Carib Scope

标签： Haiti

海地

  • Technology : Why is the BRH interested in Artificial Intelligence (AI) ?

    Technology : Why is the BRH interested in Artificial Intelligence (AI) ?

    Artificial intelligence has emerged as one of the most disruptive technological shifts of the 21st century, reshaping everything from production processes and educational models to workplace dynamics and institutional decision-making. The rapid evolution of generative AI, in particular, has unlocked unprecedented capabilities, allowing users to generate complex analyses, condensed summaries, and original content in mere seconds.

    As the global debate continues over whether AI will ultimately displace large swathes of the workforce or open new pathways for inclusive growth, the Central Bank of Haiti (BRH) has positioned itself at the forefront of preparedness, opting for a proactive strategy that balances pursuit of AI’s transformative benefits with careful mitigation of its inherent risks.

    BRH leadership emphasizes that while AI delivers substantial productivity gains that can accelerate economic progress, it should not be viewed as a replacement for human judgment and specialized expertise. Instead, the bank frames AI as a complementary decision-support tool that amplifies, rather than replaces, human intelligence.

    For developing nations like Haiti that have historically lagged behind in global technological adoption, AI represents a rare opportunity to narrow the global economic divide by expanding production capacity. However, BRH warns that the concentrated control of AI innovation and investment by major economic powers such as the United States and China creates significant risks. Slow, uncoordinated response from developing countries could instead widen existing global wealth gaps, and while employment disruptions from AI have remained contained in major advanced economies to date, the long-term impacts on labor markets—particularly for young workers whose roles are most vulnerable to automation—remain poorly understood.

    BRH has outlined three core priority sectors where AI can deliver outsized benefits to Haiti:
    First, in education, AI offers transformative potential to address longstanding structural challenges. Haiti has long struggled with widespread training gaps and high rates of skilled worker emigration that have eroded the country’s capacity to deliver knowledge to new generations. AI tools can fill critical gaps in human capital development, democratizing access to high-quality educational resources, delivering personalized learning support to students, and upskilling existing teachers without replacing the core role of in-person instruction.
    Second, AI can drive urgent administrative modernization across both public institutions and private enterprises. Automating repetitive administrative tasks, digitizing public and private archival records, improving customer and citizen engagement, and enabling rapid analysis of massive datasets all deliver major efficiency gains. For a country where bureaucratic red tape and administrative inefficiency remain persistent barriers to growth, these improvements can both boost service quality and cut operational costs, generating widespread benefits for overall economic productivity.
    Third, AI can revolutionize Haiti’s natural disaster risk management. Haiti ranks among the most vulnerable countries in the Western Hemisphere to major natural hazards, from hurricanes to earthquakes. AI-powered tools enable real-time collection of geospatial crisis data, predictive disaster simulation modeling, and rapid post-event impact assessments, allowing authorities to implement more targeted mitigation measures that reduce both human casualties and financial losses.

    Despite these promising opportunities, BRH has identified two major systemic risks that require urgent preparation. The first is the potential for a decline in diaspora remittances, which have served as Haiti’s most stable source of capital inflows for decades. If large-scale AI-driven automation displaces workers in host countries with high concentrations of Haitian immigrants, diaspora workers—disproportionately young and less experienced, per a 2026 Goldman Sachs study—would be among the first to lose jobs, directly cutting remittance flows that sustain millions of Haitian households. The second major risk is growing cybersecurity vulnerability: every new generation of AI lowers the technical barriers and cost of launching sophisticated cyberattacks, a threat that leading central banks in the U.S. and U.K. have already moved to address by developing new resilience frameworks for their financial sectors.

    Against this backdrop, BRH has laid out a four-pillar proactive strategy to guide Haiti’s AI transition, rejecting a passive approach to the global AI revolution. First, the bank is prioritizing knowledge development: as a co-founder of the Ayiti IA 2025 summit, BRH has announced the creation of a dedicated AI Fund to foster public discussion and drive widespread adoption of responsible AI across the country. Second, it is already implementing concrete AI applications in institutional research: the BRH Research Directorate is currently using text-based AI to build new, low-cost statistical datasets tracking Haiti’s evolving labor market. Third, BRH will integrate AI into its core regulatory and supervisory missions, using the technology to strengthen financial system oversight, identify emerging systemic risks, and secure national payment systems while upholding strict data protection standards. Finally, the bank has developed a dedicated research and resilience agenda, including plans for AI-focused cybersecurity stress testing and policy recommendations to protect Haiti’s financial integrity from emerging AI-driven threats.

