneder, Mitchel 
Oulette, Manuel Finket
Francia Liverata, Maria 
Santos, Andres 
Fernandez,
Caraos Castillo, Roberto 
Nolasco, Hotel Oasi.
Dr. Auliana Poon. 
Attended her conference in 
Barahona.
One meeting and one field 
trip: Elena Nunziatini, 
Rafael Matus Feliz,
Not visited.
Visited: Martha Fernandez, 
Felipe Beltrán, Eunice 
García, Belkys Vargas, 
Valentin Acosta, Carmen 
Batista, Verónica Espinal, 
Ramón Elías, Esperanza 
Marte, Anthony Pichardo, 
informed for certain DSTA activities. We 
are working on identifying Dominican 
Treasures and Tourism Information 
Centers. The DSTA is a good technical 
assistance framework and should 
continue.
→ An effective marketing plan 
necessitates both a tourism product and 
public/private partnerships. ATAS is not 
a good idea. We have not seen a DSTA
tourism product.
→ Support and assistance should be 
specific in the area of marketing and 
product development: product 
identification, tour package chain 
development, Fam Trips, and tourism 
trade shows.
→ Product identification and 
development, training for product 
providers, marketing, and sustainability 
are relevant factors and some of them 
are missing in DR. Without partnerships 
and alliances with the tourism value 
chain stakeholders, tourism profitability 
and sustainability are in doubt.
→ DSTA is a good project and should 
continue. It needs re-direction and 
focus to meet cluster objectives. More 
direct assistance in marketing and 
media exposure. Planning to enhance 
Barahona TIC. ATAS still in its infancy 
stage.
→ 
→ We need to improve our cluster 
organization and work program. With or 
without financial help from DSTA we will 
complete our tourism products. There is 
a legal problem related to the identified 
site for the TIC. The office of the Mayor 
and MITUR are searching for a new 
site. Too much training on procedures. 
During the process of route 
identification, direct needed training 
xxvii
4. La Altagracia
5. Pedernales
6. Puerto Plata
7. Romana/Bayahibe
8. Samaná
9. Santo Domingo
Marina C Pérez, Yaniris 
Quezada, Inocencia 
Hernandez, 
Not visited. Interview/ 
Meeting with Elena Cruz in 
Santo Domingo
Interview/Meeting with 
Antonio Trinidad in 
Barahona
Visited: Rebecca Ureña
Visited twice. Daniel 
Flaquer. Andres 
Fernandez, Kelly 
Robinson, Rosella Morelos 
Esmeralda Mercado, 
Claudia Sandoval.
Not visited. 
Interview/Meeting with 
Judy Rojas, outgoing 
Exec. Dir. 7/2011.
Visited twice. Luis Emilio 
Molina, Briseida Olivero, 
Oscar Ungría, Jorge 
Caridad, Esteban Guillén.
activities should include: website 
development, identification of travel 
agents and tour operators with the 
greatest potential to sell our tourism 
products, and trade sales support. Very 
little is known about ATAS.
→ ATAS is not a good idea and has 
been rejected by the tourism value 
chain stakeholders. Too many irrelevant 
courses and seminars. Needs a re￾direction.
→ Little knowledge about ATAS. 
Identification and development of 
products is a must. Too many courses 
and seminars.
→ ATAS has been rejected. Direct 
advice is much better than seminars, 
workshops and conferences in that 
business can be directly assessed. 
DSTA has been good for POP and 
should continue.
→ ATA is not a good idea and will not 
get our support. Tourism product 
identification and marketing is key. Too 
many seminars with little significance in 
tourism.
→ ATAS will not be supported. Too 
many activities and beaurocratic 
procedures cumbersome. DSTA is a 
good idea but needs a re-direction.
→ ATAS will not be supported. DSTA is 
an excellent idea but needs re-direction 
toward tourism business development 
orientation. Too many irrelevant 
courses and seminars. Better 
coordination is needed. Building 
alliances and partnerships are missing 
links in this project. 
