Press Releases
Japan-Haiti Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
December 13, 2024
On December 13, commencing at 7:40 p.m. for approximately 30 minutes, Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, held a meeting with Hon. Jean-Victor Harvel Jean-Baptiste, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of the Republic of Haiti, who is visiting Japan to attend the Eighth Japan-CARICOM Ministerial-Level Conference. The overview is as follows.
- At the outset, Minister Iwaya welcomed the visit to Japan by Minister Jean-Baptiste on the occasion of the Eighth Japan-CARICOM Ministerial-Level Conference scheduled on December 14. Minister Iwaya stated that Japan puts importance to working with Haiti towards the stabilization of its situation, considering that such stabilization contributes to peace, stability, and prosperity across the entire Western Hemisphere.
- Minister Iwaya emphasized the important role played by the Haitian National Police and the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM), recognizing that sustained stable security is indispensable to the complete restoration of democracy in Haiti.
- Furthermore, Minister Iwaya noted that Japan has provided a total of 29 million U.S. dollars in assistance since 2022, such as support for security and governance and humanitarian assistance, including protection of women. In response, Minister Jean-Baptiste expressed his appreciation for Japan’s cooperation and stated his hope to continuous support such as assistance for strengthening the Haitian National Police.
- The two ministers confirmed the further strengthening of Japan-CARICOM relations and Japan-Haiti bilateral relations. The two ministers also concurred to the necessity of the importance of considering values and principles such as freedom, democracy, and rule of law and building up various dialogues to lead the world worried about fragmentation to cooperation.
(Reference)Basic data of the Republic of Haiti
The Republic of Haiti covers an area of approximately 28,000 square kilometers (about one-third of the size of Hokkaido), and has a population of approximately 11.58 million people (World Bank, 2022) and a gross national income (GNI) per capita of approximately 1,600 U.S. dollars (World Bank, 2022).