    In conclusion, BRH frames AI as neither an automatic silver bullet for Haiti’s longstanding economic challenges nor an inevitable existential threat. The ultimate success of AI adoption in the country will depend on Haiti’s ability to invest strategically in three core areas: upgraded human capital, strengthened governance frameworks for responsible AI, and expanded digital infrastructure. The central bank has committed to guiding a measured, inclusive transition that positions AI as a driver of long-term, stable economic development for Haiti.

  • Zapping Haiti of July 12, 2026

    Zapping Haiti of July 12, 2026

    On July 12, 2026, multiple updates across sports, diplomacy, politics, culture, social welfare and infrastructure have emerged from Haiti, covering a range of key developments for the Caribbean nation.

    In international basketball competition, Haiti’s men’s national team has marked a historic milestone in the FIBA AmeriCup 2029 Caribbean Pre-Qualifiers. Playing in Group B, the squad secured a dominant 100-66 victory over Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, marking their second win of the qualifying campaign. This result propelled Haiti from fourth place in the group standings following an earlier match against Grenada up to second position, behind current group leaders Barbados. Haiti’s final group stage match is scheduled for later this same day, July 12, 2026, kicking off at 3:00 PM local time against the Cayman Islands.

    In diplomatic news, Haiti’s ambassador to the Bahamas, Dern Jovens Bonhomme, extended official greetings to the Bahamian people to mark the 53rd anniversary of the country’s independence, which was celebrated on July 10. On behalf of the Haitian government and public, Bonhomme conveyed sincere wishes for lasting peace, shared prosperity, ongoing progress and continued success for the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. “Happy 53rd Independence Day to the people of The Bahamas, the Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, and all our Bahamian brothers and sisters,” the message read.

    In political and security developments, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) will dispatch a high-level delegation to Haiti at the end of this month, following an official invitation from Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. The delegation will conduct an on-the-ground assessment of the complex security crisis Haiti currently faces, driven by widespread violence from armed criminal groups. During the visit, the prime Minister noted the delegation will also get a first-hand look at progress made in the country’s ongoing electoral process and national efforts to crack down on widespread insecurity.

    On the cultural front, beloved Haitian comedian and writer Joseph-Jacques Alexandre Ducasse, widely known by his stage name “Sejoe”, is currently on a performance tour across France. Haiti’s Consulate General in Paris welcomed the artist during his tour stop on July 11 and 12, 2026. Jean Jocelyn Petit, head of the consular mission, highlighted the significant cultural impact of the tour for Haiti’s diaspora community and Haitian citizens residing in France, and reaffirmed the consulate’s ongoing support for Haitian creative talent that represents the country with pride on the international stage.

    In social welfare improvements for the country’s prison system, Haiti’s Bureau of Human Rights (BDHH) recently completed a distribution of 250 new mattresses to incarcerated people at two prisons in the southern cities of Cayes and Jérémie. The handover was attended by the regional deputy director of Haiti’s national penitentiary administration and the government commissioner for the Court of First Instance of Cayes.

    Finally, in environmental infrastructure progress, local Haitian officials and project partners joined an Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) mission to northern Haiti to inspect the construction site of the new Mouchinette Integrated Solid Waste Management Center. The on-site visit allowed the delegation to review the current pace of construction, align all stakeholders on a shared vision for modern, sustainable waste management, and renew collective commitments to improving local environmental conditions. The $20 million facility, the first of its kind in Haiti, is being built by a Dominican construction firm with specialized expertise in solid waste management, and the full project cost is financed by the IDB.

  • Environment : «We want a more beautiful Haiti, not a garbage dump !»

    Environment : «We want a more beautiful Haiti, not a garbage dump !»

