Haiti: A Case Study

Haiti is a prime example of how human needs in one area of the world are interdependent with social conditions elsewhere in the world. Haiti, for most of its history has been overwhelmed with economic

The Big Truck That Went By: How the World Came to Save Haiti and Left Behind a Disaster is an inside look into the realities behind international aid and intervention. The book answers the question of whether or not international efforts in Haiti really benefited the nation in the long term. The book argues that the international community failed in their efforts to rebuild Haiti due to their mismatched military approaches, failed monetary pledges and how the how billions of dollars were ineffective, having served only short term needs instead of, rebuilding solid foundations and institutions that would serve as the first step toward sustainable development.

The Republic of Haiti has a unique and vibrant culture. It was once hailed as the "Pearl of the Antilles" for being the wealthiest colony in the world. This small Latin American island tells a story of slaves enduring resistance to the some of the most dominant forces abroad. In 1804, Haiti became the first free black republic and the second post-colonial country in the Americas. However, the days of being the wealthiest colony have since passed. Haiti is now considered to be the most impoverished country in the western hemisphere. The proud history of this country is overshadowed by alarming rates of poverty, violence, and inequality. This island nation’s government has been plagued with numerous military staged coups and misfortunes. I

In order to understand Haiti we must first put ourselves in their shoes. At one stage or another, every man, woman, or child will be faced with at least one issue that is now happening in Haiti. The issues involving Haiti has been a popular topic for the past two years. Since January twelfth two-thousand and ten. There are many factors which influenced the development of Haiti. Many people have abandoned Haiti over the past years. They have also given up hope for Haiti. Haiti is heralded by economic issues both political and social, foreign issues, military issues (minustah), presidential issues, and the recent earthquake. I plan to explain each of these factors in detail and give

The current state of Haiti is one of despair from the economic oppression, devastating natural

A majority of Haiti’s economy relies on foreign aid, with over half of its annual budget coming from outside sources. In 2010 a 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti which inflicted $7.8 billion in damage which caused the GDP to contract by 5.4%. Foreign aid skyrocketed and about $13.5 billion in donations and pledges flooded in with 75% of them coming from donor nations and the other 25% coming from private charities or organizations. Even 5 years after the earthquake, the situation hasn’t improved. Haitians are still dependent on foreign donations to live. The heavy dependence on donations makes up for Haiti’s low participation in the global economy, which is also negative. Besides the foreign aid, Haiti exports very few products -- with annual exports that are about a third of Jamaica's exports. The United States, a country that has trade

Haiti was once the first black independent republic in the world and the richest island in the Caribbean. Today Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest countries in the world. What could have happened to Haiti in almost two hundred years of history? The country experienced repeated civil war and foreign intervention. Haiti is not isolated from the international world. Thus, it was not out of concern for ordinary Haitians that the United States intervened in Haiti. It was out of concern for profit and stability within the United States' own backyard. The purpose of this paper is to show the negative aspect that the United States had played in the government of Haiti.

Haiti has historically been the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, suffering from mismanagement of resources and corrupt rule by the elites. The rule of the Duvaliers had concentrated the wealth of the state in the Duvalier family and its political allies, the Duvalierists. This had been the way Haiti was always run since its independence in 1804: the wealthy, French-speaking elite ruling as an oligarchy or dictatorship over the poor, Creole-speaking masses. The events that occurred from 1986 to 1995 sought to change Haitian society forever in a transition from predatory dictatorship to popular democracy. However, that path would not be smooth, as the

For the most part, the interaction between the colonizers of Haiti—the Spanish and the French—was negative, and lastingly so. Haiti has remained a turbulent and impoverished landscape. Social and economic indicators remain doggedly low, year after year. Haiti, although technically independent as of 1804, has never been able to support itself. There is a lot of heartfelt sympathy for Haiti, and the hope is that the legacy of colonization is not unending fate. But it will take a lot of work to get Haiti to a place of true freedom and independence, and sometimes outside help, however well intentioned, only unwittingly fuels the legacy.

