Michèle Oriol, representative of President Michel Martelly, the Ambassador of France in Haiti, Mr. Didier Le Bret and his U.S. counterpart, Kenneth Mertens, visited earlier this week in Saint-Marc [100 km north of Port -au-Prince], to lay the foundation stone of the Lycée Jean-Baptiste Pointe-du-Sable.

The Lycée Jean-Baptiste Pointe-du-Sable will open its doors next September. This project was launched by a charity, secular, apolitical and non-profit organization, Hand in Hand for Haïti, in the aftermath of the earthquake of January 2010. The founding members of this structure are U.S. citizens and French, MM. Edward J. Brennan, Olivier Bottrie, and Martin Moodie.

The objective is to create an institution of excellence, open to the community and whose the education is almost free, approved by the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, will allow the poorest families to educate their children. Recruitment of students will be based on the principle of equal opportunity and open to children from all backgrounds, without social discrimination. The applications will be open primarily for children of the town of Saint Marc. Seats will be reserved for children of refugee families arrived in Saint Marc since the earthquake of January 2010 and the priority will be given to the children not in school.

This initiative is to date, the more important investment post-earthquake in the area of education, outside of Port-au-Prince. The new institution will benefit from educational support and assistance of France, will contribute to develop the town of Saint Marc by becoming a pole of attraction for the training of young, including vocational training and will be a driving force of economic development in the region of Saint-Marc.

S/ HaitiLibre