CESO President and CEO, Don Johnston, travelled to Haiti at the beginning of August, to meet with institutional partners, staff and VAs of the Volunteer Cooperation Project (PCV, in French), a program implemented by a consortium of Canadian organizations in support of governance, education and economic development in Haiti.
The PCV project started on April 1, 2010, and is the second phase of a project that originally took place between 2005 and 2009. In January 2010, an earthquake dramatically changed the lives of an estimated three-million people in Haiti which increases the importance of this work and the urgency to support the rebuilding process.
CESO has once again allied with the Center for International Studies and Cooperation, the World University Service of Canada and the Paul Gerin-Lajoie Foundation for this five-year project.
Johnston’s visit demonstrated the strong commitment of the PCV to continue working with institutions that have long been allied with the project. The mission also contributed to forging a promising new partnership with the Haitian Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Léonel Garnier, the PCV project director accompanied Johnston throughout the mission. In addition, Johnston met with a number of partner officials: the Executive Director of the Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation, Yves Robert Jean; the President of the Haitian-Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Board, Herve H. Denis, and their executive director, Roxane K. Hurley; and the Minister of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Josseline Colimon Féthière, among others.
In addition to completing individual assignments, the PCV consortium is working in partnerships that build on our long-term project goals. CESO's presence in Haiti has advanced work plans, and along with our PCV partners, we are now engaging in a greater number of assignments. Together, we’ll strengthen NGOs, public administration and economic development to offer much-needed services to the Haitian people.
“While the degree of devastation caused by the earthquake is formidable and the challenge of rebuilding enormous,” says Johnston, “I was most impressed with the resilience of the Haitian people and their determination to move forward and rebuild. CESO is proud to work in partnership with them and to play a role in the new Haiti.”