About us

The Coordination Europe-Haiti is a network of engaged European civil society organisations and platforms. We work closely with civil society organisations and movements in Haiti. Our members come from six European countries.

The Coordination Europe-Haiti was founded in 2004. The platform consists of European civil society organisations and platforms from different European countries, most of them EU member states.

The purpose of the platform is threefold

To assemble

organisations, movements and groups in Europe that are engaged with human rights and sustainable development in Haiti, and share relevant information with each other

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To give a voice

to Haitian civil society in the international political arena, with a special focus on the European Union and its various institutions, both in Haiti and in Strasbourg and Brussels

To be a reliable and effective advocate

for the interests of Haitian civil society, in order to promote a fruitful relationship between the EU and Haiti, through political dialogue, trade and development cooperation

Principles and priorities

We adhere to the following principles:
human rights, international solidarity, effective action for Haitian partner organizations, impartiality and independence, democracy and mutual respect.

Our priorities are:

  • promotion of democracy and human rights in Haiti;
  • enabling strong participation of Haitian civil society in policy debates about development in Haiti;
  • giving a voice to the concerns of Haitian civil society in Brussels and Strasbourg;
  • an EU which accounts for its aid to Haiti in a transparent manner;
  • a strong and sustainable agricultural sector so as to enhance Haiti’s food sovereignty and fair trade

How the platform is organized

  • The main organ of the platform is the General Assembly.The members meet in Brussels twice a year. They approve the budget and annual plan of the platform. They discuss the priorities and give a mandate to the Steering Committee to advocate on behalf of the members. They provide the Steering Committee with all relevant information about developments in Haiti
  • The day-to-day activities are undertaken by the Steering Committee. It consists of four members. The Steering Committee meets every three weeks. It is responsible for drafting statements and letters, for organizing lobby & advocacy meetings with EU decision makers and parliamentarians, and for all other day-to-day business of the platform. The Steering Committee keeps the members updated about trends and developments at EU level.
  • The platform has a permanent Facilitator in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Her role is to provide a link between the Coordination Europe-Haiti in Brussels, and civil society partners in Haiti. She encourages Haitian civil society partners to collaborate in their advocacy towards the EU and other international partners. Finally, the Facilitator represents the platform vis-à-vis the EU Delegation in Haiti.
 

Meet the Steering Committee

Christophe Mohni

Christophe Mohni is the coordinator of the Europe-Haiti Coordination (CoEH) since mid-January 2023. After many years of living and working all over the world, he now lives in the European capital, Brussels.

Since his first visit to Haiti more than twenty years ago as programme manager for Haiti at Fastenaktion in Switzerland, he has become very attached to this country. He remains fascinated by the creativity and resilience of the Haitian people in the face of the country’s extremely difficult situation.

Christophe holds a master’s degree in history, ethnology and sociology, a master’s degree in the management of cultural and non-governmental organisations, several diplomas and certificates in development and conflict management as well as in European Union policy making.

He is very happy to put his skills and experience at the service of CoEH and to contribute to the struggle of Haitian civil society to make its voice heard by international actors, in particular the institutions of the European Union and its Member States.

Barbara Albrecht

Barbara Albrecht has been a member of CoEH for over 11 years as a representative of the German development organisation Misereor. She headed the steering committee for several years before Christophe Mohni joined CoEH.

Barbara has many contacts in Haiti thanks to her work with over 50 partner organisations and local networks. As well as supporting sustainable development projects in the fields of food security, agro-ecology, health, education, human rights and improving housing conditions, she wants to help make fundamental and structural changes possible in Haiti, without which no real and significant change can ever take place in the country.

Barbara wants to help its local partners make their voices heard at international political level, particularly within the European Union. She wants to promote awareness among the institutions that have the power to contribute to lasting change in Haiti through political decisions based on the expectations of the Haitian people.

At this time of global crisis, Barbara feels it is her duty to draw attention to the needs and concerns, but also to the cultural richness and local skills that exist in Haiti.

Ornella Braceschi

After a long career with the French Ministry of Agriculture, Ornella Braceschi became involved in the international solidarity sector by joining the Board of Directors of Collectif Haiti de France (CHF) in 2010. Since 2017, she has held the position of President of this collective, which brings together 65 associations working on actions to support Haiti’s endogenous development.

Ornella is strongly committed to the values of defending human rights and has a particular interest in issues such as food sovereignty, education and agro-ecology. Since joining CHF, she has contributed to the development of several projects that have improved learning conditions and the quality of life of children in over thirty Haitian schools (COMOSEH project, educational food garden programme).

Her involvement in the COEH Steering Committee has enabled the Collectif to step up its advocacy work in France and Europe to alert decision-makers and the general public to the problems of governance and human rights violations in Haiti.

Daniel Fernández Campos

Daniel joined COEH at the end of 2023 as a representative of the Belgian NGO Entraide & Fraternité, where he is responsible for the Haiti and Brazil partnerships and for monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) for the International Partnership Department.

Originally from San José, Costa Rica, from a family of coffee growers, he decided to come to Belgium to pursue his university studies in political science and international relations. Involved in the voluntary sector since his studies, Daniel has built up solid experience with various NGOs in the international cooperation and advocacy sector, including Médecins du Monde Belgium and CIDSE.

As part of his work in Haiti, Daniel supports local partners in the implementation of various projects focusing on agro-ecology, land issues and advocacy in favour of farmers’ demands.

Colette Lespinasse

Colette Lespinasse has been the Haiti correspondent for the Coordination Europe Haiti (COEH) since 2017. She has extensive work experience with European organisations and has accompanied many development workers and volunteers who have come from Europe to work in Haiti.

She is also a journalist with extensive experience in social communications and radio programme management, and has published several articles in national and international journals.

A university graduate in administrative sciences, she was the founding member and director of the Groupe d’Appui aux Rapatriés et Réfugiés (GARR) for 14 years. From time to time, she provides consultancy services for project evaluations and takes part in research activities on various issues concerning Haiti.

She is a human rights activist and has attended numerous human rights training courses both in Haiti and abroad, with a particular focus on migrants’ and women’s rights. As such, she has worked extensively to combat human trafficking and promote respect for migrants’ rights in the Dominican Republic. She was Honorary Liaison for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) from 2008 to 2010.   In 2012, she was awarded the Richard Holbrooke Prize by Refugees International, and in March 2014 she received the ‘Woman of Courage’ award from the American Embassy in Haiti.

Kathia Cardenas

Representing CCFD-Terre Solidaire Kathia has recently joined the Steering Committee. She is responsible for Latin America partnerships in the Caribbean area. With a background in Sociology and a Masters in International Studies specializing in Latin American Studies, she has held several positions as project manager in international NGOs. She is supporting projects of local partners in Haiti focusing on themes of gender, food sovereignty and migration.

Greet Schaumans, honorary member Steering Committee

Greet is one of the founding members of the Coordination Europe-Haiti. She has been working for the Belgian NGO Broederlijk Delen as manager of the program for Haiti, and for the Belgian NGO confederation 11.11.11 as coordinator of the post-earthquake reconstruction programme.

‘To be a voice for the Haitian organisations who are struggling for a better life for the Haitian people.’

Milah Wainer

Milah Wainer represents the French NGO Secours Catholique – Caritas France as Projects and Partnerships Officer in Haiti within the Latin America and Caribbean Department.

With a degree in International Relations and a MA in Political Science, she is also involved in advocacy on environmental issues in Latin America.

In Haiti, she works with local partners to set up agro-ecology projects and promote food security.

Milah has working experience in various associations and in the private sector in France and Brazil.