INTERVIEW-New Haiti PM says priority is "jobs, jobs, jobs"

* Conille sees reconstruction "battle," seeks unity

* Says Haitians need faster help from government, donors

* Conille, 45, is medical doctor, U.N. development expert

By Joseph Guyler Delva

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Oct 5 (Reuters) - In Haiti, the Americas&${esc.hash}39; poorest state, the top priority of the incoming prime minister is no different from that of the leader of the world&${esc.hash}39;s richest economy just two hours&${esc.hash}39; flying time away.

"Jobs, jobs, jobs," Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille told Reuters in an interview hours after the Caribbean country&${esc.hash}39;s Senate ratified him as the new head of government nominated by President Michel Martelly.

In Haiti&${esc.hash}39;s biggest single aid partner, the United States, President Barack Obama has embarked on his own campaign to create jobs in a struggling economy where unemployment is stuck at 9.1 percent as he seeks re-election next year.

The Haitian Senate&${esc.hash}39;s confirmation late on Tuesday of Conille, 45, a doctor and U.N. development expert, came as a relief to foreign governments and donors and followed lawmakers&${esc.hash}39; rejection of two previous picks of Martelly, who won a March presidential election runoff. [ID:nN1E794003]

Donors have been anxiously awaiting the installation of a new head of government to tackle Haiti&${esc.hash}39;s huge reconstruction task following the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake that inflicted massive death and destruction in a blighted country that was already the least developed in the Western Hemisphere.

The CIA&${esc.hash}39;s "World Factbook" lists Haiti&${esc.hash}39;s estimated 2010 unemployment rate at 40.6 percent and notes more than two- thirds of the Haitian labor force do not have formal jobs.

The agency adds that 80 percent of Haiti&${esc.hash}39;s population live under the poverty line, with 54 percent in abject poverty.

&${esc.hash}39;NO SECTOR WILL BE EXCLUDED&${esc.hash}39;

Conille, who has worked on development issues in several African states for the United Nations, said he was confident he could rally both Haitians and international donors behind a government program he will submit to parliament for approval.

"This will be a battle in some ways, but it&${esc.hash}39;s also ... a unique and historical opportunity to put all Haitians together around a common program to rebuild their country," he said, speaking in his office in Port-au-Prince.

He plans to seek political diversity and inclusiveness in his Cabinet, not always easy in a volatile nation often torn by political faction fighting. "No sector will be excluded. We will all share responsibilities around a common vision to get the country out of this difficult situation," he said.

Conille has no illusions about the enormity of the task facing the government he will head. Last year&${esc.hash}39;s earthquake killed more than 300,000 people, according to government estimates, and left many more homeless, jobless and destitute.

"Not only did the earthquake hit one of the poorest countries in the world, but it hit the center of the country&${esc.hash}39;s activities, which is Port-au-Prince, crippling the government, private sector, businesses, banks," he said.

Conille, who said he had worked in Rwanda, Malawi, Ethiopia and Niger, also served as chief of staff to former U.S. President Bill Clinton in the latter&${esc.hash}39;s role as special U.N. Haiti envoy. ((For a factbox on Conille, click on [ID:nN1E793298]))

&${esc.hash}39;WE NEED TO CHANGE LIVES FASTER&${esc.hash}39;

Echoing pledges made by his political sponsor, pop star- turned-president Martelly, Conille said he would seek to spread rebuilding and development efforts and resources evenly between the capital and rural Haiti where half the population lives.

He acknowledged that the reconstruction process initiated by the government since the 2010 quake, bolstered by pledges of billions of dollars of aid from donors, had fallen short so far of the expectations and needs of ordinary Haitians.

"The Haitian people have been incredibly patient. I think we need to move faster. We need to change lives faster. ... We still have about 600,000 people living under tents, we still have tons and tons of debris to be collected," Conille said.

He was confident he could keep Haiti&${esc.hash}39;s aid partners in the developed world engaged in supporting the reconstruction task despite the sovereign debt and deficit worries gripping European countries and the United States.

"The international community made very specific commitments to support Haiti and I am quite confident that our partners will keep that commitment," Conille said.

He promised leadership and transparency in his government&${esc.hash}39;s relationship with foreign development partners.

Conille also said he recognized the importance of involving the Haitian private sector in the foreign aid-backed rebuilding job, particularly to generate growth and job creation.

That would involve re-establishing what he called "an atmosphere of trust" in a country that has experienced decades of dictatorship, corruption and instability, and still faces gnawing social tensions and a lingering cholera epidemic that has killed more than 6,000 people since October.

The challenge, Conille said, would be "how we create a society where the private sector trusts government and the government trusts the private sector, where political parties are able to join together beyond their differences around a common set of objectives and goals.

"One of the things we are going to look for is to make sure that more and more of the aid investments use local providers to create local jobs," he said. "We are very optimistic that in the next few months, people will see change," Conille added. (Writing by Pascal Fletcher; Editing by Peter Cooney)