Haiti’s security crisis has continued to deepen despite the deployment of the Kenya-led, UN-authorized Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in 2024. Gangs now control 85 percent of Port-au-Prince and large portions of territory across the country, displacing more than 1.3 million people and leaving nearly 5,000 dead between October 2024 and June 2025. The state of emergency declared in August underscores the collapse of national capacity to restore order.
Addressing this crisis requires more than temporary stabilization. It demands a sustainable strategy for restoring territorial control, reestablishing state authority, and creating conditions for governance and economic recovery. The international response has struggled to mobilize sufficient attention and resources. The future of the MSS is uncertain, and the role of the Organization of American States (OAS) remains unclear. Meanwhile, private security proposals, including those advanced by Erik Prince, illustrate both the range of options under discussion and the urgency of defining a coherent path forward.
This discussion will focus on the way ahead: what territorial control strategies can realistically be pursued, how Haitian institutions can be rebuilt, and what role the UN, OAS, the United States, and other partners can play to ensure that international engagement leads not just to short-term relief but to lasting stability.
Join the Inter-American Dialogue and Florida International University’s Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. ET for a timely discussion on the future of Haiti’s security situation.
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OPENING REMARKS
Rebecca Bill Chavez
President & CEO, Inter-American Dialogue (@RebeccaBillChav)
SPEAKERS
Vanda Felbab-Brown
Senior Fellow at Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology, Brookings Institution (@VFelbabBrown)
Keith Mines
Former Vice President for Latin America, United States Institute of Peace (@Mineskw)
Wolf Pamphile
Founder and Executive Director, Haiti Policy House (@wolf_pamphile)
MODERATOR
Frank Mora
Professor and Senior Research Scientist at the Jack D. Gordon Institute, Florida International University
Event Partner
Sponsors
