Last week, Paul Antoine Bien Aimé, Minister of the Interior and Local Authorities (MICT), took part in a day of workshops organized by the Association of Mayors of the North (AMNORD) to discuss the preliminary draft of the Constitution.

This activity, which took place at the Hostellerie du Roi Christophe in Cap-Haitien, allowed several dozen mayors, municipal section administration councilors (CASEC), municipal section administration councilors (ASEC), and city delegates, among others, to establish and express their positions on the preliminary draft of the Constitution, which is to be submitted to a referendum.

"This is a historic moment for the key stakeholders and administrators of the Territorial Authorities of the Far North to be able to express their views on this project, which provides for a reorganization of our Territorial Authorities as they currently exist," declared Minister Bien Aimé in his remarks for the occasion.

He also urged participants to continue their engagement across all municipalities and sections of the Far North, in order to broadly reflect the discussions initiated. He also invited them to gather as many responses as possible in order to formulate structuring proposals to the Steering Committee of the Constitutional Reform Project, emphasizing in particular the need to effectively address the issue of quotas and the participation of women in the management of Territorial Authorities.

For her part, Ms. Rébecaline Ziky Decelmond, President of the Association of Mayors of the North (AMNORD), welcomed the high level of participation of stakeholders from the Territorial Authorities of the Far North in these workshops. She deplored, however, the fact that municipal and local authorities were not previously consulted by the Steering Committee during the development of the preliminary draft document.

However, the President of AMNORD, with the support of the National Federation of Mayors of Haiti (FENAMH), is committed to submitting all the positions and recommendations arising from these sessions to the Constitutional Reform Steering Committee within the specified timeframe.

These workshops will be replicated by the various associations of local authorities throughout the country, with the support of FENAMH and the MICT.

IH/ iciHaiti