After US occupation, the Haitian government was in a state of unrest with political oppression, violence, and several coups. The UN began bringing in peacekeepers to help improve the political situation in 1994 and today the Republic of Haiti has its own functioning government, with President Michel Martelly at the head (Krasnoff 2013). Since the slave revolution that led to the country’s independence over 200 years ago, Haiti has remained deep in debt; it wasn’t until 20 years ago that there was a fully functional government, which to this day still has its fair share of corruption. With all this in mind, it’s no wonder that Haiti has been hit hard by many disasters, including the outbreak of cholera (Krasnoff, 2013). The country does not have the money to help provide treatment for those infected, sanitation, and clean drinking water outside of the main cities where many of its citizens live. The young government has not yet been able to organize a system to help its

Haiti has long been known for its major export of Haitian migrants in search of a better way of life. It is an exodus that goes back several decades, however with recent times the numbers have increased dramatically. In fact, that numbers of Haitians fleeing Haiti in the early 1990's far exceeds the numbers recorded in earlier years. Between 1972- 1979, some 8,000- 10,000 Haitians arrived in the United States. Compare this number with the 14,443 Haitians interdicted between September 30, 1991 - January 1, 1992. By early 1994, this number totaled over 41,000 (Report on the Situation of Human Rights in Haiti, 1994). Economic deprivation has always been the predominant influence for the migrating of Haitians, yet in the

What makes this reading an imperative one; it’s the notion of bringing to light the issues and solution I look to achieve on my paper. As it is no shock Haiti is the poorest republic in the western hemisphere Because of that negative stereotype Haiti Perception to the world is one in dire need, but you guys may be asking yourself “What is the point?” There is no surprise that much of the world’s attention is no longer focused on the people of Haiti. The cameras are mostly gone; the fund raising efforts have died down. And while a number of relief organizations remain, their capabilities are a fraction of what they once were. And yet the suffering continues.

Society must have wonder how could the first powerful black nation become the poorest country in the western hemisphere in just two centuries. Though many things could have contributed to the fall of Haiti, however the shot that delivered the biggest blow to the country’s economy was the accepted 150 million franc loan from France in 1838. This set-up loan gathered up such a ridiculously amount of debt over the course of 80 years that kept Haiti’s economy in a downwards path to destruction and poverty. People could even say that this loan was France’s ploy to punish island for its past rebellion that gained them their independence. With that being said my proposed topic is the investigation of economic development and growth through governmental decisions and how these decisions is affecting Haiti present-day economy.

January 12th, 2010 Haiti faced a catastrophic earthquake that shook the whole country apart and had left the country in ruins. The world looked at Haiti as a nation in a desperate situation to revive itself to the country that it was before. But few have realized that Haiti was already in a place of disorder and as an underdeveloped country it has been struggling to succeed as a nation. From the way that Haiti handles itself, it is evident that this nation is not striving enough tobecome a developed country by taking necessary actions to improve the countries resources and itslifestyle. With the political structure being erratic and facing environmental issues like nothaving proper structural buildings, Haiti has been hurt deeply after the earthquake. This showsthat Haiti presents no urgency or immediate action to further improve its global status. Haiti still needs the support of developed countries such as the United States, to aid its way to have consistency in the political, social, and environmental structure of the country. The idea thatdeveloped countries need to show their global responsibility in reconstructing Haiti to pursuesuccess puts the pressure on developed countries to take actions. This is inexcusable as theearthquake is overshadowing Haiti’s problems within the nation, which has not been brought out.

Poverty, corruption, and poor access to education are the most serious disadvantages that Haiti faces. Two-thirds of the country depends on agriculture, consisting of mainly small-scale subsistence farming. This sector is high vulnerable to damage from natural disasters and the country’s widespread deforestation (which have caused periodic flooding). Additionally, Haiti suffers from high inflation, lack of investment,