    On July 10, 2026, thousands of Haitian citizens joined coordinated nationwide actions organized by two leading environmental advocacy groups—Alternatiba Haiti’s National Citizen Movement for Climate Alternatives and the Francophone Action Group for the Environment (GAFE)—to mark the 8th annual National Day of Citizen Mobilization against polystyrene use across the country. The mobilization unfolded across more than 20 Haitian municipalities, where demonstrators gathered outside local town halls to demand urgent government action: a full, permanent, and uncompromising ban on all forms of polystyrene products, and long-overdue enforcement of a national ban first signed into law back in July 2013.

    Demonstrators carried signs and chanted a unifying rallying cry that encapsulates their core demand: “We want a more beautiful Haiti, not a garbage dump! Down with polystyrene!” In a joint statement released during the mobilization, leaders from Alternatiba Haiti and GAFE highlighted a critical policy failure that has perpetuated the country’s ongoing polystyrene crisis: more than a decade after the original ban went into effect, these single-use products still saturate local markets and contaminate the national landscape, proving that the problem is not the absence of regulation, but a persistent lack of political will to implement existing rules.

    The groups outlined the severe, cascading harms of unregulated polystyrene use that Haitian communities face daily. Beyond creating widespread visual pollution that blights public spaces, discarded polystyrene clogs drainage canals and natural ravines, directly worsening the country’s chronic flood risk during tropical storm and hurricane seasons. Polystyrene also poses a serious threat to public health: the product is a known carcinogen, putting Haitian residents at elevated long-term risk of cancer through environmental exposure. Compounding the issue, the organizations confirmed that nearly all illegal polystyrene entering Haiti is trafficked through unregulated cross-border smuggling networks, which evade existing customs controls to bring the banned product into local markets.

    To address this ongoing crisis, Alternatiba Haiti and GAFE have laid out a clear set of demands for Haitian national and local authorities. First, they call for immediate full implementation and consistent enforcement of the 2013 ban, with aggressive action to shut down all illegal importation and commercial trade of polystyrene products. Second, they demand enhanced, consistent border security inspections to block smuggling routes that bring illegal polystyrene into the country. Third, they urge policymakers to proactively support and incentivize the adoption of eco-friendly alternatives, including reusable food and beverage containers that eliminate the need for single-use polystyrene.

    The groups also issued a broad call for collective action across all sectors of Haitian society, inviting individual citizens, community organizations, primary and secondary schools, universities, religious institutions, local businesses, and municipal governments to join the mobilization effort. Beyond public support, organizers are asking all participating stakeholders to help monitor commercial use of polystyrene products across the country, holding violators of the 2013 ban accountable to create long-term change for Haiti’s environment and public health.

  • CARICOM : Unwavering solidarity with the Haitian people

    CARICOM : Unwavering solidarity with the Haitian people

    Against the backdrop of ongoing political and security upheaval in Haiti, regional leaders from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have publicly reaffirmed their steadfast solidarity with the Haitian people during the body’s 51st Ordinary Session of the Conference of the Parties, hosted in Saint Lucia. In an official statement released on the sidelines of the gathering, the bloc’s Heads of Government made clear their long-standing commitment to backing Haiti’s mission to rebuild national security, reinforce democratic institutions, and restore full constitutional rule of law.

    The conference opened with formal praise for the steps taken by Haiti’s transitional government, led by Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, to shore up domestic security, move the electoral timeline forward, and lay the foundational framework for elections that meet global standards of freedom, credibility, inclusivity and peace. CARICOM leaders highlighted the tangible progress already achieved through these efforts and urged the Haitian administration to maintain its momentum moving forward.

    Heads of Government stressed that a successful conclusion to Haiti’s current transitional period is non-negotiable: it is the only pathway to allowing Haitian citizens to exercise their democratic right to select their own leaders through a transparent, free electoral process. The bloc renewed its approval of the government’s continued focus on the three most urgent priorities for the nation: restoring widespread security, establishing consistent national stability, and advancing the electoral process to meet its scheduled milestones.

