Haiti has initiated a comprehensive national dialogue to fundamentally restructure its beleaguered education system. The Ministry of National Education officially commenced the National Conference on the Refounding of the Haitian Education System this week in Pétion-ville, framing the three-day event under the ambitious theme “For Transformative Education.”
The conference, running from January 21-23, 2026, represents a critical response to the systemic challenges plaguing Haiti’s educational infrastructure. The gathering brings together teachers’ unions, parent associations, educational experts, private sector representatives, and diaspora members to diagnose structural deficiencies and develop strategic solutions.
At the core of the reform effort are four strategic pillars: operationalizing the High National Council for Education, restoring educational governance and school authority, improving learning environments and school infrastructure, and combating academic failure and dropout rates.
The discussions align with Haiti’s Ten-Year Education and Training Plan 2020-2030, addressing ten critical themes including educational access and equity, teacher development, digital education innovation, infrastructure improvement, school safety, and crisis resilience.
Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, represented by Ms. Axène Joseph, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to allocating 4% of GDP to education, characterizing the overhaul as an “imperative national necessity” amid the country’s multidimensional crisis. The Prime Minister emphasized that these consultations aim to mobilize national resources toward achieving meaningful social and economic mobility through education reform.
Education Minister Antoine celebrated the broad participation as evidence of a shared commitment to addressing the challenges jeopardizing the future of Haitian youth. Conference Coordinator Guy Serge Pompilus emphasized that the success of this transformation will depend on the substantive contributions of all participants, with the proceedings expected to produce strategic documents capable of reversing the education system’s decline.