Haiti: EU signs new support for government reforms in Haiti

Source: European Commission

Today the EU will approve a direct payment to the government of Haiti of €34 million in order to support ongoing reforms to modernise the state administration and the public finance management. This will be done through, for instance, better internal and external controls and anti-corruption measures. The reforms will also improve access to primary education and reinforce its quality, including by providing vocational training to teachers.

European Commissioner for Development, Andris Piebalgs, commented:”Today’s payment is a sign that the government of Haiti has made progress in reforming its public finances. The new EU funding will help to ensure that the necessary financial resources and institutional capacity are in place for further reforms. This will enable the government to better fulfil its responsibilities for the people of Haiti, through policies in the social sector and by meeting the needs of the population.”

Mr. Fernando Frutuoso de Melo, Director-General of the European Commission DG Development and Cooperation – EuropeAid will sign the disbursement of €34 million in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince in the presence of Prime Minister Laurent Salvador Lamothe, the Minister of Education, Nesmy Manigat, and the Secretary of state for finance, Ronald Decembre.

The payment forms part of a so-called ‘State Building Contract’ under which the EU plans to provide €100 million to the budget of the government of Haiti until 2016. The support programme will be complemented by €12 million of technical assistance to support those Haitian institutions that are involved in the reforms. Moreover, a permanent dialogue between the EU and the government on the progress and results of modernising the state will be established in the areas of public finances, (budgetary control), state modernisation and education.

Background

In Haiti, the EU has continuously worked on strengthening the institutions of the state to reinforce good governance and the ability of designing and implementing sound policies. Moreover, the EU has supported, among other things, road and water/sanitation infrastructure as well as addressing low education levels and food insecurity with a view of strengthening the resilience of the most vulnerable.
The total of EU development funding to Haiti from 2008 to 2013 amounted to €889 million. Since the earthquake of 2010 which killed an estimated 265,000 people and destroyed parts of the physical infrastructure, the EU’s cooperation has helped with the reconstruction of the country, as well as its longer-term development.

It has also provided humanitarian aid in several sectors including basic services in the camps for internally displaced persons, protection, support to their relocation and reintegration, fight against cholera, disaster risk reduction and disaster preparedness, as well as food security.

For 2014-2020 EU funding of €420 million is foreseen for Haiti under the 11th European Development Fund, with a focus on four sectors: support to state reform; education; urban development and infrastructure; food security.

Some results of EU cooperation with Haiti (between 2008 and 2013)

The EU has rehabilitated 100 km of roads between Port-au-Prince and Cap Haitien (the second biggest city of the country), significantly improving the security of this section of the highway and opening up isolated areas of the country's central region.

Food security has been improved for 750,000 people through the rehabilitation of irrigation systems, support to agricultural and livestock production, processing systems and marketing training. In addition, 3,000 farmers have benefited from micro grants to increase their production (in six districts of the country).
Budget support helped to maintain basic state functioning after the earthquake and has helped to advance public finance management reforms.