Haiti Response

What’s interesting about the Haitian culture is they as a people are hungry for culture, music, and intellectual stimulation. They value education; they love music and true quality social time. There is an indescribable vibrancy amongst the populace that is evident despite the sheer magnitude of hopeless poverty and the struggle to survive. In the literal sense the people are screaming for gentrification, but when one takes into account the reality of the situation on the ground in Haiti that concept gives a whole new meaning to absurd. While this mentality is present amongst the people and it manifests itself in certain subtle ways the fact of the matter is the severity of the situation prevents anything from happening. It is survival of the fittest on a day-to-day basis. There is zero surplus which results in zero time to participate in any kind of extracurricular activity other than working every day to maintain some manner of sustenance.  I am not trying to say that the Haitian people have no time to socialize and or participate in celebrations. In fact they are incredibly positive and always seem to be celebrating in one fashion or another. What I am alluding to is the development of a more deep-seated cultural revolution from which springs, theater, art, etc. There is a sociocultural inability to experience / live any of the lavishness associated with gentrification and the likes because of this lack of surplus. While this is the case for the majority of the population there is a scene in Haiti that I still can’t wrap my mind around.

The wealth disparity in the Caribbean / Central America and throughout the Southern Cone tends to be rather extreme, however never have I seen anything like what has transpired in Haiti. This little country is phenomenally expensive and there is a minute % of the population who lives very well considering. You can smoke Hookah, eat sushi and easily spend more at dinner then you could in Miami and or New York…… in the poorest country in the Hemisphere. Try having a young Haitian kid walk around a very sheik Latin restaurant wailing away on a Tenor Sax and then walking out of the front gate after your aperitif to be confronted by all of the squatters living in the plaza. The extremes are pretty outstanding. Most shocking of all is how quickly you become accustomed to it and stop noticing it, subconsciously accepting it as the norm.

Posted in Culture shock

How can the distribution of capital within the international aid community be more equitably dispersed?

In the international aid and re-development community there are the big players and then there is everyone else. On top of the heap is USAID and the larger NGO and for-profit organizations that have the capacity and operational ethos to take their grant money. These organizations tend to be far larger, very well established, and have behemoth donor networks. I am referring to the Red Crosse’s and Feed the Children’s of the community. Traditionally in time of crises these organizations have and continue to be incredible fund-raising machines that absorb aid dollars from the masses and government institutions with incredible efficiency and speed. I have been observing a growing rift in the aid community that Haiti seemed to really bring out. People want to know where their contributed capital went and they want to ensure their contributions were acted upon and tangible results were made. They do not want to find that their hard earned dollars went to support organizations overhead. The balance of power seems to be shifting as a result of an increasingly attentive and educated donor populace from the big boys to the little guys with boots on the ground.

There is a place for every type of organization in the game and the big guys certainly play a vital role and are valuable. However under the current structure of the international aid community, the smaller organizations which tend to have significant “in country” knowledge and operational experience on their respective areas of operation have a very hard time getting funding and attention. In a way if your organization does not want to put out a plan to help 100,000 people + it is not worth the time and attention of the big guys.

How about the group that has the inroads, connections and experience to truly help between 20 and 100 people in an austere environment like in Haiti. Maybe to this group a low-budget transitional housing solution is not appropriate, but alternatively a housing system that may cost twice as much is. Instead of providing a Band-Aid fix these guys may want to really tackle infrastructure, build quality, and community development to offer a small group a true clean slate that can be built upon as opposed to a short-term temporary residence. This type of rational is hard for the bigger guys to digest because it is not their MO, which does not negate the viability of the concept.

In re-development especially in disaster situations all of the factors have to be considered including but limited to cost of activities, targeted affected populace, transitional versus long-term etc. There are some remarkable options here on the ground in Haiti, take Innovida for example. This building system is very cost-effective, quick to implement and is tremendously scalable, it does however require more of an investment than a tent structure. People should take the time through the use of tools such as Charity Navigator to find the small NGO’s without massive overheads to contribute to. There are also tremendous profit opportunities here for the strong-willed and adventurous entrepreneur via multi-national partnerships that are forming. These groups are tackling the issues plaguing the development atmosphere in Haiti and for a profit, and there is no problem with that.

Posted in Uncategorized

Pizza Hut and Tent Camps Haiti

So it begins. A pizza hut trailer has been thrown up right next to the US Embassy and in front of a mini IDP camp in Tabarre Haiti. The new Pizza Hut signs is nicely contrasted by the large UN trucks rolling by, the goats crossing the street and the tents in the background. There is no denying the amount of opportunity for entrepreneurs in Haiti. If you have some liquidity and have a solid, reputable in on the ground in country, it is a blank slate. The barriers to entry are seemingly insurmountable providing those with the guts and ingenuity to get in with a nice long protected run at things. From purified water operations to cheap prefab housing solutions and services catering to the large long-term ex-pat aid community there is something for everyone.

Posted in Uncategorized