By the Caribbean Journal staff
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Haiti has revealed its plans for tourism development on the island of Ile a Vache. The Ministry of Tourism is proposing the eventual development of 1,500 units on the 52-square-kilometre island, which is located off the southeast coast of Les Cayes, as part of an across-the-board tourism project. “Ile a Vache is one of the last true treasure islands of the Caribbean,” the Ministry of Tourism said in its proposal. “Here, tourism is progressing slowly in a sustainable manner, building places of peace and well-being while helping local communities.” The plan calls for laid-back, low-density eco-tourism-style development, highlighting areas like cultural heritage, agro-tourism and history, on an island with more than 20, mostly deserted beaches. It will focus on sustainable tourism development, from a push for solar power to the use of electric shuttles instead of cars. In the short term, the Ministry said it would begin presenting its master plan to potential investors in countries like the Dominican Republic, Qatar, China and the wider Caribbean, before beginning short-term investment in infrastructure.
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The first phase of the project would be the Anse Dufour near the village of Madame Bernard; that development would primarily feature bungalows and villas. The overall plan would create the “Village of Mary Anne,” a touristic village with restaurants, cafes, galleries and markets. It would additionally include an agro-tourism component, proposing the creation of a community farm managed by locals that would allow visitors to take part in agricultural activities. The Ministry emphasized that it would be working to ensure sustainable development on Ile-a-Vache, in its agricultural development and conservation.
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It said the government would be working to develop standards of environmental protection and planning for the island, particularly to protect sensitive areas like coastal mangroves and fish habitats. Haiti said it would be targeting four major types of travelers for the area: explorers and adventure travelers, romance travelers, members of the Haitian Diaspora and wellness travelers. Haiti Prime Minister first mentioned the government’s interest in developing Ile-a-Vache in an interview with Caribbean Journal last year.

