a1210: Small Businesses? (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Hyppolite Pierre <hpierre@irsp.org>

We all agree that economic development in Haiti requires investment at all
levels. Yet, we perhaps fail to recognize the importance of the Diaspora in
that process.

The Government of Haiti (GOH) seems to be quite focused on getting mostly
multinationals to come and invest there. That is a good strategy but perhaps
should not be the only one.

Recent history of investment in Haiti suggests that, once the political
situation turns sour, those large factories and other companies tend to
simply pack and go. On the other hand, even during the coup years, Haitian
entrepreneurs from New York, Florida, and Canada have remained there despite
the difficulties. This may be due to two reasons: intimate knowledge and
perhaps also love of the land, and limited resources. It is indeed easy for
a large company to quickly relocate, but much harder for a small Haitian
entrepreneur with limited resources.

Knowing these factors, the GOH should perhaps focus its attention on
encouraging more would-be Haitian entrepreneurs in the Diaspora, and offer
them incentives to invest in different parts of the country. They may be
able to employ simply from two to at most 20 employees at a time. But that
means two or 20 families have now some means to live. A small entrepreneur
in today's Haiti can make do, probably with an initial investment of as
little as US $3,000, (at least HT $15,000) and grow from there. If the GOH
were to let the Diaspora know of possibilities for small businesses in
regions of the country. If Codes of Investments for small entrepreneurs were
available at consulates, embassies, or available in other ways like the
Internet. If government provided the right kinds of incentives for those
would-be entrepreneurs to invest their meager dollars, there is no telling
as to how many of them would be found in Jérémie, Desdunes, Anse-à-Veau,
etc.

At first they may look like a small pool. But success stories if widely
publicized would be the greatest incentives for others to come and invest.
After all, like we said before, a Haitian entrepreneur would be most likely
to stay even during hard times, and help keep the economy somehow still
rolling. The large ones would be the first ones to pack and go.

Hyppolite Pierre
IRSP
http://www.irsp.org