The Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe at the head of a Haitian delegation composed among others of René Jean Jumeau, inister Delegate to the Prime Minister for Energy Security, of Gregory Mevs, Co-Chairman of PACEGI, Klaus Eberwein, Director General of FAES, Bernard Schettini, Director General of the SONAPI, Georges Andy René, Diector General of CFI, and of Stéphanie Balmir Villedrouin, the Minister of Tourism, is arrived Monday at the "Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek" International Airport of Brasilia, Brazil, for an official visit, which runs until May 25.

During his visit, the Head of Government will proceed with the signing of several cooperation agreements, particularly in the areas of private investment, bioenergy, cable car and air transport, subcontracting, sports and culture and the strengthening of the operational capacity of the National Police of Haiti.

During his visit, the Prime Minister should held talk among others, with Senior Advisor for international relations to President Dilma Rousseff, Marco Aurelio Garcia; Minister of Defense Celso Amorim; and, the Minister of Foreign Relations Antonio Patriota, among others. Topics to be discussed include a timeline for the reduction of troops in Haiti, the arrival of thousands of Haitian nationals in Brazilian territory, and, additional assistance to address high crime neighborhoods. According to the Prime Minister "[...] we are here to promote the new Haiti, a country that is open for business and which welcomes Brazilian investment in particular."

The Haitian delegation includes several ministers who are tasked with promoting investment opportunities in their particular sectors. Stéphanie Villedrouin, the Minister of Tourism, says that "thousands of Brazilian tourists travel to the Caribbean each year. We are here to tell them that Haiti is a unique destination that Brazilian tourists simply must see."

Gregory Mevs, the co-chair of Haiti's presidential commission on investment, notes that Prime Minister Lamothe will also travel to Sao Paolo to meet a large number of Brazilian private sector firms ranging from airline executives and industrialists to construction firms and media entrepreneurs. According to Mevs, "Our goal is to invite Brazilian airlines to fly into Haiti, to encourage Brazilian industrialists to invest in our textile sector, and to encourage construction firms to help us construct the new Haiti."

The Haitian delegation will then travel to Rio de Janeiro where Lamothe will hold meetings with Sergio Cabral, the Governor of the State, and with Eduardo Paes, the Mayor. "My visit to Rio is to learn about the radical transformation of low income neighborhoods and draw lessons for similar areas throughout Haiti," Lamothe stated. "We intend to sign an agreement between our respective police forces and also examine the experience of successful social programs that Brazil has used to accompany police intervention. We have much to learn from Brazil's proven methods."

The Head of Government will meet this Tuesday, the Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota, the Special Adviser to the President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff, Mr. Marco Aurelio Garcia and former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, he will also proceed to the signing of several cooperation agreements.

HL/ S/ HaitiLibre