By Michael Charles Tobias
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Haiti’s President Michel Martelly (“Sweet Micky” to his music fans) has been urging the world to view Haiti as a tourist destination. It certainly used to be. In 1975, Hillary and Bill Clinton honeymooned in Haiti, as have countless other couples. More importantly, Haiti is, for all her heartache, simply magnificent. And it is worth reminding people that Port-au-Prince is less than a 90-minute flight from Miami or Fort Lauderdale. In addition to the country’s extraordinary cultural, historic and artistic traditions, Haiti possesses a unique ecological situation, certainly challenged but also, sublime. The challenges are all too recognizable. Unlike, to the northwest, neighboring Cuba’s 53 protected areas, 3 of them being World Heritage Sites, approximately 22 percent of that country being under some form of protection; and to the East, the Dominican Republic, with its 67 protected areas including 16 national parks, a demonstrative network of eco-tourist sites and accompanying revenues, Haiti – especially since her terrible earthquake – has seen a virtual stand-still in terms of any wildlife vacations into the nation’s outback. Indeed, the majority of recent visitors to Haiti tend to be with one or other of the thousands of relief-related NGOs present in the country.
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And understandably so: Haiti has suffered more than most nations, and currently must combat widespread unemployment amongst a population of nearly 10.3 million; persistent crop failures; energy outages; other resource constraints and ongoing reconstruction since the earthquake of January 12, 2010. Throughout Port-au-Prince, the country’s capital, as well as numerous other districts of Haiti, UNOPS (the United Nations Office for Project Services, based in Copenhagen) and other agencies are working day and night to re-supply basic infrastructure to the population, including seismically-engineered new modular housing units. These structures, which I had an opportunity to visit, are being built in Port-au-Prince by UNOPS and partners involving every nuance, skill set and insight attendant upon the human condition. Such endeavors, among many (including wonderful new hotels emerging throughout the country) are symptomatic of the incredible energies looking towards a bright future for Haiti.
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It was UNOPS with whom I worked on a short visit to Haiti in early December 2012, and came away -as like so many other visitors to this country -deeply moved and encouraged. There is a spellbinding love that Haiti elicits in most visitors: the country’s unique history, cultural mix, profound arts and vodou spirituality. But also her wondrous ecosystems. My goal in being in the country was to better understand the national park question and to see if a such a park could, in fact, serve as the catalyst for an entire eco-tourism revival. Revenues in the Dominican from eco-tourism have been huge. Haiti needs its own ecologically-sustainable version, a most plausible scenario: For, in addition to the complex national and international efforts to rebuilt Haiti’s economy and confidence, eco-tourism looms large.
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High value bio-cultural, historic and World Heritage destination sites existing throughout the country, particularly to the far north, the south and southwest, could, indeed, become the collective core of a vibrant economic driver for Haiti In late 2012, Michaëlle Jean, UNESCO Special Envoy for Haiti, led a delegation to the country to examine the prospects for sustainable tourism. Critical to an ecological vision of protection and tourism in Haiti is the work being undertaken in the southwest of the country, near the nation’s 2nd highest summit - Pic Macaya. This mountain’s magnificent karst limestone formations, cloud and dwarf forests, as well as its high rate of endemic flowering plants (over 30% unique to Hispaniola – the island encompassing both Haiti and the Dominican Republic) has been one of the centers of interest of the Government of Haiti and the International Community. During my trip in this region of Haiti, I met with the biologist Antonio Perera, a great conservationist who for many years was instrumental in helping research and shape Cuban national parks. Perera is the UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) Haiti Programme Manager. Together with UNOPS and in the framework of the Côte Sud Initiative, UNEP works on catalyzing the ecological potential of the region which is dominated by the biodiversity hotspot of Pic Macaya.
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Pic Macaya’s inevitable standing amongst other great national parks of the world has been, to date, somewhat undermined by the Republic of Haiti’s overall ecological situation. A vast majority of the nation’s primary forest has been cut down over the course of more than two centuries for purposes of human survival. Estimates on remaining native and non-native forest canopy vary, but it is likely that more than 1.5% remains, versus the global average of between 9-and-12%, with some countries – such as Suriname and Bhutan – exceeding 60% primary canopy coverage. That 1.5% is at a near critical threshold. The proposition is this: If 1.5% of remaining habitat in Haiti is to rejuvenate the nation’s ecological services, like fresh water, and a continuing abundance of wildlife, a new lens is required through which to better grasp this nation’s environmental possibilities. Fortunately, replenished perspectives are never implausible, in Haiti.
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During many hours in helicopters photographing much of the country, I examined closely Haiti’s patchwork, particularly in the southwest, where some of the best remaining large forested areas, and mangroves remain. And while I recorded nearly 100 separate burning fires (small fires driven by the economics of charcoal production), I also witnessed, in sum, what I term “the one percent solution,” namely, an alternative version of Haiti’s ecological map: solutions, biological bounty and promise, not merely the obvious deficits. That promise is the result of easily discernible seed source; existing stands of primary forest that afford great hope for genetic and wildlife corridors. There are, in other words, abundant remaining natural (many, native), in situ nurseries sufficient to the cause of reforestation. With reforestation will come viable watersheds, clean drinking water for hundreds of thousands of locals, and predictable waves of wildlife seeking “mainland islands” in a greater Caribbean “hotspot” that is already, in many instances, depauperate.
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All of the edges and margin-lands that constitute so much of that patchwork on the ground, and seen from the air, do not take away from the fact that this Haitian hotspot within a hotspot of endangered species has the potential to become a key eco-tourism site in the Western Hemisphere. Nature and culture coincide in Haiti on a vibrant edge of artistic, spiritual and ecological realities. What is lacking is the focal point for a significant scientific cause célèbre. That’s where the southwestern paradise of Haiti, and with it two central Massifs, comes into powerful perspective. The cornerstone of this potential economic and environmentally sound concept is Pic Macaya herself, a roughly 150 square kilometer region that encompasses the largest quasi-pristine wilderness in the entire country, overlooking to the north, the west and particularly the south, magnificent beaches, islands and mangroves. Macaya is the largest extant biologically intact series of connected ecosystems in the country. Pic Macaya (along with Morne La Visite) was actually consecrated as a National Park back in 1983. However, it remains a “paper-park,” one without protections. When famed botany professor Walter S. Judd from the University of Florida at Gainesville, did his groundbreaking 1987 research at both Morne la Visite and Pic Macaya, confirming earlier reports of hundreds of rare floristic species, he described what, at that time, were considered “two recently established national parks in the poorly known mountains of southern Haiti….” Earlier researchers had been there, like Swedish naturalist Erik Eckman, but Judd escalated the scientific community’s profound interest in Pic Macaya, recognizing its extraordinary global significance.
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While maps, hand-outs, brochures and documents of every persuasion have referred to two national parks in Haiti for thirty years – Pic Macaya, with its 7,700 foot peak, about 260 kilometers from the capital, Port-au-Prince; and the much smaller, 30 square kilometer Parc La Visite, which is about 22 kilometers from the capital. Pic Macaya, in actual fact, is under threat. The National Park status is still a dream, pending government resolve to find appropriate alternatives that would counteract local charcoal burning incursions, and effectively engage the coming population boom that is likely to take up habitation of the park as the road that crosses through Macaya’s eastern fringes going over a pass from the southern to the northern peninsular coast at Jeremie, improves, which it will. Scattered populations along the park’s eastern fringes have some of the highest family sizes in all of Haiti. Family welfare, medical and social services are needed, in addition to sustainable long-term prospects for poverty alleviation and dignified, meaningful employment that fully respects local vodou traditions, counteracting existing, seemingly intractable dilemmas.
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Those dilemmas stem, in part, from vying political, economic and cultural imperatives. Each, in turn, is compounded by the fact that Haitian vodou spirituality encompasses some 80% of land investiture throughout the country. That 4/5ths figure also intimates the fact 80% of Haiti is democratically open for multi-use, even if that translates into revenue streams from unsustainable practices. This is most notably evidenced in the form of burning down patches of biomass (shrubs, grasslands and remaining forest) for the making of charcoal. For the 72% of Haitians who, on average, earn less than $US2.00 per day, $US11-to-15 per approximately 100 pound sack of charcoal is a temptation seen throughout the country, and is utterly destructive from any ecological point of view. From a strictly biological standpoint, perhaps the most telling scientific data in Haiti emerged from a series of expeditions some 9 years ago. These “Ornithological Field Investigations in Macaya Biosphere Reserve” recorded a large number of species, including numerous natives and endemics throughout the two adjoining massifs along the southern coast, de la Hotte and de la Selle, the latter being the largest of mountainous plateau, a 5,500 hectare area at the heart of Macaya. The 2004 study found “diverse forested habitats, ranging from wet limestone forest at lower elevations to a complex mosaic of pine and cloud forest at upper elevations [which] may support the highest levels of endemism found on Hispaniola. The park’s remnant forests are also among the island’s most endangered, as deforestation has steadily encroached on Macaya’s last remote areas.”
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Because Pic Macaya hosts such remarkable levels of avian, mammalian and flowering and non-flowering plant endemism (with the invertebrate diversity yet to be fully grasped) in so small an area, its global importance cannot be overstated.
Once thorough scientific baseline data is verified with seasonal regularity, it is likely to push the estimates on Haitian biodiversity and endemism far beyond existing numbers for plants, 6,500; for birds, a known 21 endemic, and 199 other avian species; as well as for important terrestrial mollusks (snails), ferns and mosses. To add international “buzz” to this looming symphony of possibilities, six species of frogs, long deemed extinct, including the “Mozart Frog,” have been discovered in the past few years across this region, adding to the profound hopes so many Haitian biologists are now feeling. These amphibian discoveries were “incredible,” according to lead scientist Dr. Robin Moore of Conservation International in Alexandria, Virginia, and Dr. Blair Hedges of Pennsylvania State University. Thousands of people inhabit the towns of Duchiti and Beaumont, along the road between Les Cayes and Jeremie, skirting Macaya. By implementation of a suite of economically sensible enterprises, including first and foremost an association of eco-tourist guides, visitor center, nonimpactful tourist opportunities and educational outreach, a Pic Macaya National Park could be the ultimate winning ticket for Haiti, at every level of governance and local community life.
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This engagement would encompass seven municipalities with stakeholders who all likely share some ancestral spirits within the globally significant floristic province that constitutes the KBA (Key Biological Area) that is uniquely Pic Macaya. Downstream from Pic Macaya are approximately a quarter-million people for whom this National Park would provide safe drinking water. And, with an anchor in Pic Macaya as the supreme destination of choice for eco-tourists longing for a true Caribbean wildlife experience, all of Haiti wins, as the rest of the country’s other biological assets can be brought into an income-generating, life-altering configuration that will assuredly benefit Haitians, and the planet. One ecological stroke of the brush remains to be manifested if Haiti is, indeed, to embrace a powerful and productive future: the 1983 national park designation needs to be fully ratified and made operational by the Government. The road to the east of the Park needs to be completed to best international environmental standards, and donors who have already stepped up to the plate financially should forthrightly re-affirm their commitments to the project and, hopefully, offer additional and/or matching funds to inspire others to do the same – not for themselves, but strictly for Haiti. This is the kind of project that inspires the new 21st century bold and breathtaking conservation. Recently, Antonio Perera and team climbed to the summit of Pic Macaya. Says Perera, “It was one of the greatest conservation adventures of my entire life.”

