On Friday, August 21, 2026, at the launch of the National Forum on the Vision and Future of the Armed Forces of Haiti (FAd’H), the Ministry of Defense, the FAd’H, and the State University of Haiti (UEH) signed a strategic partnership framework agreement. The Forum’s opening ceremony took place in the presence of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, representatives of public institutions, the FAd’H High Command, the academic sector, civil society, and the international community.

This MoU aims to strengthen the academic, scientific, and professional capacities of FAd’H personnel and to foster lasting collaboration between the military and academia.

In his address, Minister of Defense Mario Andrésol welcomed this partnership, which he considers an important lever for the modernization and professionalization of the military.

Emphasizing that military training must extend beyond operational skills, the minister stressed the importance of knowledge in building a modern army. "The Nation entrusts you with its weapons, but the University will equip you with the most powerful tool of all : knowledge," he declared to the young officers and non-commissioned officers.

In his speech, Dieuseul Predelus, Rector of the State University of Haiti (UEH), stated "[...] What we are accomplishing together today, by signing this Framework Partnership Agreement, is an act of faith in Haiti, an act of responsibility toward our people, and an act of clear-sightedness in the face of the challenges of our time."

"[...] It is no coincidence that the world’s major powers invest heavily in their universities and research centers to strengthen their defense capabilities. The United States built its scientific and technological hegemony on university campuses intimately linked to its military-industrial complex. In France, the Grandes Écoles were founded on the conviction that the training of intellectual elites is inseparable from the nation's defense capacity. In Haiti, we must rediscover and honor this fundamental imperative."

"[...] The Haitian Armed Forces, currently being rebuilt since their remobilization, need officers trained according to the most demanding academic and scientific standards. They need officers and technicians who are proficient not only in military skills, but also in geopolitics, new technologies, history, physics, chemistry, biology, and so on.

The agreement we are signing today precisely addresses these needs. It provides for degree programs as well as continuing education; it organizes joint scientific research on strategic issues of national security and defense.

The State University of Haiti is committed to designing and delivering training programs that meet national and international academic standards, while remaining grounded in Haitian realities and adapted to the specific missions of the Armed Forces."

"By uniting knowledge and defense, the University and the Army, knowledge and security, we are returning to the deepest vision of our founders: that of a free, educated people capable of defending and governing themselves."

Furthermore, Mario Andrésol, the Minister of Defense, pledged, with the support of the Government, to integrate the conclusions of the conference into the new FAd’H Doctrine and the National Defense White Paper. According to the Minister, these documents will serve as the foundation for the Strategic Defense Plan, which will be submitted to the relevant state authorities and made public in the interest of transparency.

HL/ HaitiLibre