标签： Haiti

On August 22, 2026, Haiti’s Ministry of Defense advanced work on its high-stakes National Forum focused on shaping a new strategic vision and long-term future for the country’s Armed Forces, known locally as FAd’H. The second day of the gathering centered on targeted, in-depth debates across core priority areas: evolving national security threats, the military’s current operational capacity, shifting regional and global geopolitical dynamics, and pressing gaps in intelligence gathering, weapons infrastructure, and cyber defense capabilities.

Opening the day’s panel discussions, Lieutenant General Derby Guerrier, Commander-in-Chief of the FAd’H, led a conversation centered on the theme “Internal Threats to State Stability: Typology and Nature.” During his address, Guerrier outlined the most pressing structural constraints limiting the armed forces’ effectiveness today, including widespread shortages of essential equipment, underdeveloped military infrastructure, insufficient human capital, and gaps in ongoing specialized training. Despite these significant hurdles, he highlighted that the FAd’H has delivered measurable key achievements even with severely limited resource allocations, while stressing that systemic strengthening and comprehensive rebuilding of operational capacity remain non-negotiable priorities for the institution.

Subsequent presentations dug into broader security contexts and emerging threat vectors. Colonel Antoine Atouriste, whose talk focused on “The Army in the Regional and International Context,” offered a detailed analysis of dominant regional security threats and their direct implications for Haiti’s national defense and domestic stability. For his contribution, independent expert Pierre Antoine Louis turned attention to external threats to Haiti’s state sovereignty, centered specifically on the urgent need to protect and expand the country’s underdefended maritime natural and territorial heritage.

Lieutenant Colonel Edwin Florexil centered his remarks on the interconnected domains of military intelligence and weapons systems, emphasizing that a robust, functional intelligence service is an irreplaceable foundational pillar of effective national defense. Closing out the day’s scheduled addresses, cybersecurity specialist Guy P. Etienne explored the growing risks of cyberattacks and the integration of new defense technologies, stressing that Haiti’s defense institutions must rapidly upgrade their digital resilience to counter rapidly evolving threats in the global cyber domain.

By the end of the day’s proceedings, the series of targeted presentations had fostered a far deeper collective understanding of the multi-layered challenges facing the FAd’H, as well as consensus around the critical reforms and investments needed to build a modern, professional military that is well-resourced and aligned with Haiti’s unique on-the-ground security realities. The National Forum is set to continue its deliberations on Sunday, August 23, 2026, with further discussions expected to outline concrete roadmaps for institutional reform.

A landmark strategic partnership agreement was signed on August 21, 2026 between Haiti’s Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces of Haiti (FAd’H), and the State University of Haiti (UEH), during the opening day of the National Forum on the Vision and Future of the Armed Forces of Haiti. The high-profile opening ceremony was attended by Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, alongside senior representatives from public sector bodies, the FAd’H High Command, the national academic community, civil society organizations, and international diplomatic stakeholders.

This memorandum of understanding (MoU) is designed to boost the academic, scientific, and professional capabilities of all serving FAd’H personnel, and to cultivate long-term collaborative ties between Haiti’s military establishment and its leading academic institution. During his opening remarks at the forum, Defense Minister Mario Andrésol framed the new partnership as a critical catalyst for advancing the long-delayed modernization and professionalization of Haiti’s national armed forces.

Andrésol emphasized that contemporary military training must extend far beyond foundational operational capabilities, arguing that robust knowledge development is the cornerstone of building a fully functional modern army. Addressing junior officers and non-commissioned officers in attendance, he noted, “The Nation entrusts you with its weapons, but the University will equip you with the most powerful tool of all: knowledge.”

UEH Rector Dieuseul Predelus echoed this sentiment, framing the signing ceremony as far more than a bureaucratic agreement. “What we are accomplishing together today, by signing this Framework Partnership Agreement, is an act of faith in Haiti, an act of responsibility toward our people, and an act of clear-sightedness in the face of the challenges of our time,” he said.