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By the Caribbean Journal staff
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A delegation of officials from Ecuador’s Ministry of Tourism has arrived in Haiti for a five-day visit to the country. The trip comes in the context of a tourism cooperation agreement between the two countries in September in Quito signed by Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin and Ecuador Tourism Minister Freddy Ehlers. Under the agreement, two sides will be cooperating on responsible tourism, the management of natural heritage sites, tourist destination certification and training and tourism legislation. It is the first visit by Ecuadorian officials since the agreement last fall; this trip is aimed at learning about the “degree of development of tourism” in Haiti, according to a statement from Haiti’s Ministry of Tourism. The delegation will visit natural and cultural sites in Haiti in Port-au-Prince, Cap Haitien and Jacmel over the course of the trip. The two sides will also hold a series of working meetings. Haiti and Ecuador have ramping up their cooperation in areas beyond tourism in the last year, including military training and the treatment of disabled persons. Haiti has also signed tourism agreements with Antigua and Mexico in the last yea

By Alexander Britell
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MIAMI — At a forum at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government Tuesday night, actor and Haiti Goodwill Ambassador Sean Penn mentioned the sometimes problematic way in which Haiti is portrayed by the international media. “There is, in American journalism, a very titillating marriage between those who report on struggle, and their demand that struggle remain present for them to report on,” he told the forum in Cambridge, Mass. Penn was speaking primarily about the manner in which the US media in particular had wrote of the way cholera had come to Haiti. But Penn’s remarks illustrated a larger point — that the way Haiti is covered internationally is often inconsistent, and frequently incomplete.
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It mirrors observation by First Lady Sophia Martelly, who told Caribbean Journal in an interview last year that people “need to stop selling our misery.” Now, Regine Godefroy, Haiti’s new Minister of Communication, is trying to change that. The plan by Godefroy, who succeeded former Minister Ady Jean Gardy in a Cabinet reshuffle in late January, is to help coordinate Haiti’s government ministries to better communicate just what it is the government is doing on a day-to-day basis, both to the Haitian media and the press abroad. “The whole government is doing a lot of work, all of the Ministers are doing a lot of work, but they seem like isolated events,” she told Caribbean Journal. “Our purpose is to collect all the data and rebroadcast it so the population in Haiti and in the United States knows exactly what’s going on, whatever the action is.”
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Over the years, the workings of Haiti’s government have remained something of a mystery to outsiders. “I think there’s been a very big [information] deficit, but that was mostly due to incoherent transmission of the information,” she said. “So what we’re doing now is gathering all the information, making it coherent and sending it out.” But is a strengthened communications push simply a new form of spin? It’s a charge Godefroy rejects. “It’s going to be telling people that this is exactly what is going on,” she said. “It’s not going to be a propaganda approach.” Francois Guillaume, Haiti’s Consul General in Miami, echoed that. “The strategy is to give as much information as possible,” he said. “It’s not tainted information, it’s not “spun” information, it’s pure facts.” Haiti, as a relatively small country but one with a large amount of media coverage, is “very sensitive” of its perception abroad, he told Caribbean Journal.
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“Every time a news outlet writes something that is not totally accurate, it really affects us,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons why we want to give as much information as possible, so people are not inclined to misinform.” The power of the news media’s role in shaping the discourse about Haiti was the subject of recent research by University of Connecticut Professor Thomas Craemer, who found that the international press was sometimes “drawing an exaggerated picture” of problems in the country. But Godefroy said she was confident that the international media was “aware and conscious” that Haiti was working to change its image. Just how effective it will be remains to be seen – but for Godefroy, the way Haiti is perceived has to shift. The issue, it seems, is not about glossing over serious problems like tent camps and cholera, but about providing a balanced picture of the workings of the country and its leadership. “We’re very confident that [the international media] is going to understand that they’re participating in Haiti’s growth and Haiti’s development,” she said. “There needs to be balance in the information. We accept criticism, and the government accepts criticism, and we want to work from criticism and go towards the better — but we don’t want to stay in the criticism — we want to promote the good, because there is a lot of good going on.”

USA Today
By Jayne Clark
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After the earthquake that ravaged Haiti's capital of Port-au-Prince and beyond, the country's prime minister announced the island is angling for affluent tourists as a way to become more self-sufficient. A luxury lodging opened in December, one of 11 hotel projects underway. A tourist corridor in Cap Haitien in the north of Haiti was just inaugurated. And a new tourist guide has hit the bookstores. With its extreme poverty and turbulent politics, Haiti was hardly a tourist mecca even before the quake that killed about 316,000 people in January 2010. It's uncertain whether pleasure-seeking vacationers would choose a place associated with so much tragedy and hardship — and where an estimated 350,000 are still living in makeshift camps. Undaunted, Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe traveled to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in late January, where he told the Associated Press, "Haiti is open for business." He called tourism a "very high priority," saying the that building the industry is a path to greater self-sufficiency.
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The five-star Royal Oasis, in Petionville opened in December with 128-rooms whose starting rate is more than $200 a night. The presidential suite goes for $1,300. Nearing completion is a Best Western, and Comfort Suites and Marriott properties are planned, as well, reports the Miami Herald. Foreign-aid workers are the logical target — at least in the short run — for the 1,200 new hotel rooms expected to roll out in the next year. Still, Paul Clammer, author of the just-published Bradt Guide to Haiti, envisions sunnier horizons. "Any country trying to build a tourist industry might give their eyeteeth for a portfolio like Haiti's — it has a rich cultural heritage that lives through its art, music and religion," he writes in an explanation headlined: Why a guide to Haiti now? "Its history — written across its landscape — is astounding … I wrote this guide to Haiti now because I wanted to subvert people's expectations of Haiti. It is an endlessly fascinating and beautiful place that I hope travelers will discover and enjoy with my guidebook."

http://www.local10.com/news/A-New-Hope-for-Haiti-Three-Years-Later-Part-...
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http://www.local10.com/news/A-New-Hope-for-Haiti-Three-Years-Later-Part-...
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http://www.local10.com/news/A-New-Hope-for-Haiti-Three-Years-Later-Part-...

