Thursday December 14, 2023, Nesmy Manigat, the Minister of National Education and the leaders of nine publishing houses https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41082-haiti-education-towards-libraries-in-public-and-private-schools-in-the-country.html have signed a Memorandum of Understanding in which they commit to working together to create or strengthen libraries/media in schools, public schools as well as schools private.

During his intervention to place this initiative in its context, Minister Manigat explained that it is first a question of allowing more schoolchildren, wherever they are in the country, to have access to books which are a medium for the dissemination of knowledge, which facilitate circulation and allow ideas to flourish. According to the Minister, it is necessary for schools to have infrastructure such as libraries/media libraries that facilitate this work.

This initiative also wants to encourage authors and all other professionals in the field of book production and distribution in Haiti. Thus, out of 100 books, the State will purchase 80 while the publishing houses will offer 20 for free, according to article 3.2 of this agreement which seals another form of public/private partnership which reflects the will of the State to work with private sector partners.

In addition to the books which must be available in schools, the two parties undertake to create other activities with books and on books within these libraries/media libraries, in particular: writing workshops, reading workshops, quizzes with authors, book presentations.

This project, which is being launched gradually, remains open to all other publishing houses or other authors, according to what Minister Manigat declared that "it is with such a project within schools that we will be able to strengthen the capacity of students to progress in reading; which can help them a lot to understand all other subjects, to understand the culture of the country."

See also:

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41082-haiti-education-towards-libraries-in-public-and-private-schools-in-the-country.html

HL/ HaitiLibre