Japan and OAS Sign $3M Deal to Expand Haiti's ID System Ahead of December Elections
The agreement will fund 350,000 biometric ID cards and update the electoral registry as an OAS delegation presses for security and credible elections.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — Japan and the Organization of American States (OAS) signed a $3 million agreement Tuesday to expand Haiti's identification system as the country prepares for elections scheduled for Dec. 13, according to The Haitian Times and HaitiLibre. The funding will help issue 350,000 new biometric identification cards, update the electoral registry, support public awareness campaigns and expand mobile registration units in remote and vulnerable communities, the OAS said. The deal was signed during OAS Secretary General Albert Ramdin's Aug. 16-19 visit, where a high-level Inter-American delegation, led by Ramdin, met with Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé and security officials. "This new contribution will help us update the electoral registry and provide 350,000 new biometric identification cards," Ramdin wrote on X. The initiative builds on a 2023 OAS-Japan program that registered more than 1.07 million people and issued 1.22 million cards. The electoral process faces serious challenges: more than 85% of Port-au-Prince is under armed group control and over 1.4 million people have been displaced, according to figures cited by international officials. During the visit, Haiti also signed two agreements with the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF). "Security remains fundamental to making elections possible," Ramdin said.