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Building Pacific capacities to promote and facilitate marine scientific research

December 15, 2015

UNESCO Director-General deplores murder of Haitian radio journalist Pierre Richard Alexander

Shipwreck is not Santa Maria, UNESCO experts say

October 16, 2014

Prime Minister of the Cook Islands participates in the 38th Session of UNESCO’s General Conference

November 5, 2015

In Haiti, UNESCO mobilizes young people for sustainable development

November 24, 2015

UNESCO engages in immediate response following Hurricane Matthew in Haiti

October 18, 2016

UNESCO assessing urgent needs in restoring education after the Haiti hurricane

November 21, 2016

The Historic National Park: Citadelle, Sans-Souci, Ramiers and its Biodiversity

As part of the project Preservation of Heritage and Support for the Tourism Sector PAST the office of UNESCO in PortauPrince undertook a floristic inventory for the conservation of the monuments and the natural environment of the historic national park Citadelle SansSouci Ramiers PNHCSSR The aim of this study was to revise the different species and evaluate their conservation status as a means to stop the erosion of biodiversity and propose actions for the conservation and restoration of the natural spaces for the wellbeing of the population and the conservation of the monuments The preliminary results revealed that the PNCCSSR has a great diversity of plants that can respond to health nutritional and environmental resilience issues Actually the inventories have shown that the park has a high rate of endemic plants to conserve More than fifty medicinal plants have been identified and five to eight species of trees exist on the site with large roots that prevent landslide and protect the area of Citadelle Nevertheless the park is also threatened with high fire hazard owing to the fact that the ecosystems have been disrupted and invaded by the pioneer and invasive plants such as ferns Moreover agroforestry practices over a large part of the PNHCSSR convey the impression that the area is conserved and protected Additionally severe erosion of sol and of the biodiversity has been noticed This research has shown that it is urgent to stop the elimination of stabilization species to avoid landslides one must invest in environmental education develop conservation and safeguard plans for critically endangered species and restoration plans for degraded ecosystems to strengthen the environmental resilience to protect the monuments The inventory realized in the context of the project PAST cofinanced by the Haitian Government and the World Bank displays that there is a need for the PNHCSSR to be classified among the protected areas like Park Macaya and the Visited Nature is our wealth our daily actions can lead to its protection and degradation Haiti is the second richest Caribbean country in floristic biodiversity The flora of the country which describes the plants dating from 1930 will have a century soon However these resources are very little known valued and preserved Consequently the Haitians barely know about the riches of the flora On the occasion of the world biodiversity day celebrated this year around the theme the solution of our problems is in nature it is relevant to sensitize the Haitian population generally and that of the park in particular on the threats of biodiversity An ideal moment to display that the solutions for health food safety environmental resilience in the face of climate changes and natural disasters are also found in nature

PR@TIC, a Digital Platform FOR the Continuity of Education in Haiti

In Haiti the first cases of Covid19 appeared on the 19th of March 2020 and for instance 144 countries around the world the Haitian government authorities have adopted a series of procedures including the closing down of schools The education of more than 4 million Haitian children has been interrupted the educational stakeholders agree on providing a platform of educational resources towards the continuity of the school year which had already severely shaken by the political crisis Globally UNESCO enumerates 1186127211 learners affected by the current pandemic or 677 of all learners enrolled at preprimary levels primary secondary and higher education 144 countries having closed their schools With a view to minimizing the impact of this health crisis on the Haitian education system as much as possible the Ministry of National Education and Vocational Training MENFP quickly reacted by setting up a working group to manage the crisis provoked by Covid19 which is responsible for developing the strategic response plan for the education sector in Haiti This response plan encompasses six areas Heighten awareness and communication around Covid19 Pedagogical support for students carrying on distance learning activities Support the functionaries with hygiene kits in order to strengthen the protection measures for agents in the workplace Support the educational agents distinctly teachers and parents Preparation for the resumption of school activities Enhance the capacity of the education system to manage crisis situations The second area commended the creation of a virtual platform of educational and learning resources thus allowing primary and secondary students to continue their distance learning The platform by the name of PRTIC has been operational since April 24 2020 It can be accessed free of charge via the MENFPs website or at the following address httppraticmenpfgouvhtapp Access is directly possible via a computer phone or tablet or through social networks Learners students can ask questions about a course posted online in a space reserved for this purpose and following the principle of asynchronous interaction the teacher interacts with his learnersstudents In addition to this platform distance education in Haiti also plans to broadcast audiovisual courses on the National Television of Haiti TNH and other private channels as well as on radio stations in the capital and in the departments through community radios The learning content will also be available on USB media in the relevant departments and technical directions for students The MENFP also plans to print on paper certain contents and lesson sheets for the primary and secondary level as well as for the ENI for the purpose of reaching the public who do not have access to digital technology in order to avoid leaving no one on the sidelines of education which remains a fundamental right in this time of crisis Despite the goodwill and the efforts made by the shareholders certain specific challenges inherent in this approach still need to be addressed UNESCO supports the countries in their efforts to mitigate the immediate impact of schools closing mainly for more vulnerable and disadvantaged communities and to facilitate the continuity of inclusive education for all through distance learning This is why it strongly supports the MENFP in its distance education programs and initiatives in Haiti in particular through the Global Coalition for Education launched by UNESCO to support the States to develop the best solutions for distance education and to reach the children and young people who are most at risk with the support of several other institutions including the World Bank the InterAmerican Development Bank and UNICEF