    A key point of the statement centered on CARICOM’s repeated backing for efforts to strengthen Haiti’s national security institutions. The bloc called for the full operational deployment of the Gang Repression Force (FRG) and the timely renewal of its mandate, noting that security gains in Haiti are not isolated—they are directly tied to the broader security and stability of every nation across the entire Caribbean region.

    CARICOM also reiterated its long-standing pledge to continue close collaborative work with Haitian national authorities, the United Nations, the Organization of American States, and all other relevant international partners. The goal of this coordinated work is to support Haiti as it moves past its current crisis and builds the stable conditions needed for enduring security, democratic elections, and long-term national stability.

    In a call to global stakeholders, the Caribbean Community encouraged all international and regional partners to pursue constructive engagement with both Haiti’s current transitional leadership and all major national stakeholders. This alignment, leaders argue, will enable a coordinated, unified approach that consistently places the interests, personal safety, and long-term future of the Haitian people at the core of all collective action.

    Closing on a note of cautious optimism, the CARICOM leadership expressed confidence that with sustained national commitment from Haitian stakeholders and ongoing, coordinated support from regional and international allies, Haiti will ultimately build a secure, stable, and fully democratic future—one that delivers tangible benefit to both its own population and the Caribbean Community as a whole.

  • FLASH : New reprieve for Haitians under TPS in the USA

    FLASH : New reprieve for Haitians under TPS in the USA

    In a last-minute administrative update posted to its official website, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a two-week extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible Haitian beneficiaries, pushing the program’s expiration date from July 10 to July 24, 2026. This short-term reprieve means that all current Haitian TPS holders will retain their legal status and active A12 or C19 Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) through the new end date, giving them an extra 14 days of protected stay and work eligibility in the country.

    The extension comes as a temporary pause ahead of lower court implementation of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling handed down on June 25, 2026. That decision upheld the Trump administration’s authority to revoke the TPS designation for Haiti and other countries, a policy change that puts hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian TPS beneficiaries at risk of deportation.

    For Haitian TPS holders, many of whom have built deep roots in the U.S. over decades of residence, the brief extension offers a small window of additional time to plan for an uncertain future. Immigrant advocacy organizations are urging all affected Haitian enrollees to immediately pursue steps to regularize their immigration status if possible, and to seek legal guidance from experienced immigration attorneys to understand their options.

    The scope of this policy change extends across communities and critical industries nationwide. In Florida alone, the Florida Immigrant Coalition estimates that 158,000 Haitians currently hold TPS, with nearly 113,000 of those workers employed in the U.S. healthcare sector. Thousands more Haitian TPS holders work in hospitality, including roles at major hotels and commercial airports that support local and national travel economies.

    Beyond employment, tens of thousands of Haitian TPS holders have integrated fully into U.S. economic life: federal data and advocacy group estimates show that roughly 63,000 Haitian enrollees across the country have purchased homes through mortgage lending, and hundreds of thousands more have financed vehicle purchases, put down roots in local communities, and raised families in the U.S. Even with the short-term extension, the looming threat of revocation has left the entire community in a state of persistent uncertainty and anxiety about what comes next after July 24.

  • News : Zapping…

    News : Zapping…

    In the week ending July 10, 2026, Haiti has seen a series of interconnected developments spanning law enforcement, labor, sports, and international diplomacy that paint a mixed picture of progress and ongoing challenge across the Caribbean nation.

    On the front of anti-narcotics enforcement, joint teams from the Haitian National Police (PNH)’s Bureau for Combating Drug Trafficking (BLTS) and the PNH Coast Guard carried out a landmark destruction operation in Regnier, a town located in Chantal commune within Haiti’s South Department. The teams destroyed a total of nearly 4.85 metric tons of marijuana (officially recorded at 4,842.6964 kg) alongside 57.2 kilograms of cocaine, all seized during a multi-year series of anti-drug operations launched in 2017 targeting trafficking networks in southern Haiti. The operation marks one of the largest drug destruction efforts in the region in recent years, signaling sustained pressure on criminal drug rings operating across the country’s southern corridor.

