"We must rebuild the Haitian Nation through preschool education. Invest in this sub-sector to have in 20 years, at least, new men and women in society," these are the words in which Augustin Antoine, the Minister of National Education, closed the three-day National Conference on Preschool ; an activity organized in Pétion-Ville, from September 17 to 19, under the direction of the Ministry of National Education.

Bringing to the attention of the country and international cooperation the government's determination to lead and intensify the inclusive and integral development of Early Childhood to Preschool, while laying the foundations for a consensus for the benefit of this sub-sector, was indeed one of the objectives pursued by this conference launched by the Prime Minister, Dr. Garry Conille.

The synthesis of these three days of reflection, exchanges and sharing of experiences between national and international actors has made it possible to identify important perspectives for this sub-sector which requires certified, competent personnel and the strict application of the curriculum. For the organizer as well as for the participants, these three days of meetings around the Preschool, have shown the need for all the actors to get to work in order to achieve the objectives set for the benefit of Early Childhood.

At the end of this Conference, Minister Augustin Antoine announced some of the decisions adopted :

1. Upcoming launch of a communication campaign on preschool;

2. Institutional strengthening involving in particular the gradual transformation of the Preschool Education Management Office (BUGEP) into a Preschool Education Directorate;

3. Creation of a body of inspectors dedicated solely to preschool;

4. Effective involvement of town halls in the development of preschool;

5. Increase in funding for preschool;

6. Conducting a diagnostic study of the sub-sector;

7. Developing a national policy on preschool in line with the Comprehensive Early Childhood Document (DIPE).

It should be noted that the first hours of the third day of this Conference were filled with several expert communications. First, Lorie Marlène Foisy from the International Bureau of Education (IBE-UNESCO), assisted by Béatrice Malebranche, spoke on the "State Report on the Curriculum and Analysis of the Preschool Sub-Sector in Haiti". Professor Walex Pierre, Director of Support for Private Education and Partnership at MENFP, spoke to the audience on "The Implementation Mechanism for the Accreditation Policy for Preschool Centers". As for Professor Alain Mingat, a specialist in education economics, he elaborated on the "Possible Path for a New National Preschool Policy in Haiti".

HL/ HaitiLibre