PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti – Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé has told international investors that the his country is fully committed to restoring public order, restoring state authority, and creating the essential conditions for the future democratic processes.
Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé addressing the launch of the National Investment Forum and the Global Gateway Initiative in Haiti.Addressing the launch of the National Investment Forum and the Global Gateway Initiative in Haiti, Fils-Aimé acknowledged that Haiti is going through a difficult period, confronted with unprecedented security challenges affecting entire regions of the country and weakening itsur economic and social fabric.
The initiative marks the official launch in Haiti of Global Gateway, the European Union’s investment strategy, which aims to mobilize Euro 400 billion (One Euro=US$1.29 cents)by 2027.
Europe has allocated Euro 340 million to Haiti to implement development projects before 2028 and another Euro 25 million to Euro 40 million a year in humanitarian assistance. European member states have also pledged Euro 64 million to the United Nations Trust Fund for the new Gang Suppression Force (GSF) that is helping to bring stability and security back to the country.
Prime Minister Fils-Aimé told the launch on Monday that security remains an absolute priority.
“But we also know one essential thing. Security is not only built with security measures. Sustainable peace is also built with investment. It is built with perspectives offered to the youth. It is built when the economy starts producing opportunities again”.
He said economic despair constitutes a fertile ground for violence and crime and that conversely, economic hope is a powerful instrument of stabilisation and peace.
“This is why our governmental action is based on two indispensable pillars. First, restoring security and democratic institutions. Second, restoring the country’s economic wheel to create jobs, wealth, and opportunities for all Haitians.”
Fils-Aimé said that the forum is precisely based on this vision and marks an important step in Haiti’s collective will to change paradigms.
“For too long, relations between Haiti and its international partners have been dominated by a logic of assistance. Today, we want to go further. We want to move from aid to trade. We want to move from assistance to investment
“We want to move from a logic of dependence to a logic of mutually beneficial economic partnership. The Global Gateway Programme represents a historic opportunity for Haiti to realise this ambition. We are not here simply to ask for support. We are here to propose partnerships. ”
Prime Minister Fils-Aimé said Haiti has considerable strategic assets including an exceptional geographical position in the heart of the Caribbean as well as a young and entrepreneurial population and important agricultural resources.
“A considerable potential in terms of renewable energy, and the possibility of becoming a real economic and logistical hub in the region. The three main themes of this forum illustrate this ambition. ”
He said in the field of energy, Haiti wants to build a more resilient, cleaner and more inclusive model based on renewable energies and the widespread access to electricity.
In the field of infrastructure, ports, airports and logistics, he said Haiti wants to reconnect to the global economy and “make our country a connectivity platform within the Caribbean.
“In the agricultural and agro-industrial domain, we want to transform our production lines, create more added value locally and open new markets to our producers,” he said, adding that “these sectors are not only economic sectors, they are instruments of national transformation.
“They are instruments of job creation. They are instruments of social cohesion. They are instruments of stability and peace,” he said, adding “ I wish to send a clear message to the European private sector, Haiti is ready to build with you responsible, sustainable and value-creating partnerships”.
Prime Minister Fils-Aimé said he also wanted to send a message to the Haitian private sector that its commitment is essential.
“The country’s economic transformation can only be achieved through a strong alliance between the State, the national private sector and our international partners.
“The time has come to invest in Haiti’s resilience. The time has come to invest in its youth. The time has come to invest in its ability to produce. The government that I have the honour to lead is determined to gradually create the conditions of confidence, security and predictability necessary for this new stage.
“Our ambition is simple. To ensure that the restoration of security opens the way to economic renewal and that economic renewal consolidates security and democracy. By launching this Global Gateway Programme in Haiti we are launching more than a forum., we are launching a call for action.
“We are launching a trust pact. We are launching a new vision of partnership between Haiti, Europe and the private sector. A vision based on shared responsibility, productive investment and shared prosperity,” Fils-Aimé told the ceremony.
Monday’s forum initiative is being led by the European Union and brought together political leaders, international donors including France, and Spain, European financial institutions, and representatives of the Haitian private sector.
In her address, the European Union Ambassador, Hélène Roos, said that the Global Gateway strategy supports efforts to build a safer, more stable, and more prosperous Haiti through transformative investments in governance, security, and infrastructure.