Haiti is one of the safest destinations; not just in the Caribbean, but throughout all the Americas. This is the general finding of recent studies on crime in the region which show that Haiti has the lowest rate of violent deaths in comparison to previous years. In 2012 according to the UNODC, Haiti's violent death rate of 6.9 out of every hundred thousand Haitians is among the lowest rates in the Americas, and the same as Long Beach, California. This is mainly attributable to a strong focus on the strengthening and modernization of its security forces. Among other high impact measures, the government of Haiti kept its pledge to increase the size of its National Police by 50%, allowing them to fight crime more effectively. Besides increasing the size of its force, the Haitian National Police (HNP) is counting on innovative technologies to track down criminals. For example, they were able to dismantle the largest kidnapping ring in the country with the help of advanced software designed by a Haitian official trained at Westpoint --a program so effective, it has sparked the interest of the HNP's foreign advisers. A report by Vanderbilt University's Latin American public opinion project noted the Haitian National Police's positive image compared to security institutions throughout Latin America, which are seen as weak, corrupt or inefficient. A recent poll conducted locally for an international agency notes that Haitian citizens are generally more concerned with economic issues such as the cost of living, than with crime.
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And, according to the most recent report for the American Consular Services, which keeps statistics of crimes involving American citizens, in 2012 murders dropped by two thirds – from 6 to 2 - the lowest rate since 2006. The same report notes that kidnappings of U.S. citizens also dropped in 2012 from 9 to 11. The notice issued by the U.S. State Department warning US citizens about the persistent danger of violent crime does not take into account these significant improvements in Haiti. "The kidnapping and murder of U.S. citizens is extremely rare in our country; we work diligently and closely with the United States, Canada and the international community to fight the proliferation of criminal activities," said Laurent Lamothe, the Prime Minister of Haiti. The State Department warning comes as Haiti is experiencing a dramatic increase in the number of foreign visitors. Pointing to statistics compiled by her office, Minister of Tourism Stephanie Villedrouin notes that "in 2011, we welcomed 46% more US tourists than in 2010."
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While the rest of the region experiences difficulty in containing violent crime rates, Haiti shows positive trends largely as a result of the strengthening of the Haitian National Police, the incorporation of human resources and new technologies into its anti-crime strategies, and, the establishment of a welcoming political and economic climate.

1/29/2013
National Public Radio
By JASON BEAUBIEN
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Haiti used to be a tourist hot spot in the Caribbean. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton regularly recounts how he and Hillary honeymooned in Haiti in 1975. There used to be a hopping Club Med just outside Port-au-Prince, but it closed in the '90s. Now, the Haitian government is trying to revive some of its former allure, launching an aggressive campaign to market the poorest country in the hemisphere as a vacation hub. President Michel Martelly says tourism could be a major driver of economic growth and could help lift Haitians out of poverty. Despite political unrest, hurricanes, chronic poverty and the 7.0-earthquake three years ago that destroyed much of its capital, Haiti still has a lot to offer: warm weather, miles of undeveloped Caribbean coastline and a rich history.
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Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin is attempting to market Haiti as a unique Caribbean vacation spot. "My goal is to reposition Haiti as a tourism destination and attract the leisure tourism," she says. My goal is to reposition Haiti as a tourism destination and attract the leisure tourism," says Stephanie Villedrouin, Haiti's minister of tourism. Villedrouin acknowledges that the island nation's tourism industry needs to be rebuilt. But she says it could be a major economic development tool for the country. "These revenues for our economy will help us eradicate poverty, and take out people [earthquake victims] from the tents. That's the message," she says. "Don't just send money through a wire or through an NGO for us. Come and experience Haiti because we have so much to showcase." Villedrouin recently signed a deal with a Canadian tour operator, Air Transat, to offer package tours to Port-au-Prince and a nearby beach. She says these will be cultural tours, with visits to the National Museum, an artists' village where iron workers make distinctly Haitian sculptures, a rum distillery, and possibly a voodoo ceremony or a meal featuring griot, a Creole dish of fried goat. "The product is there," she says. "Haiti was a tourism destination in the past — before the Dominican Republic, before Cuba. The natural sites, the spirit of the people, the culture is all still there. And even more than before, it's trying to revive." Villedrouin says one of the first markets she wants to tap is the Haitian diaspora.
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Elsewhere in the Caribbean, tourism is a huge industry, attracting millions of tourists and pumping billions of dollars into the island economies. To try to get a slice of that trade, Haiti is investing in new airports, hotels and a hospitality school. In the northern city of Cap-Haitien, authorities are revamping the international airport in an effort to position it as a gateway to the country's potential tourist attractions. Haitian President Michel Martelly, also known by his stage name "Sweet Micky," is a former musician and businessman. Martelly says tourism can be a major tool to eradicate poverty in his country. The problem, however, is that Cap-Haitien and most of the rest of Haiti isn't set up for tourists. Rental cars at the Cap-Haitien airport start at $100 a day. Travelers leaving the airport have to pass through a chaotic slum to get to one of the few Western-style hotels. Hotel rooms are expensive and in short supply. In the streets, overloaded motorbikes slap mirrors with SUVs and squeeze in between soot-belching trucks. Gray sludge overflows from open sewers. Piles of trash burn in ditches. The roads are pocked with jagged potholes. Missing drainage grates leave treacherous holes in the roadways that could doom a family's vacation before they even reach the hotel. Just last month, the U.S. State Department issued a stern travel warning for Haiti, noting the lack of adequate medical facilities, the presence of cholera and limited police protection.
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"No one is safe from kidnapping," the advisory warns. "In recent months, travelers arriving in Port-au-Prince on flights from the United States were attacked and robbed shortly after departing the airport. ... Haitian authorities have limited capacity to deter or investigate such violent acts, or prosecute perpetrators." After a recent trip to Port-au-Prince, Canada's minister for international cooperation publicly pondered why a country with such high unemployment couldn't clean the "filth and garbage" from its streets. Partly because of these difficult conditions in Haiti's cities, two-thirds of the foreign visitors to the country each year — or about 600,000 in 2011 — never leave a fenced-off, private beach on the northern coast. The main way to get to the remote resort is by cruise ship. In fact, the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines built Labadee, the tropical beach playground enclosed by a fence. Massive boats — including the largest cruise ship ever built, the Allure of the Seas — can dock at its pier.
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At Labadee, the developed and emerging worlds slam up against each other. Inside the fence, cruise ship passengers in bikinis lounge on a pristine sandy beach. There's a roller coaster, a water slide, a zip line. Clients traveling in the elite suites can rent private cabanas. According to Royal Caribbean's website, the frozen rum "Labaduzee" is quite popular on the beach. Outside the fence, a woman cooks rice and beans over an open fire. She sells lukewarm drinks out of a broken refrigerator that's been laid on its back in the dirt. Inside the resort, it costs $12 to rent a floating beach mat. Outside, the minimum wage is $5 a day, and most Haitians struggle to survive each day on even less. Juan Belizaire is a 30-year-old local man who drives a motorcycle taxi between Labadee and Cap-Haitien. He says the thousands of foreigners who arrive on cruises don't help this deeply impoverished corner of Haiti because they aren't allowed out of the resort. "When the passenger comes in, he stays only on the beach. The company takes the passengers to stay only behind the fence," Belizaire says, standing next to the resort's black fence. "I don't like it like that." The resort, however, is a crucial source of revenue to the Haitian government. Royal Caribbean pays $10 a head for each passenger it brings ashore — generating roughly $6 million for the Haitian Treasury in 2011, the government says. The resort also provides jobs, and some pre-screened souvenir vendors are allowed in. Supporters of the project also note that Royal Caribbean built a school in the area. Despite this, Labadee remains a pocket of luxurious leisure walled off from the intense poverty around it. Just outside its fence, the roads are barely passable: Labadee is just six miles from Cap-Haitien, but the road is in such bad shape that it takes 45 minutes in a four-wheel-drive vehicle to get there. Many people don't even have electricity.
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Martelly, the Haitian president, says tourists understand that his country has huge problems, but also a vibrant, unique culture. "We have great music," says the former musician turned politician, laughing. "I invite you to come to Carnaval," he says as an example, referring to Haiti's version of the pre-Lent bash that occurs throughout the Caribbean. "It's probably the worst organized Carnaval," he says. Then he flashes the devilish smile that helped make him so popular on stage. "But it's the best Carnaval," he says. "It's fun, it's crazy." And, he adds, you can get married three times in one night at the raucous street party. But joking aside, Martelly says his government sees tourism as a major growth opportunity for a country usually known for disasters and misery.

