DEVELOPMENTS

Haiti's recent unexpected catastrophic 7.0 earthquake has brought global attention to the long-ignored impoverished island nation. As images of a destroyed Haiti continue to populate international media outlets, writing about hope remains difficult. It also follows a pattern in which the media's attention generally focuses on Haiti only when tumultuous events occur, such as hurricanes, political turmoil, and protests. Without a doubt the earthquake has devastated hard-fought progress and improvements that had recently finally begun to take root in the long-suffering country. The media's attention on Haiti generally focuses only when tumultuous events occur: hurricanes, political turmoil, protests. To see a country that has recently shown positive improvement to be reduced by what’s now reported as a significant setback to the domestic and international aid that now stands stunned.

BACKGROUND

With the help of the debt-forgiveness program, political stability, and the shift into infrastructure development, a sense of hope had swept Haiti in 2009. One sign of economic progress is in the number of buildings being constructed or renovated. As a facility manager for the Inter-American Development Bank's building in Port-au-Prince, renovations were a common occurrence as the base of operations expanded. On a national level, more local contractors, technicians, and suppliers have been certified to install and maintain well-established equipment brands. Technical specifications and construction standards were used in some of the more modern buildings rising in the capital, including Digicel's Turgeau building. Along the winding roads in the capital, many other buildings were under construction using lesser-grade materials to compete with the rapidly modernizing landscape. People in Haiti always seem to be conducting business and being capitalists, from the small vendor along the road all the way to the construction manager attending to his new building . After four consecutive hurricanes struck Haiti in 2008, many of the new construction projects focused on reinforcing the Spanish-tile roofs which had come off quite easily. Concrete slabs sat on untreated columns and in some poorer areas buildings were being laid without rebar, which is commonly used to reinforce concrete and reduce structural failure. Large ads for cell phone services and announcements of the newest club in town hung against the brightly colored facades, under which laid a wide array of construction practices.

The Hotel Montana, a prominent hotel in Port-au-Prince, once stood overlooking most of the capital's sprawling densely populated downtown area. The most recent images from the site show the hotel no longer standing. Digicel's tower still stands despite partial damaged. The Inter-American Development Bank's building did not collapse, or “pancake” staff, unlike many other buildings. As Haiti rebuilds over the next few years, and it will rebuild with the support of the global community, it comes with a renewed sense of hope. The high priority to rebuild infrastructure should include the international adoption of stricter construction standards, mobilizing infrastructure development into basic services such as water and electricity, and promoting small businesses to invest in adult education in order to gain contracts.

In an interview this week, WSJ Columnist Mary O'Grady stated that all the multilateral bank entities have failed in promoting economic growth in Haiti and instead have assured that local government corruption continues. Her opinion reflects the lack of seeing firsthand the development in Haiti prior to the earthquake. During a recent visit in 2009, witnessing the large amount of schoolchildren dressed in uniforms crossing roadways was personally encouraging. As they entered the large colorfully painted school there was a sense of stabilization and normality. As large NGOs, bank entities, and other agencies work towards developing Haiti again, it is those former images of normality that will bring about hope.

ANALYSIS

Hope is not in the rubble that currently stands, and certainly not with those who have little faith in the Haitian people. Though many iconic and historic buildings have collapsed these were not the temples where Haitian culture was housed. That culture lives in the schools, roadways, hospitals, orphanages, and small textile and farming communities. The many faith-based groups that work in Haiti know the importance of normalcy in the Haitian community, and will ease fund reconstruction efforts on a smaller scale. On the infrastructure scale larger NGOs and aid groups will lag behind, but provide support for the larger projects such as reconstructing roads and complex facilities. Former Vice-President Al Gore said it best when he asserted that the financial crisis will highlight the importance of sustainable development. The innovation of sustainable development will be the primary driver of economic and industrial change. The economic setback that Haiti will feel in the critical first-year will require international support that goes beyond the usual dignitary talking-points. Hope is in returning children back to school. It will be in funding public building construction that is sustainable and follows stricter construction standards; such as rainwater tanks, cross bracing, rebar. The emphasis will be on safety and health, contractors will be held responsible to meet standards.

Latin America is no stranger to natural or man-made calamities, this was a primary reason why countries in the southern cone brave the elements and are progressing forward. The same goes for Haiti and many of its allies, as they are willing to start working again. In restarting a project many lessons learnt initially can be applied the second time around. After the humanitarian effort aids in the current state there will be a significant need for innovative minds to work on rebuilding a more sustainable skyline from the rubble that now lays . It will not be easy, no one can fools themselves into believing this, but the Haitians are a resilient and hard-working people. Hope remains a rare commodity in Haiti. Yet the expressed determination on the parts of both the Haitian government and the international community to learn from their previous mistakes may offer Haiti its best chance of channeling what glimmers of hope that still remain into a better future for the Haitian people.

Antonio Zuniga works for the Inter-American Development Bank, managing the Operations and Maintenance Program in 28 country offices in Latin America, Europe, and Asia. He most recently visited Haiti in 2009.

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