Note: Throughout the evaluation period, with the guidance from DSTA Program implementers: AED, 
CDCT, and USAID DR, seven (7) field trips were implemented to the clusters of: Barahona, Jarabacoa, 
Puerto Plata, Romana/Bayahibe (2), and Santo Domingo (2), and meetings were held with the clusters of: 
La Altagracia, Pedernales, and Samaná. In addition, the evaluator launched a process of continuous 
consultations and interactions with the original implementers of the DSTA Program - AED, GWU, SOL, 
and TNC – USAID DR and CDCT. Before departure, two long-working sessions between the evaluator, 
the CDCT Chief Executive Officer, and the AED staff, held in CDCT office on the afternoon of Friday 8, 
xxviii
July 2011, and in AED office on the morning of Wednesday 13, July 2011. These meetings and working 
sessions reinforced the evaluator’s earlier diagnosis and helped highlight the outstanding issues and 
determine priorities: (i) the need for DSTA re-direction or change its course of action, (ii) the need, in the 
very short-run, for leadership to guide the final phase of the program, (iii) the need for teamwork and 
close coordination, (iv) endorsement was expressed for the DSTA to continue its fifth year because the 
Program is beginning to advance the ideas of working together and building tourism product development 
and marketing public-private sector partnerships. Strong support, however, was expressed for a narrow 
focused, appropriately designed, and targeted tourism interventions, and (v) tourism/eco-tourism 
development and diversification or sustainable tourism for SMEs and CBOs needs a long-term initiative. 
A preliminary draft was presented for consultations, discussions, comments, and suggestions to USAID 
DR, on the afternoon of Tuesday, 12 July, 2011.
xxix
ANNEX 4: GENERAL BENEFICIARY SURVEY INTERVIEW FORM
Respondents Familiar with the DSTA Program. Junio-julio, 2011.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Entrevista Mixta: Informativa y Categórica: Clusters, miembros, ejecutores/implementadores, 
SMEs, and CBOs. Junio-julio, 2011
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------
Relación con el proyecto DSTA Program: ______________________________
1. Puede nombrar un par de formas en como usted cree que el proyecto USDA-DSTA esta 
ayudando o ha ayudado al desarrollo del turismo, los negocios locales, o a la comunidad?
2. Como usted clasifica la ejecución de este proyecto:
 Malo □ Regular □ Neutral □ Bueno □ Excelente □
3. Como usted califica la ejecución de resultados de este proyecto: 
 Malo □ Regular □ Neutral □ Bueno □ Excelente □
4. Cree usted que el proyecto le esta ayudando en ser mas competitivo?
Si □ No □ Indiferente □
5. Cree usted que el proyecto le esta ayudando a tener acceso al mercado de turismo 
domestico y/o internacional?
Si □ No □ Indiferente □
6. Cree usted que su empresa o institución, comunidad u organización se ha fortalecido siendo 
parte del proyecto?
Si □ No □ Indiferente □
7. Tiene usted conocimiento de que se han estado o se están impartiendo cursos, seminarios, 
talleres, conferencias, para promover y fortalecer el funcionamiento de las empresas, 
protección de recursos naturales, etc.
Si □ No □ Indiferente □
8. Conoce usted si el Programa DSTA ha producido o creado suficientes materiales de 
mercadeo, comercialización, promoción, comunicación y estos materiales se están 
distribuyendo y usando?
Si □ No □ Indiferente □
9. Que tipo o clase de actividades están siendo implementadas por el cluster y/o los miembros 
de las organizaciones y empresas participando en el programa?
Ambientales □ Fortalecimiento de organizaciones □ Económicas □
Educativas □ Otras □
xxx
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. Cree usted que el Programa de DSTA debe continuar: Si  No 
Haga comentarios o recomendaciones que usted considere importantes.
xxxi
ANNEX 5: ANONYMOUS INTERVIEW FORM FOR SELECTED KEY INFORMANTS 
Entrevista Anónima Aleatoria Categórica con selected/algunos miembros de los clusters, 
ejecutores, y miembros de la cadena del desarrollo del turismo familiarizados con el Proyecto 
DSTA. Junio-julio, 2011.
1. Los comentarios sobre problemas y retrasos de orden administrativos, financieros, técnicos y 
de procedimientos afectaron significativamente el cumplimiento, los resultados, la ejecución, y 
fechas de entrega de resultados:
1. Totalmente en desacuerdo  2. En desacuerdo  3. Neutral  4. De acuerdo  5. Totalmente 
de acuerdo 
2. El diseño del proyecto DSTA tiene fallas en su diseño y es ambicioso en cuanto a las 
actividades y resultados que se quieren lograr.
