In a public progress update released May 17, 2026, the Bank of the Republic of Haiti (BRH) has shared the current status of seven innovation-focused research projects supported through its national Research and Development Fund (FRD-BRH). The portfolio of projects, all launched in late September 2025, represents a combined public investment of more than 66 million Haitian gourdes, spanning cross-cutting priority sectors for the Caribbean nation: agricultural development, environmental stewardship, public health, and technological innovation.
All seven projects received their first 30% to 35% disbursement of funds upon their official launch on September 23, 2025, and most are progressing in line with or ahead of their initial implementation timelines, according to BRH’s monitoring data. Two projects in particular have advanced past the 70% completion mark, outpacing their peers to deliver early outcomes for local communities.
The first project, centered on assessing Haiti’s existing medical waste management frameworks, follows a holistic One Health framework that links proper waste handling to the long-term health of humans, animals, and local ecosystems. Led by an independent team of researchers over a 12-month timeline, the initiative is currently 30% complete, matching its 30% disbursement rate.
A second project, implemented by private Haitian firm VALPLAST, is focused on addressing two pressing local challenges at once: widespread plastic pollution and inadequate infrastructure. The initiative collects post-consumer plastic waste from Cité Soleil, one of Haiti’s most densely populated urban municipalities, and processes the waste into durable interlocking paving stones suitable for roads, parking lots, residential driveways, and public green spaces. Running on a 12-month timeline, the project has reached 40% completion with 35% of total funds disbursed to date.
Third, a team of independent researchers is working to develop an affordable, locally sourced natural biopesticide to target two widespread threats to Haitian agriculture: invasive scale insects that destroy coconut crops, and toxin-producing fungi that contaminate staple cereal and oilseed crops including maize, rice, sorghum, peanuts, and peas. The 18-month initiative is currently 40% complete, with 35% of its budget disbursed.
The longest-running project in the cohort, led by researchers from the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy at Haiti’s State University (UEH), is a comprehensive ethnobotanical study of native Haitian medicinal plants, with the goal of identifying new natural treatment candidates for common infectious diseases that disproportionately impact the country, including urinary tract infections, tuberculosis, and malaria. Scheduled for a 30-month research period, the initiative is 35% complete, matching its 35% disbursement rate.
An innovation-focused initiative focused on improving waste management is the most advanced project in the portfolio, according to BRH data. The project, led by an independent research team over 12 months, is developing a new smart waste container system and analyzing the long-term economic opportunities generated by expanded integrated waste management infrastructure. With 35% of its total budget disbursed, the project has already hit a 75% completion rate.
The only artificial intelligence-focused project in the cohort aims to modernize Haitian smallholder agriculture by developing an AI-powered tool that can monitor, detect, and predict crop disease, low soil fertility, and climate-driven heat and water stress in three of Haiti’s most important staple crops: beans, maize, and rice. The 24-month research initiative is currently 30% complete, with 35% of its total funding disbursed.
Finally, the shortest project in the third FRD-BRH cohort, managed by Quisqueya University over 8 months, is the CAFECLIMAT Science Café initiative, which brings climate change education programming and community conferences directly to Haitian secondary and primary schools. The program’s goal is to shift public attitudes and build more climate-friendly behaviors among young people across the country. With 35% of funding disbursed, the project has already reached 70% completion, putting it on track to wrap up earlier than most other initiatives in the cohort.
As Haiti continues to address long-standing social, economic, and environmental challenges, the BRH’s R&D funding initiative is designed to support homegrown solutions developed by local researchers and institutions that respond directly to the country’s most pressing needs.