By the Caribbean Journal staff
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It was a small group of 25 that arrived in Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, but it could be the start of something far bigger for Haiti’s inchoate tourism sector. The group of tourists were the first to have purchased packages to the country through Canadian firm Transat; about 25 passengers purchased the firm’s Haiti package, which combines two nights in Port-au-Prince and five nights on the Cote-des-Arcadins. Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin was on hand at Port-au-Prince’s airport to receive the group. The Port-au-Prince portion of the trip includes visits to the MUPANAH Museum, the Rhum Barbancourt Distillery, and the Boutiliers observatory, among other stops. The natural heritage sites of Saut d’Eau and the islets of Arcadins are among the attractions on the latter portion of the trip. The packages are the result of an agreement announced in December and signed in January between Haiti and Transat, Canada’s largest outgoing tour operator. It is the first time a major Canadian operator has offered tour packages to Haiti, which has been pushing to develop its tourism sector.

Haiti's prime minister says his country is hoping to attract high-end tourists and multinational investors — instead of constant aid handouts — so it can get on its feet after the devastating 2010 earthquake. Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe said Saturday he recognizes that's an ambitious dream for a country where 52 percent of the people live below the poverty line and where infrastructure is desperately lacking. Still, he pushed that concept — and a bid to build up Haiti's tourism industry — in meetings with CEOs this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "Haiti is open for business," Lamothe said in an interview with The Associated Press. Haiti still has huge humanitarian needs and little more than half of the $5.3 billion in aid promised after the earthquake has been disbursed. Lamothe, however, said "we are not going to depend on handouts indefinitely." Yet humanitarian groups are unlikely to go away, for they have long provided basic services to Haitians because the government can barely do so.
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Lamothe argued that his visit to Davos — a pricey Alpine resort reserved for business and political leaders this week — was a worthwhile venture that would bear fruit for his Caribbean country, such as an investment pledge from Heineken and new projects with Coca-Cola. He said he wants people to think of Haiti not just as a place to set up a charity but as a place to set up a business, and argued that corporations "can do equal or better than any large country for small Haiti." The prime minister called building up the tourism industry "a very high priority," noting that a five-star hotel was already under construction and that new tourist police would provide security for visitors in a country with a turbulent past. Yet efforts to bring in foreign investors and tourists could prove a tough sell. Haiti is expected to hold legislative elections this year, and the run-up could be fraught with political agitation and protests. The capital, Port-au-Prince, is also crowded, dirty and clogged with traffic. Haiti is still clearing the last rubble from the 2010 quake, which killed about 316,000 people. Another 350,000 Haitians are still living in impromptu camps. The reconstruction effort has been slow due to political paralysis and the level of devastation. Trenton Daniel in Port-au-Prince contributed to this report.

Trinidad Guardian
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Lured by ruins of Sans Souci at Milot and the Citadel Fortress, tourists flock to the city of Cap-Haitien, on Haiti’s north coast. They make the trek past mountainous scenic landscapes to “ile de l’amour” (island of love) at Ile-a-vache. In fact, Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe told Caribbean Journal in an interview in December it has high hopes for the tourism potential of picturesque Ile a Vache. But the Haitian tourism industry is still underdeveloped. In the aftermath of the earthquake which rocked Port-au-Prince on January 10, 2010, there is still more work to be done throughout Haiti. Michel Presume, directeur de la Division Batiment Public, said infrastructure like water, sanitation and drainage was urgently needed to boost Haiti’s tourism industry.
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Asked about the progress of tourism, Presume said, “There is the need for better infrastructure. Tourism and infrastructure go hand in hand. There is the need for water and telecommunications.” He identified a project aimed at providing infrastructure like water and telecommunications at Jacmel. Jacmel is famously dubbed the art Capital of the Caribbean. Trails fenced with mango and the famously delicious apricot endemic to Hispaniola lead to Bassin Bleue waterfall. Apart from water which is often sourced from wells, there is the need for adequate Internet and telecommunications. “The NATCOM company is providing more than 3,000 kilometres of fibre optics which would be deployed all over the country. There are plans to introduce telecommunications to host a teleconference from anywhere in Haiti. There are plans to bring good quality to hotels and equip them with state-of-the art technology,” added Presume.
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Among the hotels that were recently upgraded included five star Royal Oasis, managed by the Spanish firm Occidental and Kinam at suburb Petion-Ville and Hotel Kanube. Best Western Haiti is slated to open soon and will add another 600 new rooms to Haiti’s hotel stock.
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Priority projects: Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin recently unveiled a series of priority projects which are intended to boost tourism in 2013. She also shared plans to start rebranding Haiti’s tourism image. The island introduced a new logo and ad campaign—“Experience It.” She noted the challenge was for Haiti to start converting the new campaign into more visitors. In a statement, she said, “The task is daunting and we recognise the magnitude of the challenges. However, we believe the dawn of prosperity and stability begins to shine on the face of this country we cherish and love so much.”
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• Potential agreements with Delta, Air France and Air Transat for the promotion of tourism packages. In fact, Canada’s Transat has already announced plans to offer vacation packages to Haiti.
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• Promoting Haiti as a destination at tourism fairs in New York, Montreal, Guadeloupe and the Dominican Republic. (Guadeloupe, along with Martinique, has been of particular interest as well as fellow Francophone islands. In late 2012, Haiti brought over a group of travel agents from Guadeloupe in a bid to bring more business from the French departments.
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• Opening a tourism training institute in Les Cayes.
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• Additional work on airport construction in Les Cayes and Ile a Vache.
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• Plans to open a “professional cuisine laboratory” with a restaurant component in the capital Port-au-Prince. It’s part of a push by the Ministry to promote Haiti’s cuisine—the latest manifestation was the launch of a series of videos focusing on Haiti’s gastronomy by world-renowned chef Jose Andres. He will visit Haiti for more filming work this year.
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• Implement a “tourist police” as well, ostensibly to protect some of Haiti’s more popular tourism areas.

