The Ministry of the Environment is changing its paradigm in Haiti
19/04/2026 09:48:04

On Thursday, April 16, 2026, during a two-day sectoral strategic planning and consultation meeting with technical and financial partners, organized by the Ministry of the Environment at the Karibe Convention Center, Jean Marie Claude Germain represented Sandra Paulemon, the Minister of Planning, who is currently on an official mission to the United States.

Germain reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to ensuring better coordination of external cooperation and rigorous alignment of interventions with national priorities. He commended the ongoing commitment of technical and financial partners to the Haitian government and expressed his hope that this initiative would contribute to strengthening the shared vision, improving the alignment of interventions, and accelerating the implementation of actions on the ground.

For his part, Valéry Fils-Aimé, the new Minister of the Environment, following Germain’s remarks, laid out a clear framework : the environmental sector is now considered a strategic lever serving the country. It contributes directly to territorial stability, public safety, and economic recovery. Given the scale of the challenges, environmental issues have emerged as a major national priority, requiring collective and structured action. Minister Germain presented the four strategic priorities of his ministry:

AXIS 1 : Living Environment and Waste Management :

“We have decided to change our paradigm. Waste management is no longer approached as a simple matter of cleanliness, but as a central issue of urban governance, public health, and environmental security.

Through the Konbit Haiti Zero Waste program, we are launching a national mobilization to structure a genuine public waste management service, based on : organizing collection routes; strengthening the capacities of the National Waste Management and Recycling Service (SNGRS); the effective involvement of local authorities; and the development of recycling and recovery sectors. Our ambition is clear : to transform a structural problem into an economic and social opportunity.”

AXIS 2 : Environmental Rehabilitation and Natural Resource Management :

“Faced with the advanced degradation of our ecosystems, we must adopt an integrated approach based on the ‘mountain-to-sea’ logic. This approach combines: community reforestation; watershed management; coastal zone protection; and the strengthening of territorial resilience. The aim is to restore ecological balance, secure territories, and protect the livelihoods of local populations.

“It is also in this spirit that we are preparing to launch the Citizen Environmental Initiatives Support Program (PAIEC) in May. This program consists of calls for proposals focused on sectoral priorities and will support at least 30 local environmental organizations, as well as around 100 entrepreneurs, who stand out for their capacity to innovate and provide sustainable local solutions.

“Our objective is clear : to foster a genuine ecosystem of green entrepreneurship that creates jobs and value, and to promote citizen involvement and responsibility in addressing environmental and climate challenges.

AXIS #3 : Governance :

“No environmental policy can produce results without strong institutions. In this regard, we have three extremely important projects to undertake quickly,” namely :

• Strengthening the Directorate of Environmental Inspection and Monitoring and the National Environmental Assessment Office, in conjunction with other relevant state entities, to better regulate the exploitation of natural resources such as water resources, mines, and sand quarries;

• The National Solid Waste Management Service (SNGRS) as the operational arm of the Ministry and a central pillar in sustainable waste management;

• The National Agency for Protected Areas (ANAP), an organization also under the supervision of the Ministry, shares the significant responsibility for the co-management of protected areas.

AXIS #4 : External Cooperation and Financing for Climate Action:

“One of the crucial elements on which I invite you to work with us, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, is the operationalization, as soon as possible, of a multi-contributor fund. This will allow us to : move beyond the fragmentation of interventions and strengthen impact at the national level; mobilize resources in a coordinated manner; finance high-impact actions in priority areas; and improve the speed and effectiveness of interventions.

“What we are proposing today is not a list of actions. It is a structured vision, a clear roadmap, and above all, an invitation to collective action. Our responsibility is simple, yet demanding: to produce visible results, to tangibly improve the living environment, to strengthen the presence of the State, to create economic opportunities, and to build sustainable resilience. The environment is not just another sector. It is the condition of our stability and the foundation of our development.”

HL/ TB/ HaitiLibre