Predelus drew on global precedents to contextualize the importance of the new collaboration, noting that the world’s most powerful states consistently invest heavily in university and research infrastructure to reinforce national defense capabilities. “The United States built its scientific and technological hegemony on university campuses intimately linked to its military-industrial complex. In France, the Grandes Écoles were founded on the conviction that the training of intellectual elites is inseparable from the nation’s defense capacity. In Haiti, we must rediscover and honor this fundamental imperative,” he explained.

Since the official remobilization and rebuilding of the Haitian Armed Forces began, the institution has faced persistent gaps in specialized training and skilled personnel. Predelus stressed that the newly reconstituted FAd’H requires leadership trained to meet the most rigorous international academic and scientific standards, with expertise extending far beyond core military tactics. Officers and technicians need proficiency in geopolitics, emerging digital technologies, history, and core natural sciences to meet 21st-century defense challenges, he added.

The newly signed agreement directly addresses these unmet needs. It establishes pathways for FAd’H personnel to complete accredited degree programs and access ongoing continuing education courses, and creates a framework for joint scientific research into pressing national security and defense strategic issues. UEH has committed to developing and delivering all training programs in line with global academic standards, while ensuring curricula are rooted in Haitian national context and tailored to the unique operational missions of the FAd’H.

“By uniting knowledge and defense, the University and the Army, knowledge and security, we are returning to the deepest vision of our founders: that of a free, educated people capable of defending and governing themselves,” Predelus concluded.

In a separate announcement, Defense Minister Andrésol confirmed that the Haitian government will support integrating key conclusions from the national forum into two foundational policy documents: an updated FAd’H institutional doctrine and a new National Defense White Paper. According to Andrésol, these documents will form the backbone of a formal national Strategic Defense Plan, which will be submitted to relevant Haitian state authorities and released publicly to uphold government transparency commitments.

Haiti’s path toward restoring democratic governance took a key step forward this week, as the country’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) concluded a public, randomized draw to assign official campaign numbers to all political entities qualified to participate in upcoming national elections. The ceremony, held August 20, 2026, brought together a broad cross-section of domestic and international observers to reinforce commitments to a transparent electoral process after years of ongoing national crisis.

In attendance were voting from sitting CEP members, CEP Director General Uder Antoine, Haiti’s Minister for the Status of Women and Women’s Rights, official representatives from all competing political parties and groups, representatives of Haiti’s national and international development and election partners, members of the national and international press, and CEP administrative staff. This multi-stakeholder presence was structured to ensure every step of the draw process was open to public scrutiny.

Opening the event, CEP President Jacques Desrosiers framed the draw as a critical milestone for Haitian democracy. After more than 10 years of overlapping political, economic, and security crises that have crippled state function and eroded public trust in governance, Desrosiers noted that the upcoming elections represent a long-awaited opportunity for Haitian citizens to renew their national leadership.

Desrosiers used his opening remarks to reaffirm the CEP’s institutional commitment to upholding core democratic standards throughout the electoral cycle. The council, he stressed, would work to ensure a process rooted in fairness, impartiality, full transparency, and equal treatment for every competing political force, regardless of size or existing political influence. This commitment is designed to guarantee a level playing field that allows all qualified parties to compete freely for voter support.

Following the opening address, CEP Councilor Yves Marie Edouard walked attendees through the formal procedures for the draw, which would assign unique identifying numbers to a total of 105 competing political entities: 88 registered political parties and 17 independent political groups. To eliminate any potential bias or manipulation, the process relied on a simple, verifiable physical randomization system: two separate rotating drums were used, one holding slips of paper printed with the name of each political entity, and the other holding the corresponding unique campaign numbers. Representatives drew each entry publicly, resulting in a fully randomized assignment that was observed by all in attendance.

The entire draw process unfolded in a calm, orderly atmosphere that observers described as conducive to open accountability. Stakeholders from across the political spectrum and the international community noted that the inclusive, public nature of the event has already helped strengthen confidence in the credibility of this early stage of the electoral process.

In closing remarks, CEP Director General Uder Antoine extended thanks to all participating political representatives, national observers, and international partners for their attendance and collaborative engagement with the process. He also issued a key reminder to all competing entities: the official window for candidate registration will open the following day, August 20, 2026, marking the next formal step toward holding the long-delayed elections. The full, official list of all 105 political organizations and their assigned campaign numbers is available for public download via the HaitiLibre document portal.