By Alexander Britell
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The Royal Oasis Hotel in Haiti has officially opened its doors in Port-au-Prince’s Petion-Ville neighbourhood. The five-star property, which is a project of Spain-based Occidential Hotels & Resorts, is located on a three-acre site in Port-au-Prince’s Petion-Ville residential neighbourhood. It was developed by Jerry Tardieu. It includes 128 rooms and suites, featuring a rooftop infinity pool and art gallery. The hotel is located at 115 Rue Panamericaine. “I think it represents a new chapter in Occidental history,” Jason Kycek, senior director of sales for Occidental Hotel and Resorts, told Caribbean Journal. “It’s nothing but a positive — we’re getting tremendous feedback from everybody who has been involved.” It’s the first of several major brands entering the Haitian hotel sector, along with Best Western, and another Spain-based company, NH Hotels Group, which is slated to unveil the renovated NH El Rancho in February. “We see nothing but tremendous support and interest in the hotel, and it’s filling a need that’s been missing for a long time,” he said. “There are a lot of people in the United States and also abroad that want to go back and visit Haiti and stay in a very nice hotel, and there really wasn’t one of this caliber.” The Best Western had previously been set to open by the end of 2012, but it now appears the property will debut in early 2013. The hotel features five restaurants: La Villa, Le Lounge, Les Terrasses, Bella Vista and Lounge Club Royal, each of which have bars. Occidental said that the hotel would open a 12,000-square-foot convention centre facility for summits and conferences in 2013.
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The hotel represents another first for Occidental, which Kycek said was the first to open an all-inclusive resort in 1978, and now the first major brand to enter Haiti in decades. While the hotel’s Web site did not list any availability in the month of December, a three-night stay in January at one of the hotel’s Superior rooms cost $874, or about $291 per night. It is Occidental’s 13th hotel in the region. According to data from the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, the hotel will support close to 200 staff in Haiti. “Haiti isn’t one of those destinations the hotel industry has paid attention to, so I think it’s definitely raised the eyes of a lot of the other companies,” he said. “I think it’s eventually going to be a trickle effect and we’ll start to see other hotel companies entering the market.”

By the Caribbean Journal staff
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Over the last 12 months, Haiti’s Interministerial Commission on Investment has approved 11 hotel projects totaling $161 million, according to Haiti’s Ministry of Tourism. According to data from the Ministry, the total includes 11 hotels in Haiti, and 474 rooms. Another 454 rooms and 100 condominium units could also be on the way over the next several years through additional phases at the projects. The developments were approved between October 2011 and October 2012, according to the Ministry. The largest is a $47.2 million, 70-unit project by the Haiti Hotel Corporation. That project is a partnership between Haiti’s WIN Group and Argentine entrepreneur Rolando Gonzalez -Bunster. The hotel had originally been slated to bring ground by the end of 2010. The second-largest is the renovation of the NH Haiti El Rancho hotel, a $43.7 million development that is tentatively scheduled to open in February 2013. The third-largest is the $11.97 million Sunset Lodge Boutique Hotel and Spa, a 40-room development. The Ministry said the 11 hotels were projected to add 1,653 direct jobs and 6,572 indirect jobs.

PRNewswire
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Haiti's premier hotelier Richard Buteau has commissioned J/Brice Design International to design a new wing for The Karibe Hotel & Spa that will include 100 luxury guestrooms, as well as an upscale eatery and entertainment venue with rooftop terraces and commanding sea views. Though a portion of The Karibe (http://www.karibehotel.com) was damaged by the earthquake, the Port au Prince property quickly reopened after being retrofit by Miyamoto International, the California-based earthquake-engineering firm. In the aftermath, The Karibe accommodated international celebrities, TV and print journalists and dignitaries who flew to Haiti in to focus attention on the devastation and bring relief to its 11 million people. Conceived in 1996 by owner Richard Buteau, The Karibe was completed in 2008 and continues to be family-owned and operated without the imprimatur of an international brand. The Karibe boasts a luxury spa and lush courtyard. The new wing, scheduled for mid-2013 completion, will double guestroom capacity to accommodate demand for this premier destination in the capital city.
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Jeffrey Ornstein, CEO and founder of J/Brice (http://www.jbricedesign.com) who turned his Boston firm into an international powerhouse by winning contracts throughout the USA, Middle East and Asia, notes, "The Karibe is the very essence of a boutique hotel. It is a one-of-kind intimate hideaway that reflects the nation's culture and the exacting vision of its prominent local owner family." He adds, "Our design scheme will reflect the style and aesthetic of Haiti's architecture, art, fashion and remarkable sunsets – natural tones with bold pops of color that include turquoise, coral, azure and the metallics." Buteau is also vice president of the Haiti Tourism Association. He says, "Over the last 25 years, every time we mentioned tourism, people would say, 'Tourists? Haiti?'?" This is despite the fact that the country was attracting 300,000 tourists annually during the 60's and early 70's; a number that slipped to 100,000 just before the 2010 quake. As Haiti's premiere hotel, The Karibe development project will figure prominently in revitalizing tourism. Buteau says, "We have one big advantage now. By starting from scratch, we can learn from our mistakes and shape Haiti's image for the 21st century traveler," adding, "Partnering with J/Brice Design will shine a light on The Karibe and Haiti as the chic new destination in the Caribbean."
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Contact: Pirozzolo Company
Dick Pirozzolo
781-235 9911
email: dick@pirozzolo.com

