On Friday, November 14, 2025, Professor Dieuseul Prédélus, Rector of the State University of Haiti (UEH), and Ronald Bazile, Director General of the National Old Age Insurance Office (ONA), signed a partnership agreement marking the creation and launch of the University Chair in Social Protection and Security Law in Haiti, a first in the country's history.

This Chair, which will be housed at the Faculty of Law and Economics (FDSE) of the UEH, is part of a training, research, and innovation initiative aimed at strengthening the academic, scientific, and professional capacities of stakeholders in the field of social protection and security in Haiti. It represents a crucial step in building an inclusive, sustainable, and nationally relevant social protection system.

Rector Dieuseul Prédélus highlighted the critical situation in Haiti regarding social protection and security: “The state of social security coverage in Haiti is alarming: only 8.2% of the population is covered, compared to 43% in the Dominican Republic and 65% in Jamaica. This low accessibility in Haiti affects the vast majority of the population, who are already facing mass unemployment.”

He also emphasized that the Chair will pursue several ambitious objectives, including training 300 specialized professionals within five years, producing at least 30 scientific publications, and establishing partnerships at the national and international levels, among others.

Rector Prédélus further reassured everyone of the State University of Haiti's (UEH) commitment : "We are aware that the challenges are significant in ensuring the sustainability of this Chair. However, the UEH reaffirms its commitment to implementing the necessary actions to guarantee the success and sustainability of this major project and to make it a true tool for social transformation. [...]" concluding "Together, let us make social protection and security not just a concept, but a tangible reality lived every day."

For Director General Ronald Bazile, the newly launched Chair is of great significance : "Today, we are living through a historic moment, a moment where memory and the future converge [...] This Chair’s missions include combating preconceived ideas, offering a comprehensive view of the system, strengthening national capacities, supporting social reforms, building a genuine scientific culture of social protection and security, and modernizing public action. It pursues a major objective: to strengthen the country’s capacity to build an inclusive, sustainable, and nationally adapted social protection and security system."

The Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, Georges Wilbert Franck (co-signatory), congratulated the partners on this groundbreaking project: “On behalf of the Government, I congratulate the State University of Haiti (UEH) and the National Old Age Insurance Office (ONA) for giving the issue of social security the full scope it deserves." He is convinced that this protocol signed between the two institutions will definitively make social protection and security a reality, not just a slogan.

Professor Jean Eugène Pierre-Louis, Dean of the Faculty of Law and Economics and President of the Chair's Scientific and Pedagogical Council (co-signatory), emphasized the social and institutional importance of the Chair : "This is an event of paramount significance for the Haitian state, for public service institutions, and for the Haitian people in general," he stated, adding "The Chair creates hope for the Haitian nation, particularly for the most vulnerable segments of society."

He pledged to integrate the Chair into the curriculum of the Faculty of Law and Economics through undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as short-term training courses.

The Chair, established for an initial renewable term of 10 years, will have a strategic steering committee co-chaired by the Rector of the State University of Haiti (UEH) and the Director General of the National Old Age Insurance Office (ONA), a scientific and pedagogical council, and an executive secretariat. Programs will include certificate, short-term, intermediate, and degree-granting courses (Bachelor's, Master's 1 and 2), as well as research and innovation activities.

It should be noted that beneficiaries will be employees of social security institutions working under the supervision of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, UEH students, and all professionals and stakeholders in the social sector wishing to enhance their skills.

HL/ HaitiLibre