Ei-iE

Education International
Education International

Teachers worldwide display solidarity and generosity towards Haitian colleagues

published 11 March 2010 updated 11 March 2010

To date, a total of 250,000 US dollars have been raised after the Urgent Action Appeal launched by EI for Haiti in the aftermath of the earthquake that hit the country on 12 Jan.

Education unions around the globe mobilised en masse in show of support for Haitian teachers and their organisation, the Confédération nationale des éducateurs d’Haïti(CNEH).

As a follow-up to the appeal, EI met with CNEH representatives during the recent North America and Caribbean Regional Conference in Trinidad and Tobago on 24 Feb to plan how assistance could be best delivered to colleagues affected by the disaster.

They identified two main objectives in the solidarity efforts:

  • to rehabilitate the organisational structure of the CNEH at all levels;
  • to reinforce the CNEH's participation in the reconstruction of Haiti's education system.

Member organisations in and outside the region are also actively involved in the recovery work co-ordinated by EI. From Canada, the Centrale des syndicats du Québec(CSQ) and the Canadian Teachers' Federation (CTF), from the United States, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Education Association (NEA), and from France, the Syndicat national des enseignements de second degré(SNES), the UNSA-Education are developing various rehabilitation programmes with the CNEH, with the participation of member organisations under the umbrella of the Caribbean Union of Teachers (CUT).

The CUT is also involved in a South-South co-operation with the CNEH supporting the exchange of union experts in areas such as organising and recruiting, union management and policy development.

Nevertheless, your help is still needed! Click here for more information on how you can contribute to the Solidarity Fund for Haiti.