(The Commonwealth of The Bahamas) = A meeting was held in the Office of the Prime Minister in Haiti on 27th March, 2014 to address the Issue of Migration, strengthen Bilateral Relations and Economic Cooperation. The meeting was co-chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Haiti, His Excellency Piere-Richard Casimir, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, the Hon. Fred Mitchell MP. The Parties agreed to work towards:
1. Implementing the use of Public Relations and Education campaigns to dissuade persons desiring to migrate to The Bahamas;
2. Establishing a Consulate in the Northern Part of Haiti;
3. Facilitating Cooperation between the two Countries in the area of Law Enforcement to fight against organisers of illegal migration; and
4. Encouraging Economic and Technical Cooperation between the Governments of the two Countries as a means to stem the flow of persons seeking to migrate illegally;
The two Governments agreed to work towards concluding the pending Bi-lateral Agreements within 60 days.
Other High Ranking Officials in attendance at the meeting included:
Haitian Side
Jean Renel Sanon, Minister of Justice and Public Safety of the Republic of Haiti
Lucien Francoeur, Secretary General of the Office of the Prime Minister
Bahamian Side
Senator the Honourable Keith Bell, Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security in The Bahamas
The Next Bilateral Meeting will be held in The Bahamas in the near future.
The two Governments reiterated their commitment to strengthen the relationship and cooperation between the two Countries.
