Miami Herald

Below is an article by Miami Herald journalist Jacqueline Charles about Haiti's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the University Hospital of Mirebalais which plays a central role in it.  The University Hospital is one of the few hospitals with the capacity to stabilise patients with COVID-19 and to provide these services free of charge.  The Hospital staff are preparing for a potential surge in cases which could be caused by Haitians returning from the Dominican Republic due to lost livelihoods, the near impossibility of social distancing, and a health care system that was fragile even prior to the pandemic.  If you are looking for a way to help Haiti as it responds to the pandemic, consider a donation to Partners in Health which manages the University Hospital and remains the largest non-profit health care provider in the country.  

It can take years or even decades for countries to recover from major disasters.  The aim is to build back better over time so the country becomes more resilient, better able to prevent and respond to a wide range of hazards.  Haiti remains just as vulnerable to major disasters as it was when the earthquake hit ten years ago.  There is not an improved building code nor a resourced and widely understood national emergency response plan nor drills to operationalize and refine such plans.  Haiti remains consumed by political instability, the root of which is the lack of an effective, accountable government that invests in its people.   Donors have become frustrated and less interested - that is until the next major disaster happens, which eventually it will.  An article below by Miami Herald journalist Jacqueline Charles and Jose Iglesias traces what has happened since 2010 and why. 

Spirit Airlines has announced a new routing to Cap Haitien, Haiti's second largest city. Haiti was once, and could be yet again, a significant tourism destination - but this would be unlikely if tourists coudl only enter the country through a congested and unpedictable Port-au-Prince.  In Jamaica, most tourists fly into Montego Bay and bypass Kingston altogether.  Cap Haitien, with its history, beaches, and relative stability, may eventually become Haiti's Montego Bay.  Managed properly, increased tourism could be good for Cap Haitien and the north.  A full article on Spirit AIrline's recent announcement by Jacqueline Charles of the is linked and follows. 

The Trump Administration has announced it will end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians in 2019 meaning they must return by then or face deportation.  While such status is meant to be temporary, Haitians have integrated, are working, and part of their American communities.  It is clear that the Haitian government does not have the capacity to reintegrate tens of thousands of its citizens - particularly given the impact of Hurricane Matthew and the ongoing cholera outbreak.  This could further destablise Haiti. The full article the Miami Herald's Jacqueline Charles follows. 

A World Bank study recommends that Haiti and its donors focus less on building hospitals and more on preventative and primary care.  Haiti spends less than 5 percent of its budget on health care meaning that it must prioritize. The best run hospitals have long been managed by or co-managed with non-governmental organizations.  Public hospitals are in need of serious reform. Ninety pecent of operating budgets for hospitals are for payroll with an over-emphasis on administration.  Decentralization could potentially empower health facilities by allowing staff to make their own budgetary and human resource decisions.  The full article by Miami Herald journalist Jacqueline Charles follows. 

The current administration has granted undocumented Haitians in the United States an additional six months of Temporary Protected Status (TPS), protecting them from deportation...at least for now.  The Department of Homeland Security has warned that this may be the final six months of TPS and Haitians should prepare for return.  It is difficult to imagine how Haiti can absorb 60,000 returnees at this point in time - especially those who would be returning to the hurricane affected Grande Anse.  Due in large part to Hurricane Matthew, the economy is expected to contract ths year.  Additional information follows in a Miami Herald article by Jacqueline Charles below.  

You don't have to go to Haiti to experience live Haitian music. There are venues in Boston, New York City, Montreal, and Miami that feature Haitian music a swell as annual festivals, the best of which is Miami's Compas Festivals.  It has always been outdoors, features many different musicians, and count on a large, enthusiastic audience.  An article by the Miami Herald's Jacqueline Charles about how the the Compas Festival has evolved over the years, and the challenges it still faces, follow.  More information and tickets are available here. 

Up to 7,000 Haitian migrants may try to cross the Southern California border in the months ahead. The majority of these migrants were given humanitarian visas to live and work in Brazil following the earthquake.  While there were many opportunities to work in the lead-up to the Olympics, the Brazilian economy has taken a beating as of late.  As work became harder to find, Haitian migrants increasingly sought opportunities elsewhere - and often travelling dangerous routes to do so.

The Haitian Government and the Famine Early Warning System (FEWS-NET) report that a drought is causing food insecurity in northeast Haiti due to the loss of crops and livestock.  The National Coordination of Food Security Office and the World Food Program (WFP) are planning a response which will involve seed distribution to farmers and food distribution more broadly.  Below is a Miami Herald article with more information.   

Below is an article by Ezra Fieser and Jacqueline Charles of the Miami Herald concerning a Dominican court ruling denying citizenship to Dominican-born children of Haitian immigrants.  Many of them have never been to Haiti but nevertheless will be denied access to education and opportunities as they lack citizenship from the country where they were born and raised.  Haiti has recalled its Ambassador and protests are planned by human rights activists.