President Michel Joseph Martelly of Haiti
Praising the ongoing assistance his country has received from the United Nations, Haitian President Michel Martelly told the General Assembly today that a process has been launched that should lead to the achievement of presidential, legislative, municipal and territorial elections by the end of the year.
Mr. Martelly said that one year ago, the Secretary-General, in his report to the Security Council on the work of the UN Mission in Haiti – known by the French acronym MINUSTAH – had noted that the holding of inclusive elections is essential for consolidation of democracy and the rule of law and promotion of development in Haiti.
“I am pleased to affirm that Haiti is on the right path,” he declared, noting that the Haitian people are showing political maturity and the capacity to take their destiny into their own hands. The success of the elections is an important milestone along the path of the country’s stability and the political transition set to take place in 2016.
This will be a decisive indicator of the good performance and the success of MINUSTAH over the past 11 years, he added.
Significant progress has been achieved over the past four years, the President continued, affirming that during his Administration, democracy has been strengthened, rule of law institutions has been bolstered, the security situation has improved, human rights has been strengthened, extreme poverty has been reduced, foreign direct investment has largely expanded, and, after decades of stagnation, the economy has also seen growth.
As for progress on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Haiti had made strides in education, child nutrition and access to water and sanitation. Such progress was been made possible in part to the United Nations and MINUSTAH, without which “no prospect for economic and sustainable development could have been seriously pondered.”
Meanwhile, President Martelly continued, MINUSTAH is adapting to a new context: the Haitian Government is opting for a reconfiguration plan which takes into account the current situation in the country. He hoped to see progress along those lines in an ordered manner.
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