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PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) – Haitian Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant resigned on Saturday as he faced a no-confidence vote after a move to lower fuel prices in the Caribbean.
In a speech to the Lower Chamber that was broadcast live on television, Lafontant defended his tenure but said that Haiti's President Jovenel Moses had accepted his resignation.
"As I told you, I am at service to the Republic, "Lafontant said.
Earlier this month, the Haitian Government announced a proposal for an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The move to a 38 percent rise in gasoline prices and 47 percent for diesel, triggering protests during which barricaded roads demonstrators, looted stores and ablaze sets in the capital, Port-au-Prince.
The unrest causes embassies to close.
Lafontant announced a temporary reversal of the policy in protest, but the protests continued. A no-confidence vote in his leadership had been scheduled for Saturday, according to the Miami Herald.
The IMF said on Thursday that it expects a revised plan that will include a gradual lowering of fuel subsidies.
A medical doctor and political novice, Lafontant became prime minister in March 2017 with ambitious plans to boost agricultural production, improve infrastructure and expand access to clean water.
Reporting by Robenson Sanon in Port-au-Prince and Stefanie Eschenbacher in Mexico City; Editing by Anthony Esposito and Daniel Wallis
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