The Ministry of National Education and Vocational Training (MENFP) has set October 1, 2025, as the start of the new academic year. The calendar outlines 186 days of classes, 11 holidays, and promises of curriculum reform, vocational training, and school meals. On the surface, it looks like a step toward stability. In reality, it may be nothing more than wishful thinking in a country where armed gangs have turned classrooms into battlegrounds and made no distinction between men, women, or children.
Notably absent from MENFP’s announcement is any clear plan to keep students alive while they learn. This silence is glaring, given the conditions across Haiti. Gangs have overrun neighborhoods, displaced families, and in many cases, taken over school buildings themselves. The Haiti Education Cluster reported that as of January 2025, 959 schools were closed because of violence and mass displacement. In Port-au-Prince, nearly 20 schools had to be relocated just to keep them out of immediate danger.
In some regions, children face the added threat of being recruited by armed groups or subjected to exploitation and gender-based violence. In this environment, walking to school can be as dangerous as staying home in a gang-controlled area. NGOs like Haitian Roots and Saint Rock have tried to keep education going, but even they have been forced to halt classes when the violence crept too close.
If the government is serious about reopening schools, the first announcement should not be about the number of class days or instructional hours, it should be about security. How will students be transported safely to and from school? Will there be armed protection near campuses? Will EDUPOL or other specialized forces be deployed in sufficient numbers? Without those answers, October 1 risks becoming a national gamble with children’s lives as the stakes.
Haiti desperately needs its children back in classrooms, but it needs them alive even more. A rushed reopening without concrete, enforceable safety measures is not a victory for education, it is an invitation for disaster.
Ministè Edikasyon Nasyonal ak Fòmasyon Pwofesyonèl (MENFP) fikse dat 1 oktòb 2025 kòm kòmansman nouvo ane lekòl la. Kalendriye a prevwa 186 jou klas, 11 jou konje, epi li pwomèt refòm nan kourikoulòm, fòmasyon pwofesyonèl, ak pwogram manje lekòl. Sou papye, sa sanble yon etap pou retounen nan estabilite. Men, nan reyalite, sa ka sèlman yon rèv nan yon peyi kote gang ame yo tounen salklas yo an chan batay epi yo pa fè okenn diferans ant gason, fi oswa timoun.
Sa ki plis frapan nan anons MENFP a, se absans nenpòt plan klè pou pwoteje lavi elèv yo pandan y ap aprann. Silans sa a klere anpil lè n gade kondisyon peyi a. Gang yo anvayi katye yo, deplase fanmi yo, epi nan anpil ka, pran kontwòl bilding lekòl yo. Haiti Education Cluster rapòte ke, depi janvye 2025, te gen 959 lekòl ki te fèmen akoz vyolans ak deplasman an mas. Nan Pòtoprens, prèske 20 lekòl oblije deplase pou retire yo nan danje dirèk.
Nan kèk rejyon, timoun yo konfwonte yon lòt menas, tankou yo ka fòse rantre nan gwoup ame oswa sibi eksplwatasyon ak vyolans seksyèl. Nan yon anviwònman konsa, mache ale lekòl ka menm danjere ak rete lakay nan yon zòn gang kontwole. Òganizasyon tankou Haitian Roots ak Saint Rock eseye kontinye edikasyon, men menm yo oblije sispann klas lè vyolans lan rive twò pre.
Si gouvènman an vrèman serye sou relouvri lekòl yo, premye anons la pa ta dwe sou kantite jou lekòl oswa kantite èdtan ansèyman, men sou sekirite. Ki jan yo pral transpòte elèv yo san danje pou ale lekòl ak tounen lakay? Èske yo pral mete pwoteksyon ame bò kote lekòl yo? Èske EDUPOL oswa lòt fòs espesyalize ap deplwaye nan yon kantite ase? San repons pou kesyon sa yo, dat 1 oktòb la ka tounen yon parye nasyonal kote lavi timoun yo ap sèvi kòm moso pyès.
Ayiti bezwen timoun li yo tounen nan salklas, men li bezwen yo vivan anvan tout bagay. Yon relouvri prese prese san mezi sekirite konkrè ak aplikab pa yon viktwa pou edikasyon, men yon envitasyon pou yon trajedi.
