Haiti - Grand’Anse : The only herbarium in the country
The ecosystems of the Department of Grand'Anse, known for their rich flora, are victims of poor agricultural practices, uncontrolled cutting of trees and natural disasters which constitute major problems.
In addition, plagued by all these threats, the region faces a lack of scientific data on its biodiversity. Also, the Ministry of the Environment and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in the "land restoration" component of the "Action Against Desertification" Project funded by the European Union have provided support to the New Grand'Anse University (UNOGA) for the creation of a herbarium within the university.
"This herbarium is of paramount importance for scientific research and any other program for the restoration or conservation of biodiversity. Moreover, it is the only one that now exists in the country since that the Erick Ekman National Herbarium in Damien was recently destroyed in a fire" explained the rector of UNOGA Maxime Roumer, insisting on the primary vocation of this herbarium which is to conserve native and autochthonous species.
For José Luis Fernández, FAO Representative in Haiti, the creation of this herbarium is an important step for the advancement of studies on biodiversity. "To restore ecosystems, it is essential to have reliable and up-to-date data on the various species and their ecological relationship," explaining that this tool will be useful to many scientific disciplines, as well as contribute to a better awareness of the need to conserve the biodiversity of Grand'Anse.
Kelly Marcia, Departmental Director of the Ministry of the Environment in Grand'Anse, renewed the commitment of the Ministry to set up, in conjunction with its partners from Civil Society, initiatives aimed at protecting the environment, in particular the biodiversity "The Departmental Directorate expresses, on behalf of the Ministry of the Environment, its satisfaction for the realization of this herbarium which will serve as a place of conservation of the plant diversity of the region and also a reference tool for the identification and conservation plants from the department of Grand'Anse in particular."