Canadian Press
By Kevin Bissett
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LABADEE, Haiti - More than two years after a powerful earthquake killed 230,000 people in Haiti and left many more homeless, the Caribbean country continues to battle despair — yet one tiny peninsula on the country's north coast serves as a tropical oasis for travellers and an example of the tourism potential Haiti has to offer. Labadee draws more than 600,000 visitors a year because of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. In 1985, the cruise line decided to lease the peninsula to give passengers a private beach destination as part of their western Caribbean cruises. Since then, the company has added a large pier for their huge cruise ships, along with all the infrastructure and excursions to provide visitors with a day at the beach. It's a stark contrast to the tent cities and desperate conditions faced by hundreds of thousands of Haitians still trying to recover from the 2010 earthquake that devastated much of the country, particularly the capital of Port-au-Prince. International aid agency Oxfam has blamed government indecision for keeping Haiti's recovery on hold. Haiti has a population of more than 9.7 million people.
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The country has a history of political violence including a coup in 2004 that forced the resignation and exile of president Jean-Bertrand Aristide. The current president, Michel Martelly, was elected in 2011. "Years ago in the industry, we used to send people to Haiti," said Ellen Tucker of Freedom Tours in Saint John, N.B. "In fact, there was a very well known Club Med there that we sent a lot of people to." Tucker says tour operators hope there could be potential for tourists to travel to Haiti in the future. "Haiti is absolutely beautiful, but of course we all know the turmoil they're going through now," she said. "It has made it a place that isn't quite right for visitors just yet. But we hope it will be once again." For cruise ship passengers arriving in Labadee there's no indication of the problems elsewhere in the country. Instead, they're greeted by warm, blue waters, and a backdrop of mountains and lush forests. You'll find a peninsula offering two very different beach conditions. On one side, the waves roll in, crashing on shore, while the other side offers the calm waters of a protected harbour. Despite the large capacity of today's cruise ships, Labadee is far from crowded, with no issue finding a stretch of sand to claim as your own for the day.
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John Weis, vice-president of guest port experience for Royal Caribbean, said there are many things available to do once you're there, including an aqua park and an authentic Haitian straw market.
"We have an artisans market, an artisans showcase, we have wave runners, parasailing, snorkelling, and cabanas." The small cabanas provide comfort and shade right at the water's edge. In the markets, there's an array of crafts, jewelry and carvings.
Weis said they also offer a number of excursions that travel a bit further away from the pier.
"One of them is the Haitian cultural tour, where you go closer to Labadie village, and it gives you a little background on village life and the history of Haiti," he said. "You also get some of the history of sugar cane, rum and coffee." The average high temperature in Labadee is around 29C much of the year, but climbs to an average of about 34C in July and August. Royal Caribbean employs about 230 full-time employees in Labadee. While the company won't reveal details of their lease agreement for the property, it does say Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has contributed more than $2.5 million to the Haiti relief effort. "They've done a wonderful job in supporting that island and building the infrastructure there and making jobs for Haitians," Tucker said. "Passengers who go there really enjoy it."

There's a new Caribbean destination being promoted to travelers passing through Miami. A billboard promoting Haiti was installed last week above Interstate 95 in Miami. The message "Live the experience - Seize the opportunities" is printed across an image of a tropical coastline and clear blue waters. Haiti's ministry of tourism and its consulate in Miami put up the billboard in the hopes of attracting tourists and investors to the country. Political instability, chronic poverty and disasters such as the 2010 earthquake have long crippled tourism and development in Haiti. Haiti shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic, which boasts many popular resorts. Consul General Francois Guillaume says the billboard is the first in a series of media campaigns to boost Haiti's image.

Caribbean News Now
By Anton Edmunds
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Statements by the Haitian prime minister on tourism, a recent visit by the Clinton Foundation highlighting the industry and a session on the subject at a conference held in Washington, DC, all shine a bright light on an industry that many see as a viable source of revenue for the country -- tourism. Perceptions of Haiti as a country of rich cultural, historical and geographical diversity that is “waiting to be discovered” underlies much of this optimism -- though any hype about the upside of tourism rests on one reality -- that success requires long-term political, social, and economic stability. That said if government and industry do the right things, Haiti could indeed benefit from hundreds of millions in investor and development dollars related to the industry.
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Historically, tourism has been good for the Caribbean, as countries have moved from agriculture and through light manufacturing into the service industry. According to figures from the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA), travel and tourism was responsible for over 2.2 million jobs in 2011 and over US$26 billion in visitor spending. Tourism currently accounts for 14.2% of Caribbean GDP, and the industry is projected to add some 2.7 million jobs by 2021 and be the destination for over 12% of total investment. The development of new projects in Haiti along with the rebuilding and expansion efforts by local stakeholders offer the country increased room stock with brand-named projects by the likes of Marriott, Best Western and Choice, bringing much in terms of validation that the market needs. Interestingly, Haiti appears to be succeeding where many countries in the region are failing - in landing these brand-name operators.
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Unique product offerings and cultural activities may allow Haiti to market to a large but untapped Diaspora community, even as the rest of the Caribbean continues to ignore their expat communities. The opportunity also exists for the external Haitian community to be an active promoter of the country and its nascent industries. Increased tourist traffic from North America and Europe of visitors looking for a new Caribbean experience is also possible. To be sure, Haiti has had success in tourism, notably with the isolated enclave development of Labadie that serves Royal Caribbean. There are also less well-known boutique facilities outside of Port au Prince such as Abaka Bay on Ile a Vache and Hotel Cyvadier in Jacmel. Nonetheless, the entry of larger operations and management groups can be very helpful as this brings marketing dollars and increased domicile awareness. In addition, multinationals can also bring training systems and standards that can benefit the industry.
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This could however be bad news for local operators that might lose business, and as they struggle with the cost of training, the costs of implementing and maintaining higher standards, and addressing the possible loss of top employees to big competitors. There is also risk that local businesses will become marginalized as it relates to accessing funding and industry incentives, the latter even from their own government as the focus on the outside investors may relegate locals to secondary status. It will be imperative for Haiti’s government to establish incentives for small hospitality operations while establishing national industry standards for the broader industry. Investment in training programs and the creation of standards associated with this training must be embraced. The same applies to branding the country as a whole and the implementation of a tourism policy that treats large and small players, foreigners and locals, as equals. Government, industry and the development community contributing to projects that benefit the entire industry, such as supporting hospitality schools in the country should be a collaborative effort.
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While some of this may involve reinventing the wheel, there is an opportunity for regional entities such as the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) to play a role in supporting Haiti and its tourism development effort, by standing up initiatives that have been successful in the rest of the region. This will undoubtedly require the suspension of disbelief on the part of some of those organizations’ leaders as to the opportunities for tourism in Haiti. There is also space for entities such as the Organization of American States through its Tourism and Sustainable Development Units. In particular, initiatives that focus on the small hotel sector such as the OAS’ “Caribbean Experiences” and Small Tourism Enterprise Program (STEP) programs that look at marketing smaller hotels can be re-launched specifically for Haiti. Implementing CHTA and CTO programs that look at service and business excellence, training for supervisory management, taxi drivers and tour guides that include site and attraction management can also be positives for the industry in Haiti.
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Interestingly, there are areas where Haiti can lead the rest of the region. One is by developing a domestic “tourism and you” campaign that ties each tourism employee to a family and the broader economy. This can ensure that the greater population recognizes how important tourism can be to the country’s economic development. Another may be incentivizing the incorporation of alternative energy technology in the industry – also a branding opportunity for a travel community increasingly aware of their carbon footprint. Finally, there is the unrealized linkage between agriculture & tourism that can provide a distinct “taste of Haiti” but also supports broader economic opportunities linked to agrarian reform. Ultimately, Haiti still needs to make meaningful progress in governance and recovery efforts. Infrastructure deficiencies that existed prior to the earthquake need to be addressed. An open and transparent investment climate, along with sound policies that assure a level playing field where large and small businesses can prosper alike will be critical for any long-term tourism success.