    In Port-au-Prince, labor unrest broke out Friday when employees of Haiti’s National Ambulance Center (CAN) gathered outside the agency’s headquarters to demonstrate against unresolved working conditions and months of unpaid wages. Protesters set fire to tires to draw attention to their grievances, reporting that dozens of staff have gone months without pay, with some owed back wages stretching back more than 10 months. Workers also cited the failure of the institution to finalize formal employment contracts as a core barrier to regular salary disbursement, placing critical emergency medical services at risk of disruption amid already strained public infrastructure.

    In a separate anti-crime operation in the Pèlerin 5 neighborhood of Pétion-ville, the PNH announced it had fully dismantled a criminal gang responsible for a string of kidnappings and home invasions across multiple residential communities in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. In a rare development exposing institutional corruption linked to organized crime, serving police inspector Rubenson Elce, a member of the 18th graduating class of the national police academy, was taken into custody on charges of gang affiliation and complicity in the group’s criminal activities.

    In international sports, Haiti’s men’s national basketball team earned a historic first win in the FIBA AmeriCup 2029 Caribbean Pre-Qualifiers Group B, defeating Grenada by a final score of 89-70. The result comes after a lopsided opening-round loss to Barbados (68-91) that left the Haitian side at the bottom of the five-team group, currently holding fourth place. The team is set to face back-to-back matches over the weekend of July 11-12, first taking on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines at midday on July 11, before facing off against the Cayman Islands on the afternoon of July 12.

    In national football news, the Haitian Football Federation (FHF) has confirmed that current Grenadiers head coach Sébastien Migné will remain in his post through the end of his current contract, which is scheduled to expire in December 2026. FHF leadership opted against an early termination of Migné’s contract, stating that they would honor existing contractual obligations before opening discussions on the national team’s long-term leadership. Through the remainder of his tenure, Migné will lead the squad through the upcoming CONCACAF Nations League tournament, scheduled to run from September 21 to October 6, 2026.

    On the diplomatic front, a high-level meeting between United Nations agencies focused on advancing peacebuilding and development efforts in Haiti took place in Port-au-Prince on July 9. UNESCO’s resident representative in Haiti, Eric Voli Bi, hosted Daniela Kroslak, UN Under-Secretary-General and Head of Mission of the UN Support Office in Haiti (BANUH), for an official courtesy visit. The two leaders aligned on shared UN system priorities in the country, and discussed plans to expand collaborative cooperation to bolster Haitian national efforts to build lasting peace, advance inclusive sustainable development, strengthen social cohesion, and boost community resilience amid ongoing instability.

  • FLASH : 4.0 earthquake in the North-West

    FLASH : 4.0 earthquake in the North-West

    A moderate 4.0-magnitude earthquake rattled offshore waters near Haiti’s northwest coast in the early hours of Saturday, July 11, 2026, according to preliminary seismic data. The tremor was recorded at 12:10:54 a.m. local time, following a Friday night onset that put the seismic event within the window between July 10 and 11.

    Geographic positioning places the earthquake’s epicenter 18 kilometers north of Jean Rabel, a coastal town in Haiti’s North-West Department. Coordinates for the epicenter mark it at 20.03 degrees north latitude and 73.20 degrees west longitude, placing it 31 kilometers northeast of another northwest coastal hub, Môle Saint-Nicolas, 23 kilometers west of Tortue Island, and roughly 109 kilometers northwest of Cap-Haitien, the largest city in Haiti’s northern department. Seismic analysts estimate the hypocenter of the quake sits at a relatively shallow depth of 5 kilometers below the ocean floor.

    In the immediate aftermath of the seismic activity, Haiti’s Directorate of Civil Protection (DPC) confirmed that as of the latest update, no reports of human casualties, physical injuries, or structural damage have been linked to the earthquake. The moderate intensity of the tremor, paired with its offshore location, is thought to have limited potential for widespread harm to coastal communities in the affected region.

  • Tour of the Haiti’s Minister of the Environment in the South-East (video)

    Tour of the Haiti’s Minister of the Environment in the South-East (video)

    Between July 7 and 9, 2026, Haiti’s Minister of Environment Valéry Fils-Aimé led an official inspection and inauguration tour across the South-East department, stopping in the key coastal municipalities of Jacmel and Belle-Anse. The visit marked the completion of several community-focused climate adaptation projects developed under the Global Alliance against Climate Change Plus (GCCA+) initiative, a program designed to boost local resilience to worsening climate impacts across vulnerable nations.

