Garry Conille elected as Prime Minister of Haiti

Haiti.- Garry Conille, the current regional director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for Latin America and the Caribbean, will be sworn in as Prime Minister of Haiti after being elected on Tuesday by the Presidential Transition Council. The council, which has been leading the country for several weeks, cast a divided vote to bring Conille back into office.

Conille, 58, previously served as prime minister for four months under Michel Martelly’s government (2011-2016). He received a 6-1 vote from the seven-member Presidential Council, which includes two non-voting observers.

Over the weekend, the Council extended Finance Minister Michel Patrick Boisvert’s mandate as interim prime minister by one month.

The Transitional Presidential Council has faced internal conflicts, with reports indicating that a bloc of four members had initially elected a prime minister without consulting the remaining three members. This led to the bloc reversing their decision and ultimately electing Conille.

Conille, who must soon resign from his UNICEF position, was also an advisor to former President Bill Clinton for reconstruction efforts in Haiti following an earthquake. His new role includes leading the process toward elections in 2026 to elect a new president and overseeing the establishment of a fully functioning armed international force created by the UN and led by Kenya, which will soon arrive in Haiti.