#STOPinfodemic: UNESCO launches campaign to tackle the problem of disinformation in Haiti

As the world faces disinfodemia this wave of false information about the COVID19 pandemic the media are more than ever faced with their responsibility concerning objectivity in the treatment of information and must use science to communicate the facts and help save lives On the occasion of May 3 2020 which marks the World Press Freedom Day the UNESCO Office in PortauPrince more than ever committed to supporting the press sector whose role is undeniable as part of the response to Covid19 launched a vast campaign called STOPinfodemic through digital media to counter the phenomenon of expanding disinformation in Haiti In this respect the UNESCO Office held an important virtual discussion with representatives of community media and online media a meeting posted on the UNESCO Facebook page followed live by more than 500 participants Several subjects were discussed including the financing and multiplication of digital media the different faces of disinformation as well as the political issues relating to online news sites a situation of particular concern in Haiti An animated video presenting the challenges of disinformation and the need to be well informed was produced jointly with the United Nations Development Program UNDP and the United Nations Childrens Fund UNICEF broadcast on the National Television of Haiti as part of this vast awareness campaign against the dangers of disinformation in Haiti a strategy piloted by UNESCO and implemented by the Haiti Campaign platform Having responded to UNESCOs appeal several digital media have joined the battle for the spreading of reliable information by posting banners on their websites thus actively participating in the STOPinfodemic campaign a strategy which joins the efforts of UNESCO and its partners at the global level to underline the role of science diversely the responsibility of the media whose work is essential in the response to the pandemic UNESCO also benefited from the support of influencers on social networks in particular a rising star of the music in Haiti the artist Tafa MiSoleil who was involved throughout the period of the STOPinfodemic campaign to relay all awareness messages against disinformation through her social network accounts totaling more than 330000 subscribers all platforms combined A toolkit has also been prepared to allow all partners who wish to get involved to be able to use all the campaign resources infographics videos posters stickers for WhatsApp etc

UNESCO Invites Stakeholders to Use Open Science to Better Cope with the Pandemic

The multifaceted impacts of the new coronavirus disease are not long in being felt particularly on the global economy The pandemic is generating an unprecedented crisis that is no longer only healthy It is imperative now more than ever to strengthen scientific cooperation between scientists policymakers private practitioners industries health professionals and civil society for a multidimensional approach to the fight against the Coronavirus In this context marked by the COVID19 pandemic Haitian society needs reliable information to adapt its response according to a multidimensional approach which implies open access to scientific knowledge and expertise in other words a policy of evidencebased decision making In this sense the UNESCO Office in PortauPrince proposes to organize a set of Webinars on the role of open science in the fight against COVID19 in Haiti In fact as a way to transform the COVID19 crisis in Haiti into an opportunity for the future in particular to prepare for the postcrisis period UNESCO wants to initiate a constructive debate on the role of science and research in the service of sustainable development through advocacy for the production of knowledge the promotion of research and the opening up of scientific data This series of Webinars which takes gender issues into account in the debates aims to highlight throughout July the role of academic and scientific actors in the scientific decisionmaking process following the objectives set by UNESCO for societies to increase their capacity to mobilize local knowledge systems and create synergy with science to meet the challenges of sustainable development Haiti facing the COVID19 pandemic open science and research at the service of the response this is the theme chosen for this series of exchanges and scientific debates which will involve political decisionmakers but mostly researchers professors of universities and academic partners However it targets the entire population in general but in particular students civil society the media in their educational purpose journalists and all types of content producers The 5 planned sessions will address the subthemes specific to the key orientations for the revitalization and use of natural sciences applications social and engineering in Haiti in the context of COVID19 namely food and nutritional security the challenges of educational continuity the role of information technologies artificial intelligence and above all the economic impact of the pandemic in Haiti These debates will be broadcast live on the pages of partner institutions as well as on UNESCOs web platforms