Christian Science Monitor
By Ezra Fisher
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The buzz about Haiti – as a tourist destination?
President Martelly wants to attract investors to build hotels and resorts, with an estimated 2,250 hotel rooms completed by 2013. It's a way to create jobs and improve the economy, but can it work? Singer turned president of Haiti Michel “Sweet Micky” Martelly was back on stage this year. But instead of performing the bawdy pants-dropping routines that made him famous, he was proposing something perhaps more audacious: Haiti as a tourist destination. From Davos to Miami, Mr. Martelly has spent part of his first year as president promoting the country’s tourism industry as a way to both change its image and grow the economy. “On tourism … for the first time Haiti is back on the international map,” he says. Last year, only 300,000 tourists visited Haiti, compared to the neighboring Dominican Republic’s intake of 4.3 million. But not long ago, Haiti was the place to visit in the Caribbean. But then years of dictatorship, an AIDS epidemic, and political upheaval conspired against the tourism industry.
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Banging the neoliberal drum that he’s championed for other sectors – “Haiti is open for business” is an oft-quoted slogan – Martelly wants to attract investors to build hotels and resorts and tourists to fill them. Working with the Mexican institution that planned that country’s tourist successes like Cancún, the Martelly administration is hoping to return Haiti to its former glory as the “Pearl of the Antilles.” “We have in [the tourism] sector $450 million worth of investment that’s being made in Haiti,” Martelly says in an interview with The Christian Science Monitor. “You’ll have more of that coming. It’s a land of opportunity.”
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This idea may run contrary to the image of Haiti as a land where misery abounded even before the 2010 earthquake and the incremental recovery that followed. A lack of infrastructure and political instability still play against it. Yet Haiti is seeing investors build new hotels and restaurants at a pace not seen in decades. “Haiti, in this moment, is experiencing its first hotel build out,” says tourism minister Stephanie Balmir Villedrouin. This includes large international chains like Best Western and Marriott, Ms. Villedrouin says, many of which are set to open this year. By July 2013, the ministry expects around 2,250 new hotel rooms, creating 8,000 new jobs. More than half will open in and around Port-au-Prince, where developers aim to capitalize on the influx of businessmen and aid workers with business-class hotels.
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Officials hope to fill rooms ­­– including close to 1,000 outside the capital – by promoting the country at tourism fairs. The new campaign, “Haiti: Experience It!” features the national flower, the hibiscus, as part of an effort to attract visitors, starting with the 4 million Haitians living outside of the country. Haiti “is not there yet but there is certainly potential,” says Carlos Vogeler, regional director for the Americas at the World Tourism Organization, a United Nations agency. “Haiti has … aspects that are distinct: The Franco-African heritage … the culture, some of the customs. There are certain things that make it very attractive,” Mr. Vogeler says. Those who know the country extol the beauty of its beaches and uniqueness of its art, culture, and history. But these features are countered by more challenging aspects. “It’s a beautiful place, but it wasn’t the easiest trip,” says Ashley McGinnis, who “got away” to the beach for a few days during a volunteer trip. “It takes a while to get around and it’s not cheap.”
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Due to poor roads and unreliable government services, hotels assume the costly business of supplying everything from electricity – through generators – to trash disposal. Visiting the sandy beaches and turquoise waters north of Port-au-Prince can cost nearly $200 or more per night at some resorts. Comparable resorts in neighboring Dominican Republic cost half as much, or less. While slow, progress has been made in rebuilding Haiti since the earthquake. Port-au-Prince’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport has received a much-needed facelift, but graffiti reminders of the cholera epidemic that has killed more than 7,000 people since late 2010 are among the first things visitors see when they leave the airport. The government has closed many of the camps that once housed people displaced by the quake, but remaining blue tarp-covered shacks and ragged tents serve as jarring reminders of the miserable conditions in which many Haitians still live. The government sees tourism as an engine for economic development. But even if it can attract foreign investment, Alex Dupuy, a Haiti-born professor at Wesleyan University, asks how much it will help the impoverished.
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Mr. Dupuy drew a distinction between the Haiti tourism industry of yesteryear, dominated by local owners and products, and that envisioned by the Martelly administration. “Bringing in foreign owners means that the benefits for Haitians will be limited,” he says. “If you have a big chain building a hotel, it’s not in Haiti for the benefit of Haitians. It’s in it for profits. And those are profits that will leave Haiti.” Studies have found that only 20 cents of every dollar spent in Caribbean countries, on average, stay in that country’s economy. Foreign owners remove the remainder as profit. Dupuy said the plan smacks of many of the economic pushes that have failed Haiti in the past, such as the garment industry that offers meager salaries to workers.
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“There’s not much new here,” he says. “This is a model that has been applied before and hasn’t worked for the majority of Haitians. It benefits those who are already wealthy.” But Martelly says drawing investors to the tourism sector can get Haiti back to work. Jobs, even low-paying ones, are sorely needed in a country where two-thirds of the labor force is not part of the formal employment sector and the unemployment rate registers above 40 percent. But convincing foreign investors to look to Haiti has been tricky. “Haiti has always been a risk in terms of financing,” says Jean-Marie Wolff, who is working on a hotel development in Haiti called Belle Rive. “The financial institutions in Haiti don’t have the capacity … and the terms of their construction loans are prohibitive.”
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Prior to the 2010 earthquake, the tourism industry was showing signs of recapturing some of its old self. Just days before the quake struck, Haitian-American developers announced a deal with Maryland-based Choice Hotels to manage two hotels in Jacmel, a small historic city on the Caribbean coast known as home to painters, poets, and writers. The announcement gave renewed momentum to Belle Rive, a project first announced in 2009. The 23-acre oceanfront development was to include an upscale hotel, condominiums, a marina, tennis courts, and a movie theater in a dramatic setting on a cliff overlooking the sea. “It’s been years and we’ve gone through all kinds of obstacles, including the earthquake,” says Mr. Wolff, one of 62 shareholders in the New York-based group, known by its acronym SIMACT “We have everything in place, including permits and paperwork. … Financing has been the hard part.” The project is both an indication of the tourism sector’s potential, and a reminder that Haiti’s history of political instability and complex legal framework, including a notorious land title system, pose a challenge. To upgrade a smaller existing hotel there, SIMACT turned to the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, which granted it a $349,000 loan in late June. The loan was announced following a two-day tour of tourist spots led by former President Bill Clinton for more than a dozen potential investors. Wolff hopes to announce financing for other parts of the Belle Rive development within six months. The tourism ministry says it wants to make the country a safer bet for investors. Mexico’s National Fund for the Development of Tourism (FONATUR), which planned the resort areas of Cancún and Los Cabos, among others, is helping develop a plan to strengthen protection for investors and simplify rules. The plan, ready by November, will focus on the Caribbean coast in the area around Jacmel, says Villedrouin. Development there would fit squarely with Martelly’s vision. “You can drive kilometers of coast and you won’t see a small house,” he says. “Bring development to that area and you realize how much can be done. So yes, Haiti is open for business.”