Short report on Haiti

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This is a synopsis of what I recently observed in Haiti.

1. ENVIRONMENT.

a. Things are slightly better.

But I do mean ever so slightly.

The level of garbage in some streets is less. But I must add, that this seems to be only in the streets most frequented by affluent Haitians.

Trash in less affluent neighborhoods still cover entire streets.

But more important (in terms of investment) trash still covers many business areas.

b. The fact that the streets are cleaner is not due to any infrastructure change.

Only the establishment of a serious infrastructure for maintaining a clean environment will show even results in all neighborhoods.

SOLUTION: Create an infrastructural system for garbage clean-up and collection (I suggested a system some time back, but clean-up system can be created by any dimwit).

Penalize any and all individuals found loitering by given them cleaning duty for three days to a week. Have the individual wear a big sign saying what his crime is and have the media film this individual cleaning the streets.

The penalty should be for both the poor and the rich. That alone should get people to stop throwing trash in the streets.

However, the only thing that will really stop the trash pile-up is a serious system of collection and much more garbage bins on the street.

2. ECONOMIC
I heard someone say that the country's economy is better.

But ask the average Joe on the street and they all know that the price for basic foods has gone up. The price of rice for 110-pound sack doubled.

It went from $22.50 to $45 between last spring and summer, and has now settled at a very high $37. Notice that we are talking US dollars, when most Haitians who do get paid get paid in gourdes or Haitian dollars.

A bag of cement which used to be 30 to 50 gourdes is now more then 200 gourdes.

Inflation is killing the Haitian economy and starving the Haitian people.

It was only due to the financial aid of the International Monetary Fund that the economy grew a measly 3.5% in 2007. So many young man that have some types of certificates and degrees are now either jobless or work as chaufey or gasson lakou [possible misspell].

More than 23% of children under five years suffer from malnutrition.

75% of the Haitian people still live below the poverty line--THAT'S 75%!! the rate of production growth for 2007 is 2.5%.

I guess we should be grateful that there was any growth at all. I and many other bloggers have already posted many answers to the economic problems, so I will not do so again here. It's not that there are no answers, it's that no answers are being seriously persued.

3. SECURITY.

This is one area that has seen great improvement.

I personally felt it, but more importantly the average Joe that I spoke with on the street acknowledged it. Some of the elite still feel insecure, but I can tell you from my research that they can actually worry much less. That anger and bitter need for revenge that had gripped the population for the last few years seems to be gone. I think part of that result should be credited to the Preval government.

The rest is that the Haitian people themselves were tired of the violence.

The current government is doing a pretty good media campaign against violence and I for one think it's working; so I give credit where credit is due.

Now if they could just step things up a bit in the other areas, we might see some real improvement in 2008.

Sorry, but I have the flu and this is all I can write for this update.

Linda, January 25 2008, 8:42 PM

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