1. Totalmente en desacuerdo  2. En desacuerdo  3. Neutral  4. De acuerdo  5. Totalmente 
de acuerdo 
3. Debido a lo ambicioso el proyecto DSTA los esfuerzos técnico y financieros se han diluido y 
los resultados obtenidos hasta la fecha han sido mucho menor que los resultados esperados.
1. Totalmente en desacuerdo  2. En desacuerdo  3. Neutral  4. De acuerdo  5. Totalmente 
de acuerdo 
4. En su opinión, el proyecto DSTA debería de seguir pero con correcciones hasta llegar a su 
termino.
1. Totalmente en desacuerdo  2. En desacuerdo  3. Neutral  4. De acuerdo  5. Totalmente 
de acuerdo 
5. Si el proyecto DSTA es continuado con correcciones, indique que tipo de re-diseño y re￾orientación se debe realizar.
1. Re-definición de sus componentes: Si  No 
2. Re-definición de sus áreas temáticas: Si  No 
3. Reducción de sus actividades: Si  No 
4. Re-definición y ajustes en el área de entrenamiento y construcción de capacidades: Si  No 
5. Re-definición y ajustes en los objetivos que se quieren alcanzar: Si  No 
Algún comentario que desea agregar 
xxxii
ANNEX 6: CLUSTER DEVELOPMENT ISSUES
The clusters experienced the following two main cluster development issues. 
(i) DSTA Program tourism product development investments, in compliance with 
transparency selection of a winning proposal; 
(ii) Administrative procedures, financial and management delays, disrupted compliance 
on tourism product development, execution and delivery dates.
Barahona. Identified during the execution of the CPP public private strategic 
partnerships, in 2004. It was legally incorporated under the DSTA Program on 6/2/2009. 
With no DSTA funding the cluster will continue to function. However, it will not have the 
financial capability to sustain the salaries of personnel paid by the DSTA Program. 
Tourist information center launched and developed by FOMIN/BID. A plan should be 
put in place for the TIC to be enhanced under the DSTA Program. The cluster is 
implementing marketing and promotional activities to enhance tourism arrivals. It has 
good publicity material and is building support and collaborative activities in partnership 
with its tourism value chain stakeholders. Replicating what the hotels have done on 
marketing strategy12, DSTA should provide to the potential tourism products and 
services development direct-onsite training and technical assistance to devise 
strategies that support aggressive marketing campaign, including brochure design, 
posters, websites (and its operation) and public relations campaigns. Support also will 
target effective decision making and successful execution of program including trade 
shows, sales trips, and other events.
Constanza. Identified during the execution of the CPP in 2003. Under the DSTA 
Program, it was legally incorporated on 1/19/2009. With no DSTA funding its economic, 
organization, and competitiveness sustainability is in doubt. The cluster has made 
medium progress in DSTA Program implementation. The cluster feedback on what 
would work best and how the stakeholders could best be involved is related to the 
implementation of a TIC and targeted activities related to direct-onsite training and 
technical assistance to devise strategies that support tourism product development, 
aggressive marketing campaign, including brochure design, posters, websites (and its 
operation) and public relations campaigns. Support also will target effective decision 
making and successful execution of program including trade shows, sales trips, and 
other events.
Jarabacoa. Identified during the execution of the CPP in 2005. Under the DSTA 
Program, it was legally incorporated on 1/19/2009. With no DSTA funding its economic, 
organization, and competitiveness sustainability is in doubt. The cluster has made little 
progress on DSTA Program implementation due to its organizational and management 
problems. However, due to its location, the opening of the new pave road (Constanza-
 
12 Training personal, operational websites, direct sales and Ecommerce implemented.
xxxiii
Jarabacoa), and the DSTA Program investments made on tourism product 
development13, the cluster has the potential to be developed as a complete-tourism-tour 
package. In this context, targeted activities related to direct-onsite training and technical 
assistance to devise strategies that support tourism product development, aggressive 
marketing campaign, including brochure design, posters, websites (and its operation) 
and public relations campaigns. Support also will target effective decision making and 
successful execution of program including trade shows, sales trips, and other events. 
Moreover, the TIC is a must, and the office of the Major, MITUR, and the tourism value 
chain stakeholders have given a lot of support to its implementation, and if the legal 
problem related to the potential office-infrastructure chosen is not solved, then 
immediately, a new site has to be considered.
