July 12, 2025
At the Montana Hotel, 29 young professionals from the Hannibal Price cohort received their diplomas from the Jean Price-Mars Diplomatic Academy, in a ceremony attended by Foreign Minister Jean-Victor Harvel Jean-Baptiste and senior officials. These new diplomats will join Haiti’s foreign service to help strengthen the country’s international representation.
In his address, the minister hailed the occasion as “an important academic milestone,” marking both the end of a training cycle and the beginning of a career within “the great Haitian diplomatic family.” He emphasized the value of perseverance and discipline: “Dreams are beautiful, but only hard work makes them real.”
Jean-Baptiste highlighted the ongoing reforms within the ministry, centered on continuous training and modernization: “Permanent education, staff renewal, and rational use of human resources are the pillars we’ve chosen to rely on.” He also announced the upcoming inclusion of modules on cyberdiplomacy and artificial intelligence.
In a spirit of openness and equity, a new recruitment competition has been launched targeting 30 candidates from four cities across the country, reaffirming the ministry’s commitment to “giving every young Haitian with a dream of diplomacy a fair chance.” The minister also noted the quiet but meaningful progress of Haitian diplomacy, including the recent election of Ambassador Lesly David to the Latin American Economic System (SELA).
Finally, he reiterated his pledge to overhaul Haiti’s diplomatic system within 15 months, with the backing of the Transitional Presidential Council and the Prime Minister. “No effort will be spared to ensure the successful integration of these 29 graduates, who now stand on the front lines of national sovereignty,” he concluded.
