« We’ve lost thousands of books, over thirty computers, and advanced equipment. The damages are estimated at several thousands of dollars, » the dean of the INSFSF revealed to AyiboPost
The building of the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives (INSFSF) is nothing more than a pile of walls and partitions charred by destructive flames since it was ransacked in July by bandits.
Everywhere in the courtyard, shards of broken glass litter the ground. The metal pipes that made up the building’s plumbing were torn out and washed away.
The book-filled library of the sole teaching establishment in this field, located on Rue de la Réunion in Port-au-Prince, was set on fire.
The library at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
« We lost thousands of books, more than 30 computers and state-of-the-art devices. The damage is estimated at several thousands of dollars, » Nadège Daudier, the institution’s dean since 2022, told AyiboPost.
Image of the extent of the damages at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
Since March, the bandits have attacked several higher education institutions in the area.
These institutions are still unable to take stock of the damage caused by the bandits who are constantly raising their weapons in the lower districts of the town, according to several interviews conducted by AyiboPost with officials from various entities.
AyiboPost visited the INSFSF with a midwifery student at the beginning of August.
Image of the extent of the damages at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
The simulation rooms, the practice mannequins and the neonatal resuscitation rooms were ransacked or incinerated.
In the aisles of the building, blocks of mortar torn by the flames lie on the ground in the middle of the blackened mosaics.
Dismembered mannequins and shattered bay windows complete a picture of desolation.
According to Daudier, the dean of the institution, six vehicles from the establishment were swiped, including two pick-ups and four minibuses in a first attack in March 2024.
During this period, several employees were taken hostage by armed bandits in the INSFSF compound.
Image of the extent of the damages at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
Fito Voltaire, 50 years old, is the manager of the establishment. He last visited the space in April.
On his way to feed a flock of chickens which he kept on the premises, he was attacked when nearly three armed bandits descended on him. One of the thugs ordered for him to be shot. Voltaire’s life was saved thanks to a mentally unstable individual who informed the assailants that he was one of the guards of the faculty. But his chickens were taken away by the thugs.
Batistin, another manager, was not so lucky.
The man lived within the walls of the faculty. He remembers when nearly four heavily armed bandits burst into the Institute in April. The 65-year-old janitor was held at gunpoint, dragged unceremoniously through the building’s enclosure and robbed of the keys to the institution under a barrage of threats.
In shock, Batistin spent several days with frequent diarrhea and migraines following the incident. « I wasn’t used to experiencing these kinds of things, and it’s been 22 years since I joined the faculty, » he says.
Image of the extent of the damages at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
Ronaldo Jeanty, a third-year student at the Institute, says he has nothing but regrets.
« After all these years of studying, it is hard to see our dream and our alma mater in such a deplorable state because of the inertia of the state authorities to guarantee security in the country. It is inconceivable that education and books in Haiti should be attacked, » he regrets.
Ronaldo Jeanty, a third year student at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
Since the first attacks on the Institute at the beginning of the year, Nadège Daudier told AyiboPost that she had several times sought assistance from several police patrols to go down to take stock of the damage, but the agents strongly advised her not to venture into the lower part of the city.
The INSFSF was inaugurated on February 21, 2018 in Port-au-Prince with the aim of training qualified midwifery professionals for the country’s maternal and child health needs.
In 2021, the structure was integrated into the State University of Haiti (UEH) with training programs in the West, North and South to reduce maternal and infant mortality in Haiti.
Since the attacks, the faculty, comprising over a hundred students, has been trying to function by organizing sessions for students at the Professional Association of Midwives of Haiti (APSH) in Delmas.
But many students cannot continue their studies because of the country’s security hazards in recent months, according to Daudier.
Image of the extent of the damages at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives in August 2024.
More than a month after the landing of Kenyan troops in Haiti, gangs continue to operate in the metropolitan area and several provincial towns.
According to the United Nations (UN), political instability and the escalation of violence in 2024 forced 578,074 people to abandon their homes, including more than 310,000 women and girls and 180,000 children.
Other educational institutions have been ransacked by armed gangs in the lower part of the city since the outbreak of hostilities in February.
On the list, the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy (FMP), the Faculty of Science (FDS), and the National School of Arts (ENARTS).
The Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy parking lot in August 2024.
During AyiboPost’s visit at the beginning of August, a bus sat just a stone’s throw from what was left of an incinerated car and the main metal gate of the building torn off and lying on the floor of the Faculty of Medicine.
The walls of the establishment bear the expression of the criminal drunkenness of the bandits. Almost everywhere on the walls, gaping bullet holes can be observed alongside obscene inscriptions left as a record of their passage. The metal locks on almost every door have been blasted open, leaving most rooms wide open. In the corridors, piles of jumbled files sketch the decor of an abandoned establishment.
One of the wall at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy.
A few meters away, on the façade of the courtyard overlooking the Faculty of Dentistry (FO) of the State University of Haiti, the library is nestled below.
If the books did not suffer the ravages of the flames, they were ransacked, with much of it left scattered across the floor of the room.
The library at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy.
The Faculty of Sciences (FDS), an entity of the UEH, has also been subjected to regular acts of looting since the peak of insecurity in the lower part of the city last February. AyiboPost tried unsuccessfully to establish contact with an official from the institution.
ENARTS, one of the few art schools in the country, was looted at the beginning of the year. Nearly five months later, no inventory of the damage has yet to be carried out by those in charge, who still fear the lower part of the city.
Reached by phone, Yves Penel, director general of the institution, reveals to AyiboPost that many student files, important books and accounting documents have disappeared.
One of the hallways at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy.
The walls were breached, televisions used for training as well as several batteries and inverters that provided electricity to the building were taken away by the bandits.
For the time being, the institution is trying to maintain its courses online. But several students dropped out, according to the official.
In the last admissions round for the 2023-2024 academic year, ENARTS welcomed 108 students. Currently, this number has been reduced to 80, according to the official.
« The attack on schools and universities in Haiti is illogical, Penel said. Attacking these institutions is killing hope in the country. »
Cover image: Ronaldo Jeanty, third-year student at the National Higher Institute for the Training of Midwives. | Photo: Junior Legrand
Photos by Ronaldo Jeanty and Junior Legrand.
Keep in touch with AyiboPost via:
► Our channel Telegram : click here
► Our Channel WhatsApp : click here
► Our Community WhatsApp :click here
Comments