Friday, October 1, 2010
By Arvin Poole
I had the distinct pleasure and opportunity of attending a welcoming event yesterday in Austin, TX for the Honorable Dr. Leonel Antonio Fernandez Reyna, President of the Dominican Republic (D.R.) . Upon arrival to the Headliners Club on the 21st floor of Austin Downtown Chase Building, I was honored to network with diplomats and key officials of D.R., State of Texas and City of Austin, such as the Honorable Hope Andrade, Texas Secretary of State; Rodney Gonzales, Deputy Director, City of Austin Economic Growth & Redevelopment Services Office; Amir Mirabi, International Business Economic Development, Office of the Governor; and key executives from IBM, Citibank, Dell, Wells Fargo, and Cap Metro. Before Dr. Fernandez addressed the audience, I did shake hands and welcomed him in his first trip to our beautiful city of Austin and State of Texas.
One of the key takeaways for me was some of the successes that D.R. have already achieved in such a short period. Over the past 15 years, D.R. has grown at nearly an average annual rate of 8% but the challenge that President Fernandez states is “how does D.R. keep this momentum going forward by sustaining economic growth without the dependency on their agriculture and commodities export, and their labor intensive service-oriented economy?” For D.R., it is moving up the ladder, trying to solve the problems of poverty, high unemployment, and educating D.R.’s workforce and transforming these issues into a country that has high sustainable growth in technology commercialization, innovation, and thought leadership.
President Fernandez closing message to the audience was, “I think there is an implicit understanding amongst D.R. and the State of Texas that through our partnership, through international outreach, through our free trade agreement, and through investment I think we both can benefit and this will be the wave of the future.”
You can view President Dr. Fernandez’s speech in its entirety here:
About the Event
The event was part of Opportunity Austin 2.0, a business initiative of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, and organized by the State of Texas, City of Austin, and Global Equations. Its objective was to establish top level relationships with the Texas Government and with leading businesses in Texas who would be interested in conducting bilateral trade and expanding business with the Dominican Republic.
About President Leonel Antonio Fernandez Reyna
President Leonel Antonio Fernandez Reyna was born in Santo Domingo, D.R. and moved to New York where he received primary and secondary education. He returned to the D.R. in 1971 and in 1978 graduated from the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo with honors in law.
He became President on August 16, 1996 and has worked to establish an aggressive foreign policy which has moved the country from its traditional isolation and encouraged market openings and globalization.
About Arvin Poole
Arvin Poole is the CEO and President of SHAARP Management, Inc., a boutique international management and marketing consultant firm in Austin, TX. Poole has provided over 20 years of management and business consulting to corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and government leaders. Poole serves on the boards for the National Black MBA Association, Austin Chapter and Amber’s Angels, a Texas non-profit organization dedicated to supporting children affected by cystic fibrosis, cancer, and asthma.
In Poole’s former role, he was a marketing manager in IBM’s Software Group and prior to that led IBM’s Austin Talent Incubator, Extreme Blue. He is very active in the Austin entrepreneurial community and currently working on his 5th business venture.