Revitalizing Haiti's economy through coffee exports and development initiatives

¶ … producing in Haiti?

Despite Haiti's profound economic difficulties both before and after the earthquake, a number of recent initiatives have been undertaken to revitalize the Haitian economy from within, effectively 'playing to Haiti's strengths' as a producer. A good example of this is Haitian coffee production which was sold for $3.00 a pound in Japan before the earthquake. The country still has the resources to produce high-end coffee but more marketing is needed to promote the product abroad. As a point of comparison, "Haiti and Rwanda produce about the same volume of beans each year. But Rwanda has exported nearly 20% of its coffee in recent years as washed beans for gourmet markets, up from just 1% in 2002. Haiti sells 90% of its production as cheap, dry-processed beans that never leave the island of Hispaniola. The upshot is that in 2010, Rwanda made $55 million from coffee exports. Haiti made $1.5 million" (Watkins,"Selling Haitian Coffee").

Are there multinational companies?

Citigroup maintains a presence in Haiti, mainly "transaction-services business, which helps businesses move money into and out of the country" and some retail banks (Noblet, "Companies cope"). Canada's Gildan Activewear Inc. staffs a t-shirt factory in Haiti as does the contractor Palm Apparel SA ( Noblet, "Companies cope" ).

Find projects concerning water cleaning or pollution reduction

The earthquake was not simply an economic disaster that ruined many businesses in Haiti and destroyed many homes: it also had profound ecological consequences, including contaminating the drinking water. In the years afterward, Haiti has been afflicted by cholera, a disease spread by contaminated water largely eliminated in the developed world. Currently, "World Water Relief, a group that installs filtration systems in schools so there is access to clean water" is active in Haiti, attempting to contain the spread of cholera" (Glor, "Relief group fighting").

The American Red Cross is providing more general forms of assistance to improve water and sanitiation systems. As well as treating the illnesses caused by poor water quality, it is working to build homes that have better-quality sanitation systems than before the earthquake; engaging in anti-poverty campaigns to generate work for the Haitian people, and is attempting to create a healthcare infrastructure. It is also working to educate communities to prevent the spread of communicable diseases ("Haiti assistance program," Red Cross).

Clarify why certain projects have been abandoned

According to an editorial in the British newspaper The Guardian in 2010, government red tape inhibited the full recovery of Haiti: "there is evidence from many sources -- governments, aid agencies and ordinary Haitians -- that reconstruction has frozen even before it has begun. Billions of dollars promised by the international community have yet to arrive; the whole effort is caught in leadership vacuum" ("We have abandoned the Haitians," The Guardian). The Haitian government was poorly equipped to deal with the country's poverty even before the disaster and still struggles to coordinate efforts to aid and rebuild the nation. In 2010, "only a tiny fraction of the $5.3bn pledged by donor countries for the first two years of reconstruction" was used in the immediate aftermath, which is partially why sanitation conditions deteriorated so quickly ("We have abandoned the Haitians," The Guardian). Problems with government administration -- which must still act to coordinate international relief efforts -- remain.