The United Nations agency in charge of reproductive health has a new Representative in Haiti on behalf of the Belgian Philippe Serge Degernier.

Haiti's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs, Jean Victor Généus, accepted his credentials on July 12, 2023.

Minister Généus promised to support the Representative in the success of his mission in Haiti. This will be done, he indicated, in the perspective of the new Cooperation Framework between Haiti and the United Nations around UNFPA themes, including reproductive health.

UNFPA Representative Philippe Serge Degernier thanked the Haitian Chancellor for his encouraging words. "Remain assured that UNFPA will accompany Haiti, together with its partners, in the implementation of the national reproductive health strategy, including family planning, and the reduction of gender-based violence", he stressed.

Reproductive health and quality care, including in the border zone, empowering women and girls: these are important issues in Haiti.

Young people make up a significant proportion of the population. 54% are under 25. We need to invest in vocational and university training. We need to create job opportunities, especially for qualified young professionals.

UNFPA welcomes Haiti's commitment to carrying out the General Census of Population and Housing, the previous edition of which dates back to 2003. The United Nations Population Fund reiterates its commitment to continue providing its technical expertise to ensure a standards-compliant operation.

UNFPA Executive Director Dr Natalia Kanem reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations Population Fund to support Haiti in its drive to end preventable maternal deaths, meet all unmet need for family planning, eliminate all gender-based violence and ensure that young girls and boys reach their full potential to enable Haiti to benefit from the demographic dividend.

Reporting on the progress made since the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), held in Cairo in 1994, Dr Natalia Kanem called on Heads of State and Government to redouble their efforts to accelerate the Cairo promise and facilitate access to healthcare and sexual and reproductive health rights for millions of women and girls.

According to the EMMUS VI demographic and health survey (2016-2017), despite the country's efforts, the maternal mortality rate remains high at 529 deaths per 100,000 live births, while unmet need is estimated at 38% and modern contraceptive prevalence among women aged 15-49 in union at 32%. The poorest populations pay the heaviest price: 60% of the population live below the poverty line.

UNFPA, through its new Representative, congratulated the Government and people of Haiti on the progress made over the past decades in improving sexual and reproductive health, combating gender-based violence and harmful practices, despite a complex political and security environment aggravated by the impact of natural disasters.