    Accompanying Minister Fils-Aimé on the tour were high-level stakeholders including Hélène Roos, Ambassador of the European Union to Haiti, and Charles Jean-Jacques, National Authorizing Officer for the European Development Fund (EDF) in Haiti, which provides core financing for the initiative.

    The completed projects deliver long-term benefits across environmental protection, education and economic development. First, the delegation inaugurated a new Governance Office and Herbarium at the Lagon des Huîtres National Natural Park, one of Haiti’s most ecologically significant protected areas. These new facilities will strengthen park management capacity, support conservation research and better safeguard the region’s unique biodiversity.

    In a nod to connecting environmental action to community education, the tour also marked the reopening of the renovated library at Calixte Numa Rabel High School, alongside a new fully solar-powered computer lab equipped with 17 internet-connected devices. The off-grid solar system solves longstanding unreliable electricity access issues, giving students consistent access to digital learning tools that were previously out of reach for most in the region.

    The final major infrastructure inauguration was the fully rehabilitated Communal Maritime Fishing Center in Belle-Anse, outfitted with a new solar-powered cold storage room. The facility will revolutionize local fishing operations by extending the shelf life of caught seafood, cutting post-harvest waste that has long eaten into fishermen’s profits, boosting local household incomes and laying the groundwork for sustainable growth of Haiti’s blue economy.

    Beyond physical infrastructure, the GCCA+ program has already delivered transformative social and environmental results by supporting livelihood transitions for local workers. Twenty-one charcoal producers, who previously relied on deforestation for their income, have been retrained and reorganized into three independent beekeeper groups. Three dedicated beekeeping stations have been established to produce organic honey, creating a steady alternative income stream while reducing pressure on Haiti’s threatened forest ecosystems. This dual-focus approach advances both biodiversity conservation and improved living standards for communities in Belle-Anse.

    During opening remarks, Minister Fils-Aimé highlighted the success of the cross-sector partnership, emphasizing that all completed projects are first and foremost investments in the well-being of Haitian communities. Closing out the visit to Belle-Anse, Ambassador Roos reiterated the core vision guiding the collaboration: that meaningful climate resilience can only be built through shared effort between local communities, national government authorities, and strong international partnerships.

  • Technology : Towards an energy revolution in rural areas

    Technology : Towards an energy revolution in rural areas

    Haiti is poised to deliver a long-overdue energy transformation to its underserved rural communities, as the country’s Office for Monetization of Development Assistance Programs (BMPAD) has launched formal partnership discussions with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to advance a ground-breaking solar electrification project.

    In a landmark first working session, BMPAD Director General Me Stevenson Jacques Thimoléon laid out the details of the Solar Electrification Program for Essential Public Services (PESPE), an initiative designed to expand sustainable, reliable electricity access to Haiti’s most energy-poor rural regions. This meeting marks a critical milestone in BMPAD’s strategy to build international collaboration around renewable energy projects that strengthen core public services for rural Haitians.

    At the core of PESPE is a plan to install stand-alone photovoltaic solar systems at three types of key public facilities located in communes and communal sections with the least consistent access to grid electricity: public primary and secondary schools, community health centers, and local sub-stations of the Haitian National Police (PNH). The overarching goal of the project is not only to expand energy access, but also to reduce stark territorial disparities between urban and rural areas by delivering higher-quality public services to populations that have long been overlooked.

    To ensure efficient, coordinated delivery, PESPE will be led by BMPAD with active participation from a cross-sector coalition of Haitian government institutions, including the Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation (MPCE), the Ministry of National Education and Professional Training (MENFP), the Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP), the National Institute of Professional Training (INFP), and the Haitian National Police itself. BMPAD is also actively seeking additional technical and financial partners to support full implementation of the initiative, with the inter-agency governance structure designed to deliver coordinated, efficient, and long-lasting outcomes.

