Haiti: Strengthening Post-Secondary Education - Program ended as of June 30, 2009

Haiti is often considered to be the poorest country in North America. Its GDP is approximately $330 per person, 75% of Haitians are illiterate and 50% of the workforce is on social assistance. The political situation is not much better with a long period of instability and violence following the fall of the dictatorship imposed upon the country by the Duvalier clan. Despite the 2006 presidential elections, Haitian democracy is still in its infancy. The country is slowly beginning to recover from this instability.

Understanding the context
At the request of the government of Haiti, WUSC has been working to help Haitians rebuild their country since 2005. Thanks to the Volunteer Cooperation Program (VCP), Canadian cooperants have a unique opportunity to help build local capacity in the education, public administration and private sectors.

Working with its Haitian partners, WUSC's efforts focus on: 

• providing financial management, administration, organizational management and human resources training programs for directors of universities and vocational schools
• developing and fine-tuning teaching methods for instructors
• reinfocing the management of higher education institutions.

Becoming a volunteer
WUSC expects to send a substantial number of volunteer cooperants to Haiti until 2009.  If you are an expert in the management and administration of educational institutions, the pedagogy of teaching, and the different techniques used in vocational training, we are looking for Canadians to fill short-term (less than 4 months) and long-term (4 to 12 months) volunteer positions.  This is a professional placement and not an internship.  The working language on all assignments is French.  Program ended as of June 30, 2009.

Partners
WUSC works in coalition with three other Canadian NGOs to implement this program:

• CECI - provides assistance to civil society organizations such as women's associations and unions
• Paul-Gérin Lajoie Foundation - supports basic education
• CESO - strengthens the private sector and public administration.

Haitian-Canadian communities actively support our work and stay abreast of the coalition's efforts. The program is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency under the Office for Democratic Governance.