标签： Haiti

Diplomatic talks between senior Haitian government officials and representatives of the Organization of American States have wrapped up this week with a shared commitment to speed up efforts to bring long-term security and stability back to the crisis-battered Caribbean nation. The meeting, held at Haiti’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was hosted by Haitian Foreign Minister Raina Forbin, who received Alberto Fohrig, the OAS Special Representative to Haiti. Fohrig was joined on the visit by Catherine Pognat, the OAS Country Representative for Haiti.

During the discussion, Minister Forbin outlined the core priority actions advanced by Prime Minister Fils-Aimé’s transitional administration. These priorities center on three critical goals: reversing widespread insecurity, rebuilding weakened state institutions, and preparing to hold national elections that meet international standards of being free, inclusive, transparent and credible. Beyond institutional and electoral priorities, Forbin also stressed the non-negotiable importance of three additional priorities: supporting the reintegration of vulnerable youth into Haitian society, addressing the deepening national humanitarian crisis, and fully restoring constitutional order to the country.

A major focal point of the talks was advancing the implementation of the OAS’s pre-existing strategic roadmap for Haiti. Forbin pushed for the formalization of a clear, binding implementation timeline for the roadmap, while reaffirming Haitian authorities’ long-standing commitment to ongoing collaboration with the hemispheric organization. She emphasized that the ultimate goal of this partnership is to turn agreed-upon policy commitments into tangible, measurable outcomes that directly improve the lives of ordinary Haitian citizens. Both sides left the meeting aligned on the urgent need to speed up all ongoing work to restore lasting security and stability across Haiti.

Representatives from the OAS welcomed the concrete progress the Haitian government has already made on its core priorities, and reiterated that the organization stands ready to continue supporting Haitian efforts across three key areas: security sector strengthening, democratic governance building, and the development of a functional electoral process.

The meeting also created space to explore the critical role that religious leaders and grassroots civil society organizations can play in advancing peace, encouraging civic responsibility, and mending fractured social cohesion across Haiti. Forbin shared detailed outcomes from the recently concluded National Conference of Religious Leaders for Peace, Stability, and Civic Responsibility, alongside outlining the next steps for the ongoing initiative.

In closing, Forbin praised the OAS for its unwavering commitment to Haiti amid the country’s ongoing challenges, and reaffirmed the Haitian government’s dedication to maintaining close, productive cooperation with all of its international partners as it works to pull the nation out of crisis.

Nestled along Haiti’s northern coast, the nation’s historic second-largest city Cap-Haïtien is steadily emerging from a period of stagnation to reclaim its long-dimmed cultural and economic glory, driven by coordinated action between national authorities and a new local administration. Since the installation of Mayor Michel Saint-Croix’s Municipal Commission earlier this year, a sweeping, multi-sector revitalization agenda has turned ambitious policy pledges into visible on-the-ground change, with the ultimate goal of positioning the city as a leading national hub for tourism, investment and inclusive development.

Cap-Haïtien’s rich colonial heritage and proximity to world-famous historical sites have long positioned it as a natural tourism anchor for Haiti, but years of underinvestment had left the city struggling with crumbling infrastructure, unmanaged waste and stagnant economic activity. To reverse this trend, Haiti’s central government launched an inter-ministerial support mission for the city months ago, creating a framework for close collaboration between national agencies and the new municipal leadership. This partnership has already delivered measurable progress, starting with a large-scale urban sanitation and reorganization initiative that has cleared accumulated waste from long-neglected neighborhoods, restored underused public spaces and completed targeted beautification projects across the city.

These early, visible wins have done more than transform the city’s streetscape: they have rebuilt public confidence in local governance, proving that coordinated action between national and municipal authorities can deliver tangible results for residents. Beyond clean-up efforts, the administration is advancing a raft of projects to upgrade core public services, modernize key strategic sectors and improve public space management, laying the regulatory and infrastructural groundwork for sustained social and economic growth. Steady improvements to the urban environment have already made the city more livable for long-term residents and more welcoming to first-time visitors alike.

