The announcement on Thursday followed the resignation of Laurent Lamothe from the prime ministerial post on December 14, after repeated calls for him to quit over his failure to hold legislative elections for the past three years.

Lamothe's decision threatened to once again plunge the poorest country in the Americas into political chaos.

Recovery

Martelly, who is also a popular singer known as "Sweet Mickey," nominated Paul as Lamothe's replacement by presidential decree. Paul is now awaiting ratification from both chambers of legislature "in order to form a new government," Martelly's office said in a statement.

Haiti is still recovering from an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale which leveled much of the capital, Port-au-Prince, five years ago.

Protests

Opposition parties in Haiti have organized a series of anti-government protests to demand that Martelly step down, amid claims that he is seeking to rule by decree after January 12, 2015, when the legislature's current mandate ends.

Earlier this month, several thousands of people took to the streets near Martelly's presidential palace calling for a new leadership. Some protesters burned tires and clashed with UN troops and police, who also fired tear gas.

There were reports that UN troops fired into the air as police used tear gas to break up the demonstration.

ksb/tj (AFP, AP)