La Altagracia. Identified during the execution of the CPP in 2006. Under the DSTA
Program, it was legally incorporated on 6/19/2008. With no DSTA funding its economic, 
organizational and competitiveness sustainability is in doubt. The cluster has made 
medium progress in DSTA Program implementation. Because the strong support from 
the Hotel Association and other tourism value chain stakeholders, the cluster is ready to 
be developed in a similar fashion such as the Santo Domingo and Romana/Bayahibe 
clusters, concentrate efforts on specific targeted activities related to direct-onsite 
training and technical assistance to devise strategies that support tourism product 
development, aggressive marketing campaign, including brochure design, posters, 
websites (and its operation) and public relations campaigns. Support also will target 
effective decision making and successful execution of program including trade shows, 
sales trips, and other events.
Pedernales. Independently formed and legally associated/incorporated with 
ADSETUPPE in 2005. Under the DSTA Program, it has received technical and financial 
assistance since FY09-10. With no DSTA funding, however, cluster economic, 
organization, and competitiveness sustainability is in doubt. Implementation of the TIC 
in Bahia de las Aguilas still in the idea stage. Little progress has been made on DSTA 
Program implementation. Under the USID-DSTA Program, the cluster has implemented 
several promotional activates – the promotional campaign Barahona/Pedernales: 
Orgullo de mi Tierra in a coop with CCN and other Fam Trips with journalists. For this 
cluster, tourism product development is a must. Moreover, Pedernales´s human 
resources paid by the Program (Mr. Antonio Trinidad and Tania Gonzalez) must receive 
on site direct targeted training, including website testing and management as soon as 
possible.
Puerto Plata. Associated was Fundación Atlántica, it was legally incorporated and 
established on 11/26/2003. With no DSTA funding, the cluster will continue to function. 
However, it will not have the financial capability to sustain salaries of personnel paid by
DSTA Program. The tourism value chain stakeholders´ consensus on the cluster 
concept reads like this: The DSTA Program is a great idea and one of the best things 
 
13 Sonido del Yaque, Salto de Jimenoa I, Angostura, and Art Gallery and Local Artisan Commercial Center. Beneficiaries the 
community group Vida Para Todos, with the active participation of the Universal Movement Unity Values and Art. Well linked into 
the community economy and is community owned, directed, and controlled.
xxxiv
that happened in support of the tourism sector in Puerto Plata. However, ATAS 
demonstrated not to be a good idea. Still with no interest in establishing a TIC. The 
cluster has made medium progress on DSTA Program implementation. The cluster 
members are ready to coop in the implementation of a well design specific targeted 
activities related to direct-onsite training and technical assistance to devise strategies 
that support tourism product development (Loma Isabel de Torres, and so on), 
aggressive marketing campaign, including brochure design, posters, websites (and its 
operation) and public relations campaigns. Support also will target effective decision 
making and successful execution of program including trade shows, sales trips, and 
other events.
Romana/Bayahibe. Identified and formed in 2001. It was legally incorporated under the 
DSTA Program, on 4/29/2009. With no DSTA funding the cluster will continue to 
function. However, it will not have the financial capability to sustain the salaries of 
personal paid by the DSTA Program. The tourism value chain stakeholders´ consensus 
on the cluster concept reads similar to what was expressed by Puerto Plata cluster. 
ATAS demonstrated not to be a good idea and the tourism value chain stakeholders will 
not support it. ATAS is a distraction and could alienate the DR channels of distribution 
and commercialization. The cluster has rejected the activities related to membership 
tool kit, marketing tool kit, and manual for policies and procedures. The cluster has 
made advanced progress on DSTA Program implementation. As the Barahona, La 
Altagracia, and Santo Domingo clusters, Roman/Bayahibe is ready to coop in the 
implementation of a well design specific targeted activities related to direct-onsite 
training and technical assistance to devise strategies that support tourism product 
development (Loma Isabel de Torres, and so on), aggressive marketing campaign, 
including brochure design, posters, websites (and its operation) and public relations 
campaigns. Support also will target effective decision making and successful execution 
of program including trade shows, sales trips, and other events.
