Top Five Facts About Poverty in Haiti. The Lack of Help is Criminal!

            Haiti has still not recovered from the major earthquake it dealt with in 2010.  It has an estimated population of approximately 11.2 million.  It also has one of the highest homeless populations in the world.  In 2018, Haiti was reported to have over a million people who are homeless, and most of the homelessness is attributed to the 2010 earthquake.  The country also has some other unfortunate statistics.  Haiti is often considered to be the poorest country in the Western hemisphere and has more than half of its citizens living in poverty.  Because of this, many assumptions are made about the country’s government, citizens, and culture.  Here are five facts about the country’s homelessness and poverty issue that everyone should know.

1.)  Haiti is enduring issues about government leaders’ credibility.  Recently, there has been an uprising by Haitians because of the poverty issue.  President Jovenel Moïse is being accused of graft scandals and not properly addressing the extensive poor living conditions.  Funds that were intended to address the homeless population and other despairs have been mishandled according to recent reports.  President Moïse has not said much about the accusations except for pointing the finger at opposing parties’ desire for power.    

2.) In January 2019, civil protests about the widespread poverty turned violent.  After Haitians learned of the accusations about mishandling monies for the poverty and homelessness problem, they protested at the country’s capital.  Clashes with the police have resulted in more than seven people being killed and many more being injured.  Neighborhoods close to the protests have become dangerous and flooded with additional problems because of the protesters flocking to the capital.

3.)  The European Union is the primary government organization providing assistance.  After the 2010 earthquake, Haiti received assistance from many countries and organizations but as time passed the European Union has been the most involved in the country’s revitalization.  To date, the European Union has spent hundreds of millions of dollars and appears to be the only government-based entity that has people on the ground all year long. 

4.)  Other natural disasters have caused significant setbacks to the rebuilding of the country.   Hurricane Matthew in 2016 devasted western Haiti, and Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused dangerous floods in northern Haiti in 2017.  In 2018, Haiti experienced a drought and crops were not yielded as expected, which caused more malnutrition, homelessness, and other economic problems. 

5.)  Haiti’s problems are not being presented in Western media.  The United States, Mexico, and many countries in Central and South America are not presenting the longstanding issues in the small country in their full breadth.  Lack of knowledge about the ongoing crises in Haiti have contributed to its demise, and as some media inquiries have been presented about the state of Haiti, they only last for a few seconds and hardly cover the widespread poverty or homelessness in the country.

The country has been in serious turmoil for almost a decade now and the desperation is apparent.  Haitians are rising up and demanding better quality of life, but the overall solution to the problem may reside in more assistance from external governments and a deluge of help from small and large non-profit organizations.  The motivation is there, but the Haitians will need some outside help to establish a prosperous nation.   

— Benjamin J. Bolton  

Sources:  Council of Foreign Relations, European Commission, France24, Pan American Health Association, The Independent, The World Bank, U.S. Department of State       

                  

Source:  Public Domain