On July 18, 2026, multiple official and private institutions across Haiti released a series of critical announcements affecting applicants, voters, residents, and cultural stakeholders across the country.
First, the Haitian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a revision to the schedule for the 2026-2027 academic year Kingdom of Morocco government scholarship admission competition. Referencing an earlier notice from July 6, the ministry confirmed that the exam, originally set for July 18 in Les Cayes for applicants from Haiti’s Great South region, has been rescheduled to July 21. The test will now take place at the Public University of Les Cayes. Notably, the original July 18 date remains in effect for two other exam centers: Lycée de Pétion-ville in Port-au-Prince and the MAEC regional office in Vaudreuil, Cap-Haïtien. The ministry thanked candidates for their interest and urged all affected applicants to adjust their plans accordingly.
In electoral news, Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) announced the launch of a new nationwide voter registration drive. Starting July 20, registration will open in the capitals of nine of Haiti’s ten geographical departments, with the West Department excluded from the initial rollout. Eligible citizens will have a 90-day window to complete their registration at any local Registration and Voting Center. To complete the process, applicants must bring a valid national identification card. Voters may register at the center closest to their residence or at a center in their preferred voting constituency, with no mandatory pre-assigned locations. However, the CEP stressed that on election day, voting will only be permitted at the center where a citizen is registered, and unregistered residents will not be allowed to cast a ballot.
Telecommunications provider Digicel also issued a public statement regarding a new service disruption in southern Haiti. The company confirmed that on July 15, an intentional cut to its optical fiber infrastructure along National Road #2 caused outages for multiple services across the Deep South region. Technical teams were mobilized immediately to assess damage and begin repairs, but ongoing security instability in the affected area has blocked safe access for work crews. Digicel announced that its teams are coordinating closely with local security authorities to secure the necessary access to complete repairs as quickly as possible. The company acknowledged the significant inconvenience the outage has caused for residential and business customers, noting that all available resources are being deployed to restore full service, and thanked the public for their patience during the interruption.
The Haitian Ministry of Environment also announced an extension to a regulatory measure affecting sand quarry operations. A ban on extraction in four locations – Pèlerin, Laboule, Boutilliers, and Kenscoff – will be extended for 15 additional days starting July 16. At the conclusion of this extension period, only quarry sites that have been deemed operationally eligible following technical assessments from the Bureau of Mines and Energy (BME) and the National Environmental Evaluation Office (BNÉE), and whose operators have completed all required regulatory compliance steps, will be allowed to resume extraction activities.
On the international front, the United Nations confirmed that Haiti will return to the UN Security Council’s formal agenda on July 20. Three months after his last briefing to the council, Special Representative Jack Christofides will deliver a comprehensive update on the deployment, operational progress, and strategic direction of the international Gang Suppression Force, deployed to help Haitian authorities curb widespread gang-related violence.
In cultural news, UNESCO’s Haiti office hosted the official restitution event for the preservation project *Les Rhythmes du Tambour Haïtien* (The Rhythms of the Haitian Drum) on July 17. Attendees at the event got an exclusive first look at the opening 35 minutes of the project’s documentary series. The series explores the craft of drum-making, the playing techniques of traditional drummers, and the cultural spaces where Haitian drumming takes place, highlighting the central role of the drum in shaping Haitian national cultural identity. Funded by the UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund, the initiative aims to document, preserve, and transmit this intangible cultural heritage to current and future generations of Haitians.