Orlando, Florida, August 2013—Officials from the Haiti Ministry of Tourism visited the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (EI) in early August to discuss how EI can assist the ministry with its goals for preparing a qualified workforce for its emerging hospitality industry.

Maryse Noel, general director, and Daniel Denis, director of workforce development, met with Ed Kastli, EI's vice president, international sales, and other Orlando team members, prior to signing Global Academic Partner (GAP) agreements for two schools operated by the Ministry of Tourism: the Ecole Hôtelière d'Haiti in Port-au-Prince and the Institut de Formation Hôtelière Touristique (IFORHT) in Les Cayes.

According to Denis, Haiti is making a major effort to restore its tourism industry following the devastating 2010 earthquake and the Ministry of Tourism is working to develop training and education programs to meet international standards for hospitality.

"We are at the very beginning. We want to develop one curriculum that will provide all students with uniform standards and competencies. That's why EI is a good partner for us; we will be able to quickly implement a curriculum that will prepare our workforce to deliver quality service," said Denis. "It is important for us to introduce our students to this from the start."

He noted that there are 20 students in the pilot program for the hospitality schools, and by 2015, they hope to serve more than 200 students. He pointed out that in that same time frame, the number of hotel rooms in the country is expected to grow from 3,000 rooms to 5,000 rooms, with companies like Marriott and Best Western building properties in Haiti. The Haiti Ministry of Tourism's website offers a wealth of information about the natural beauty and many attractions available to visitors to their country.

For information on becoming an EI Global Academic Partner (GAP) school, call +1.407.999.8100 or e-mail [email protected].

About the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI)

Established in 1953 as the nonprofit education and training arm of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), AHLEI's mission is to be the preferred provider of quality resources to educate, develop, and certify hospitality educators, students and professionals worldwide. AHLEI became part of the National Restaurant Association" Training & Certification division in 2017, connecting and leveraging the resources of two organizations that are deeply committed to a vision of career success and upward mobility for current and future hospitality, restaurant, and food service employees.

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