Above: Martelly meeting with members of Haiti’s diaspora in the DR Congo (Photo: OP Haiti)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Haiti President Michel Martelly met this weekend with the small community of the Haitian diaspora in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Martelly, who has been visiting the country for the La Francophonie summit, is being joined by Foreign Minister Pierre Richard Casimir and roving Ambassador to Africa Jean Francois David.

The meeting came at the Havre de Paix hotel in Kinshasa.

The President’s office said there were three groups of Haitians living in the country: former staff of the Haitian government who arrived in the country after it first received independence in 1960 and in the next few years.

Also counted in the community are businessmen and officials working in posts at the UN and other organizations and a third group of young Haitians born in Kinshasa.

The Haitian community in DRC numbers about 100, according to Haiti’s government.

Martelly invited them to return to Haiti to help the country’s youth, particularly in areas like education and vocational training.