Samaná. Identified during the execution of the CPP in 2005. Under the DSTA Program, 
it was legally incorporated on 12/02/2009. With no DSTA funding its economic, 
organization, and competitiveness sustainability is in doubt. The cluster has made 
medium progress in DSTA Program implementation. Outgoing Executive Director 
expressed that the tourism value chain stakeholders´ consensus is that the DSTA
Program implementation is not focused and disagreed with ATAS. The cluster has a 
TIC developed and managed by MITUR. Mr. Luis Simó (MITUR Vice-minister 
international affairs, and the group headed by Ms. Maribel Villalona (MITUR Vice￾minister Planning) expressed the willingness to work side by side with the DSTA 
Program on tourism product identification and development. In addition, a concentration 
of efforts should be directed in Samana on the implementation of a well design specific 
targeted activities related to direct-onsite training and technical assistance to devise 
strategies that support tourism product development, aggressive marketing campaign, 
including brochure design, posters, websites (and its operation) and public relations 
campaigns. Support also will target effective decision making and successful execution 
of program including trade shows, sales trips, and other events.
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Santo Domingo. Identified and formed in 2005. Under the DSTA Program, it was 
legally incorporated on 02/28/2008. With no DSTA funding its economic, organization, 
and competitiveness sustainability is sound. The cluster working and management 
approach on tourism product development and marketing should be replicated or serve 
as model for the development management of the other clusters: Santo Domingo 
cluster is developing its tourism products and service and marketing them in a joint 
cooperative most cost effective efforts (Coop model), launched through its tourism value 
chain stakeholders, business associations, government entities, and international 
partners. One of the examples of pooling of cluster, private and other matching funds 
was its recently participation in the biggest tourism fair, worldwide, Feria International 
de Turismo Spain (FITUR). It was expressed that the tourism value chain stakeholders´ 
consensus is that the DSTA Program implementation is not focused and disagreed with 
ATAS.
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ANNEX 7: CONSULTATION WITH MS. ELIXABETH TOVAR, PRESIDENT OF OPETUR
In this Annex 7, the evaluator presents the results of his consultation with Ms. Elizabeth 
Tovar, President of OPETUR, on selected ATAS/DR conceptual and policy issues as 
reported in some of the DSTA Program reports. Ms. Tovar’s response was confirmed in 
a telephone conversation with the evaluator held on July 15, 2011, Miami, Florida.
Part of the motive for the meeting was to socialize the idea and differences between the 
ATAS and DT (DSTA, 2010, p. 3).
CDCT conducted a meeting with the tour operator association to advance the process of 
reaching agreement with tour operators (DSTA, 2011d, p. 14).
With the buy-in and constant communication with OPETUR and other local tour 
operators,..., (DSTA, 2010, p. 10).
,..., CDCT,..., is preparing the ATAS/Dominican Treasures website (DSTA, 2010, p. 9).
DT and ATAS make up the marketing and sales platform of the CDCT that is designed 
to help link the many unique natural and cultural tourism products and cluster 
destinations emerging from the DSTA Program with national and international markets 
(DSTA, 2010, p. 18).
Below find the reply on these issues from Ms. Tovar.
--- On Mon, 7/11/11, TURENLACES - PRESIDENCIA <presidencia@turenlaces.com>
wrote:
From: TURENLACES - PRESIDENCIA <presidencia@turenlaces.com>
Subject: Re: USAID-Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance and ATAS
To: "Manuel Vanegas Sr." <mavanegas@yahoo.com>
Cc: "OPETUR" <opetur@claro.net.do>, "MUSA MITCHELL" 
<mmusa@nexustours.com>, "RODRIGUEZ Patria" <patria@turinter.com>, "REYES 
Denisse" <d.s@claro.net.do>, "CASSA DE AMELANG BEATRIZ" 
<zeppelin@codetel.net.do>
Date: Monday, July 11, 2011, 12:07 PM
Dear Dr. Vanegas: 
Please allow me to excuse myself from not answering back immediately.
I am on vacation and with limited access to my emails.
In regards to your comments, I will be happy to elaborate a little more on our point of 
view.
1. One of our weaknesses is the fact that our tours and tourism products are not in the 
hands of locals, therefore we have very limited benefits from any of the tourism 
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operations or products available now. In other words:
a) Dominican tour operators have to pay 26% on hotel reservations or tours, any foreign 
operator has better rates just because they are simply based abroad. This allows foreign 
companies to take over any market we try to develop since we are always in a weaker 
rate position.
b) Most o the hotels and/or suppliers and in the hands of foreigners. Tax contribution is 
alarmingly low because no income is reported locally. Instead, we are in the opposite 
position since we have to declare everything.
c) Transportation is being weakened by Unions trying to create monopolies...... the 
Government is doing absolutely NOTHING.
