July 25, 2026 – A week of mixed developments across Haiti spans youth football, local government transitions, rural infrastructure investment, and a decades-long call for accountability, with updates from every region of the country.
The biggest sporting spotlight this weekend falls on the 2026 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, hosted in Puebla, Mexico, where Haiti’s U-20 national side, the Grenadiers, will take on the United States U-20 team on Saturday evening, 10 PM local Haitian time, at the Estadio Universitario BUAP. This matchup marks the fifth encounter between the two nations in the history of the CONCACAF U-20 Championship, with the United States holding an undefeated streak of four wins against Haiti in prior tournament meetings. Haiti earned its spot in this year’s championship after a dominant run through Group D qualifiers, finishing with a clean 4-win record without a single draw or loss. This marks the 12th time Haiti has competed in the continental youth tournament.
In local governance news, Jacmel swore in its new municipal commission on Friday, July 24. Following an official swearing-in ceremony overseen by Justice of the Peace Keder Adescar, departmental delegate Pierre Michel Lafontant formally installed the new leadership team. Marceau Joseph will lead the commission as acting Mayor, supported by two deputy mayors Stéphanie Edouard Lafontant and Julie Leclerc, both of whom have pledged to prioritize local community progress during their term.
Haiti’s Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development (MARNDR) launched a key rural infrastructure project this week in Rendel, a community within the commune of Chardonnières. Agriculture Minister Marcelin Aubourg presided over the launch ceremony on July 24, confirming the project is funded through the national Resilient Agriculture for Food Security Project (PARSA). Once completed, the new rural access road will connect isolated farming communities to regional markets, cut transportation costs for agricultural producers, and strengthen national food security by removing barriers to getting local crops to consumers.
For Haiti’s senior men’s national football team, CONCACAF has officially released the full group stage schedule for the 2026-2027 Nations League, where Haiti competes in Group A of League A. All four of Haiti’s group stage matches will be held during the September-October 2026 FIFA international window, with the side currently awaiting the appointment of a new head coach. Haiti will open its campaign against Trinidad and Tobago on September 24, host Costa Rica four days later on September 28, travel to face the Dominican Republic on October 2, and wrap up group play against Costa Rica away on October 6.
Thirty-nine years after the 1987 Jean-Rabel massacre that left 139 peasant activists dead and more than 200 injured, Haitian peasant organization Tèt Kole Ti Peyizan Ayisyen continues to push for accountability. The massacre occurred on July 23, 1987, and nearly four decades later, the group says the core demands that led peasants to mobilize for land rights in 1987 remain unmet. The organization is calling for formal justice for victims, reparations for surviving families and affected communities, and the implementation of long-promised comprehensive agrarian reform across Haiti.
In Cap-Haïtien, the city’s municipal administration has begun distributing free paint to homeowners in the city center, as part of a broader urban beautification initiative launched this week. The distribution is limited to areas where the city has already completed street and sidewalk clearing work, and homeowners are required to paint the facade of their properties by the July 31 deadline set by municipal officials.