News

Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago | 22 April 2026 – As a direct follow-up to the Regional Conference on Humanitarian Assistance and Development in the Republic of Haiti, held in Panama City in January 2026, a delegation of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) carried out an official mission to Haiti to sustain political momentum and ensure that the work of the Ad Hoc Steering Committee to develop the Regional Action Plan on Humanitarian Assistance and Development for Haiti remains aligned with the country’s priorities and needs—because action must match the urgency.

The ACS works to articulate efforts and foster synergies where greater efficiency is required. This mission focused on listening and on-the-ground observation to gather practical feedback from Haitian institutions and actors operating on the front lines, so that regional actions strengthen what already exists, avoid duplication, and translate urgency into coherent, sustained action with measurable impact.

Haiti’s leadership at the centre of regional action

The ACS Secretary-General, H.E. Noemí Espinoza Madrid, met with the Prime Minister of Haiti, H.E. Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, to discuss national priorities and how the ACS can support Haiti’s vision for stabilization and development, in its role as a regional mechanism for coordination and follow-up. During the meeting, the Secretary-General reaffirmed that the ACS places Haiti at the centre of all actions through direct dialogue with Haitian authorities—supporting Haitian leadership and national ownership, and helping to keep Haiti firmly on the regional agenda.

The Secretary-General also held consultations with senior authorities—H.E. Raina Forbin, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs; H.E. Dr. Bertrand Sinal, Minister of Public Health; and H.E. Patrick Pelissier, Minister of Justice and Public Security—as well as with H.E. Jesús Cisneros, Ambassador of Mexico to Haiti.

Discussions underscored a shared message: the response must address immediate needs while building long-term resilience; short-term response and long-term development are interconnected; and sustained recovery requires coordination and continuity.

Recognizing that there is no recovery without women at the centre, the Secretary-General also held a bilateral meeting with H.E. Pédrica Saint-Jean, Minister for the Status and Rights of Women. The exchange focused on essential priorities for Haiti’s stabilization and development: increasing women’s participation in governance, strengthening institutional protection for women, and advancing gender-responsive policies.

In Cap-Haïtien, the ACS delegation conducted a field visit with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to Hôpital Justinien, where it received first-hand briefings from the management team on operational constraints and real-time challenges in delivering health services. Access to comprehensive health services is essential to dignity and recovery, and the visit offered a direct view of the challenges facing Haiti’s health system—demonstrating that regional follow-up must be guided by realities on the ground, not assumptions.

In Port-au-Prince, the delegation met with the Haitian Red Cross Society to listen and gather front-line feedback on critical humanitarian priorities—including emergency health services, displacement, sanitation, and disaster response. The exchange reinforced the imperative that effective action requires coordination, not fragmentation, and that the focus of regional coordination must remain on concrete results in people’s lives.

Coordination with the United Nations system to consolidate findings from the Panama Conference

The ACS delegation participated in a roundtable convened by BINUH, together with the United Nations Resident Coordinator and representatives of FAO, OCHA, ILO, IOM, UNHCR, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, PAHO, UNAIDS, UN Women and UNDP. The meeting supported ongoing work to advance a more coordinated and strategic response to the situation in Haiti, based on the outcomes of the Regional Conference and the ACS’s continued commitment on this matter.

During the roundtable, participants shared key inputs from the Conference working groups and exchanged information on ongoing interventions on the ground. This dialogue supported the development of a more comprehensive mapping of actions to identify complementarities, reduce overlaps, and strengthen the effectiveness of regional and international initiatives. It also served as a key input for the development of the Regional Action Plan on Humanitarian Assistance and Development for Haiti.

Next steps

The ACS will continue working to ensure that the Regional Action Plan on Humanitarian Assistance and Development for Haiti remains anchored in the country’s national priorities and realities. The mission reaffirmed that raising Haiti’s visibility is essential for meaningful action. Haiti must not be sidelined in a world facing multiple crises. Renewed attention and sustained action are urgently required.

For the Greater Caribbean, what is at stake is clear: Haiti’s challenges are not isolated. They have regional implications for human security, development, mobility and economic stability—and they demand a response that combines urgency with coordinated, sustained implementation. The Greater Caribbean must act in solidarity with Haiti—as one of our own.