Haiti launches its Academy of Intellectual Property

Haiti now has a Haitian Academy of Intellectual Property. The institution was launched on Thursday, 22 October 2026, at the Karibe hotel in Pétion-Ville by Haitian jurists, Le Nouvelliste reports.

The daily describes it as a training and research space for "those who create, invent and start businesses." According to HaïtiLibre, the Academy will offer training for professionals and advice, and will be able to defend, transmit and enforce intellectual property rights.

Two ministers at the ceremony

The ceremony was attended, among others, by the Minister of Commerce and Industry, James Monazard, and the Minister of Culture and Communication, Emmanuel Ménard. According to Le Nouvelliste, both called for modernising a legal framework that technology has overtaken.

Several figures from different sectors attended the launch, according to the Instagram page sakapfet_pap, which posted footage of it. The Academy's banner carries the slogan "Intelligence creates. The law protects."

Creators unaware of their rights

Former Minister of Culture and Communication Emmelie Prophète is one of the project's initiators. She told Le Nouvelliste before the launch that the Academy was being created because "the question of intellectual property is poorly known" among creators (translated from French). She previously headed the Haitian Copyright Office (BHDA).

The scope is broad: literary and artistic works, trademarks, inventions, designs and models. The Academy also intends to respond to the challenges raised by digital technology, according to Le Nouvelliste.

The Academy's legal status, leadership and first training programme were not made public in the available reports.