    The initiative aligns directly with the Haitian government’s national sustainable development priorities. If all required co-financing from national and international partners is secured, PESPE will draw on a total investment pool of $45 million USD over a 36-month implementation period. As a critical first step to test the model, BMPAD is prioritizing launching a 12-month pilot project that will validate the technical, social, and financial viability of the program before it is scaled up nationwide.

    Beyond just installing solar panels on public buildings, the program includes holistic capacity-building components to ensure long-term sustainability. Local technicians will receive specialized training to maintain the solar installations, community-level management committees will be established to oversee ongoing operations, and the project will position renewable energy as a core driver of inclusive local economic development.

    When fully deployed, PESPE is projected to deliver electricity to 500 rural schools, 300 rural health centers, and 200 PNH rural sub-stations. The far-reaching impacts of this access will include improved learning environments for hundreds of thousands of Haitian students, stronger quality of primary health care for rural communities, reliable cold chain storage to preserve life-saving vaccines at local clinics and dispensaries, and increased operational capacity for law enforcement working to keep rural communities safe.

    Through this initial engagement with the Caribbean Development Bank, BMPAD has reaffirmed its commitment to diversifying its network of technical and financial partners to deliver high-impact economic and social projects. By centering renewable energy as a lever for sustainable development, the initiative seeks to strengthen public services and close the persistent equity gap between Haiti’s urban and rural areas.

    This first formal contact between the two institutions has opened promising pathways for long-term collaboration, with the immediate goal of mobilizing the resources needed to launch the pilot project. That pilot will serve as a foundation for a national program that has the potential to permanently transform access to essential public services and accelerate inclusive development for Haiti’s rural communities.

  • FLASH : D-2, more than 118,000 candidates expected for the 2025-2026 baccalaureate

    FLASH : D-2, more than 118,000 candidates expected for the 2025-2026 baccalaureate

    With just two days remaining until the start of Haiti’s 2025-2026 national baccalaureate exams, education authorities have finalized last-minute preparations and confirmed the high-stakes assessment will proceed as originally scheduled. The four-day exam series, which will serve as a critical academic milestone for more than 118,000 secondary students across the country, will run from July 13 to July 16, 2026. National Education Minister Vijonet Déméro made this official announcement during a press conference held on July 10, 2026.

    Breaking down the candidate pool, Déméro shared that a total of 118,090 examinees are registered to take part in the exams. This cohort includes 102,878 first-time candidates from Secondary 4, 14,338 repeat candidates who did not pass their previous Secondary 4 attempt, and 874 candidates retaking the traditional philosophy examination. In a notable first for the country’s technical education pathway, 23 candidates are set to complete the technological baccalaureate this cycle. All 23 of these technical candidates hail from the Cance Agricultural Technical High School, located in Haiti’s southern region.

    Addressing widespread concerns over exam security amid ongoing instability in Haiti, Minister Déméro confirmed that top national security bodies have committed to comprehensive safeguards to support a smooth testing process. He stated that the Department of Justice, the Armed Forces of Haiti (FAd’H), and the Haitian National Police (PNH) have already put all required security measures in place to protect exam centers, candidates, and supervisory staff throughout the exam period.

    The minister extended public gratitude to every stakeholder that contributed to months of pre-exam preparation, including family members of candidates, school administrators, and education staff across all levels of government. Looking ahead to the four testing days, Déméro emphasized that he is counting on the unwavering commitment of every person involved in the exam operation to uphold established protocols and ensure the assessment proceeds without disruption.

    Osny Jean Marie, Director General of Haiti’s Ministry of National Education, shared details of completed logistical preparations. All candidate admission forms for exam rooms have already been printed and distributed to the country’s 10 Departmental Directorates of Education, which will in turn deliver the documents to registered examinees. Every exam center has been selected, inspected, and fully prepared to welcome candidates ahead of Monday’s opening test.

    Jean Marie also reminded all participants and supporters of strictly enforced exam rules. Prohibited items inside exam rooms include weapons, personal cell phones, and programmable calculators, and any confirmed cases of cheating will face severe disciplinary penalties. He closed by calling on the more than 118,000 registered candidates to remain calm and focused as they approach this key academic assessment, and urged the broader public to show understanding and support for examinees throughout the exam week.