Haiti Transitional Council appointed a new cabinet on June 11 ahead of the anticipated deployment of Kenya police forces, as the Caribbean Nation battles a deep humanitarian crisis fueled by armed gangs.
Kenya aims to lead a UN-backed mission to secure Haiti, which is grappling with violence, poverty, and political instability with a plan to deploy 1,000 Kenyan police officers.
The new cabinet completely replaces all the ministers from the former Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s government, who was forced to step down earlier this year by gangs controlling large parts of Haiti.
The announcement of the new cabinet comes two weeks after the country’s transitional government council named Garry Conille as the interim prime minister.
Conille returned as prime minister after a brief stint in the role more than a decade ago. He was most recently a top official with the U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF.
In the new cabinet, the prime minister will also serve as interior minister, controlling much of Haiti’s security forces as well as intelligence gathering.
Haiti Appoints New Cabinet
The justice ministry will be headed by Carlos Hercule, a lawyer who formerly headed the Port-au-Prince bar association along with serving as a member of an electoral council set to pave the way for Haiti’s next elections.
He will oversee the paralyzed judicial system and the country’s embattled police, who have been fighting the powerful gangs.
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The defense ministry will be led by Jean Marc Berthier Antoine who will oversee Haiti’s small army that was disbanded in 1995 but reinstated seven years ago.
Dominique Dupuy, a UNESCO ambassador who was once a member of the transitional council before resigning, will be foreign affairs minister.
Furthermore, Antoine Augustin, a university professor and supporter of the 2021 Montana Accord, a political movement which opposed the previous government of Henry will serve as the education minister.
Princeton-educated Ketleen Florestal was appointed as the finance minister replacing Michel Patrick Boisvert who also served as interim prime minister earlier this year.
Florestal takes charge as Haiti has deepening poverty, with inflation reaching nearly 30% in recent years. People have continued to lose their jobs due to gang violence, which has forced businesses to close.
The new Cabinet includes four women and critics point out that Haiti’s government barely has female representation.
Only one woman with non-voting powers sits on the transitional council, and no women were considered for the prime minister position.
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The Carribean Nation Battling with Gangs
However, the transitional council tasked with choosing Haiti’s next prime minister and the cabinet is not done yet. It must appoint a provisional electoral commission, a prerequisite for holding general elections.
The council’s non-renewable mandate expires on February 7, 2026, when a new president is set to be sworn in.
Meanwhile, Haiti continues to struggle with gangs that control at least 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince with thousands of people displaced.
Haiti’s problems worsened after the presidential assassination of Jovenel Moïse in 2021 threw the nation into upheaval.
The country has had no president since the assassination, and it has no sitting parliament.
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