2. When we met with Pilar Costanzo and the rest of the CDCT team, we told them that 
we would see as a positive step the creation of Dominican Treasures. We did not agree 
with the ATAS project which we have always disagreed with since we understood that 
the sales of Dominican Treasures should be made through the regular sales channels 
(OPETUR, ASOTURE, ADOTUR, ADOCA and ADAVIT). Mrs. Costanzo explain to us
that the CDCT wanted to create ATAS in order to assure Dominican Treasures that at 
least one "tour operator" will dedicate their time exclusively to marketing this product. 
Reluctantly we agreed to accept ATAS under special conditions (because CDCT 
"had to be sure that this was going to be a sustainable project"):
a) That ATAS should be part of one or various of our associations
b) That ATAS would not have any privilege over the other members
c) That ATAS had been created only to sell Dominican Treasures products
3. We suggested that Dominican Treasures should develop one or two products at a 
time. Create the alliances, Fam Trips and above all the knowledge of "how to sell' this 
type of product and then continue with the other products.
4. The marketing and sales platform was not only discussed with OPETUR it was also 
discussed with ADOTUR. All the other associations were invited to participate in this 
meeting but OPETUR and ADOTUR were the ones who always participated. 
5. We disagreed with the website operation because it would create competition to 
precisely the associations which would market Dominican Treasures. Therefore, we 
suggested that the website should work as a web receiving all requests on line, but 
these requests should be sent simultaneously to all the members of the association (in 
the same way CVB's work for cities in the world) and that precisely the members would 
be the ones to answer to the requests. We DO NOT agree with a site that will capture 
our marketing efforts. They promised to review the matter. We have NOT heard about 
this anymore. We also discussed the sales platform where we agreed that Dominican 
Treasures would never sell directly and that any information should be on the basis of 
"rack rates". We certainly recommend that Dominican Treasures sales go through 
authorized sales agents (within our organizations). This "authorized sales agent" 
category should be achieved by going to a Fam and completing a training session.
xxxviii
5. We do not agree that ATAS is designed to help link anything. ATAS (reluctantly) 
is just another tour operator which can only sell Dominican Treasure products 
and in the same conditions we will be selling those products.
6. Although the 5 operative associations (OPETUR, ADOTUR, ASOTURE, ADOCA and 
ADAVIT) were always invited to the Dominican Treasures meetings, sadly only OPETUR 
and ADOTUR were available at all o the meetings. A memorandum was sent by me to 
the other associations as courtesy. We have been working with CDCT the possible 
solutions for the sales and marketing problems we still have. We fully agree that an 
alliance is the essence of the Dominican Treasures' products.
7. We have not yet seen any of the Dominican Treasure products.
8. We are not aware that ATAS is the entity that coordinates the membership, 
marketing and sales activities. If this is the case we will not be able to support the 
project. That was from the beginning our problem with Dominican Treasures and 
we thought this had been resolved. WE WILL NOT GO THROUGH ATAS TO 
RESERVE ANYTHING. If we need to go through ATAS we will not support the 
project.
I will be in the USA until the 15th of the month. Feel free to call me at 305-2185994
Thank you very much for your interest and support to our tourism projects and 
development.
Best Regards,
Elizabeth Tovar
President
ASOCIACION DOMINICANADE OPERADORES DE 
TURISMO RECEPTIVO
In addition, at the cluster level and with only certain tourism value chain stakeholders, 
since the start of ATAS/DT a range of activities (meetings, training, workshops, 
seminars, consultations, and so on) have been implemented to introduce ATAS/DR. In 
this context, another CDCT workshop was held at the Universidad Católica Santo 
Domingo on Friday, 8 July 2011 with the purpose of launching the commercialization or 
marketing and sales platform of ATAS/Dominican Treasures to educate the clusters. 
However, the majority of the participants were the same people that are in the DSTA 
Program cluster payroll, they came from all corners of DR representing the nine clusters, 
but none of the so called Dominican Treasures tourism products presented at the 
workshop are completed enough to be called a tour package or even ready to be tourism 
means-tested. In other words, the relevant tourism chain value stakeholders were 
absent. In short, ATAS is a waste of scarce resources.
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