Security, a critical prerequisite for any economic expansion, has also been a top priority. Targeted measures led by national law enforcement agencies have cemented Cap-Haïtien’s status as one of Haiti’s most stable major urban centers, creating a safe environment that encourages private investment, enables uninterrupted local economic activity and unlocks the city’s untapped tourism potential—one of the most promising drivers of future job growth in the region.

Infrastructure modernization, the backbone of the entire revitalization strategy, is moving forward at an accelerated pace. The most high-profile advance is the ongoing upgrade of Cap-Haïtien International Airport, which is being redeveloped to meet modern international aviation standards and expand the city’s passenger and cargo capacity. A key milestone in this effort is the upcoming launch of regularly scheduled American Airlines flights to the city starting November 1, 2026, a move expected to dramatically boost international tourist arrivals, cross-border trade and new business opportunities across the northern region.

Multiple complementary infrastructure projects are also underway: road rehabilitation works connecting key urban corridors to the airport, the launch of the RN3 highway rehabilitation project, street clearance initiatives to reduce congestion, a city-wide addressing and numbering program, and the reopening of the renovated Cap-Haïtien main post office, among other upgrades. These interconnected projects are designed to address longstanding gaps in basic services and connect the city more effectively to regional and global markets.

Today, Cap-Haïtien enters its next chapter with cautious but clear confidence. The pipeline of active projects, confirmed international transport links, growing investor interest and steady infrastructure improvements all reflect a collective national commitment to building a modern, dynamic and prosperous city that can lead Haiti’s broader economic renewal. With its unrivaled historical heritage, strategic geographic position and untapped economic potential, Cap-Haïtien is reaffirming its role as one of the core engines of national development—and a powerful showcase for what coordinated, committed governance can achieve for Haiti.

On June 17, 2026, senior Haitian government officials and World Bank leadership gathered at Haiti’s Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MAST) for a dedicated technical workshop focused on advancing the country’s flagship social protection initiatives. The meeting brought together William Wiseman, head of the World Bank’s Social Protection Division for Latin America and the Caribbean, a delegation from the global financial institution, and Haitian policymakers to review progress, address ongoing challenges, and map the next phase of two core programs: the Adaptive Social Protection Project for Increased Resilience (PSARA, locally known as Kleren Chimen), and the Productive Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities Project (PROPIPED).

Opening the discussions, MAST Minister Jean Nelson praised the World Bank’s unwavering partnership with Haiti, particularly amid the country’s cascade of overlapping crises that have strained public resources and community stability. He framed modern social protection not as a secondary public policy priority, but as a foundational tool that drives national stability, community resilience, and social cohesion for the Caribbean nation. Facing interconnected challenges of widespread insecurity, economic collapse, repeated climate disasters, and mass population displacement, strengthening the country’s social protection infrastructure has emerged as an urgent national mandate for the Haitian government.

At the center of this national strategy is the PSARA program, MAST’s flagship initiative first rolled out in March 2022. Designed to deliver direct cash transfers and targeted support to Haiti’s most economically vulnerable households, the program has already established a footprint in all municipalities of Haiti’s Grande Anse department and six municipalities in the country’s southern department. During Wednesday’s meeting, stakeholders centered discussions on three core priorities to expand and solidify Haiti’s national social protection system.

First, attendees prioritized the full national scaling of the PSARA program, with a focus on deepening territorial integration across all Haitian regions. This expansion is intended to extend the reach of state services to underserved communities, while allowing interventions to be adapted to the unique local needs of different regions across the country. Second, the meeting addressed long-term program sustainability, with plans to fully integrate PSARA into MAST’s permanent institutional structures and invest in expanding the operational capacity of the program’s executive Project Management Unit. Third, stakeholders prioritized expanding coverage to meet the urgent needs of Haiti’s nearly 1.5 million internally displaced persons, with plans to leverage additional funding to integrate this highly vulnerable population into existing social protection frameworks.

Minister Nelson closed his remarks by expressing optimism that the technical talks would yield clear, actionable policy guidance, formalized commitments from both parties, and tangible on-the-ground actions that will deliver lasting improvements to the daily lives of Haitian citizens. For its part, the World Bank, which has provided critical financing and technical expertise to MAST for both core programs, reaffirmed its long-term commitment to supporting Haiti as it develops context-specific solutions to address its recurring, interconnected crises.