BCPR |Focus on Haiti

Focus on Haiti

Key Statistics

Haiti is the poorest country of the Western Hemisphere. With an annual estimated gross domestic product (per capita) of $390, a staggering 78 percent of Haitians live on less that $2 per day and 54 percent on less than $1 per day.

Recurring natural disasters – hurricanes, floods and mudslides – have wrought unspeakable devastation on the Haitian population. In August and September 2008, hurricanes and a tropical storm struck over a period of weeks, affecting more than 800,000 people, many of whom were left homeless or displaced. In the areas most affected by the recent hurricanes, sexual violence against women has increased. The country’s national and local institutions are weakened and the impact upon citizens and national development has been widespread. As Haitians continue to experience hardship, marginalization and poverty, criminal activity and violence have escalated.

Haiti

Call to Action

Financial support for early recovery activities is essential. While working within a humanitarian setting, UNDP is focusing on the future – assessing damages to infrastructure, property, livelihoods, and societies. The goal is to enable a smoother transition to long-term recovery: to restore livelihoods, government capacities, roads, and shelters. By starting immediately to work on a disaster recovery plan, UNDP, along with partners, is helping to put the country on the path to longer-term development.

Early Recovery Achievements

Together with the World Bank and the European Commission, UNDP helped the government determine the extent of the damages and the needs for recovery, developing a plan that is guiding national and international investments in the short and medium term in line with Haiti’s development strategy.
In the most affected areas, UNDP began “cash for work” initiatives that helped clear debris and rehabilitate irrigation systems. UNDP and its partners rehabilitated 11 water systems to re-establish access to safe and clean water for over 40,000 people.

UNDP employed an estimated 100,000 people within weeks following the 2008 storms. In Gonaives alone UNDP employed more than 25,000 persons to protect and rehabilitate the watershed that feeds the city and surrounding farmlands. The workers, close to half of them women, cleared irrigation channels and rebuilt terraces shored up by container walls. UNDP also created over 4,000 jobs rebuilding the course of the Quinte River to diminish risks of further disasters. An additional 900 jobs were created removing close to half million cubic metres of mud and debris in the centre of Gonaives, allowing people to re-enter their homes.

In an effort to scale up its early recovery support, UNDP has established a local presence in the four regions most affected by natural disasters: Gonaives (Artibonite), Les Cayes (South), Port de Paix (North West) and South East. Such presence ensures proximity with communities and close collaboration with local authorities. Over the next 12 months, UNDP and its partners will continue to support livelihood restoration for both men and women, watershed management to better prepare communities to face future disasters and water and sanitation rehabilitation. While a number of donors have contributed to early recovery efforts in recent months, including Liechtenstein, Norway and the United Kingdom, USD 19.5 million is still needed to ensure that high-risk communities and cities are better prepared when the next disaster strikes.