22355: Walker: Optimism about Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: "John Walker [Matraco]" <jcfwalker@matraco.com>

Dear Colleagues,

Perhaps I swim against the current, but I am an optimist on Haiti.  A major
reason is the quality and strength of the Haitian people.  Fashionable it
may be to be gloomy about Haiti, but please Corbetteers -- do not stop
posting your positive experiences of life in this challenging country, and
of the Haitian people!

Creating real economic opportunity in Haiti remains a big challenge.  Lance
Durban asked a good question (Corbett #21880):

   "...simply creating employment will go a long way toward growing
   the country.  So how do you create that employment?"

Lance makes a good point about social as well as economic value of work.
My observation of Haitian people is that they are among the hardest working
people I have ever known and that the social value of work is higher to
Haitians than to many Americans.  But Haitians are extremely proud people,
hence a tendency (on the part of the intellectual class?) to look down on
lower wage and light manufacturing work.

The comparatively low value-add of such work does not allow room for high
wages, yet its labor intense nature yields a high number of jobs for the
investment.  Given the difficulty Haiti has of attracting foreign
investment, this is not a bad thing.  Lance's point about the stabilizing
influence of job creation is true -- nothing would give investors more
confidence than to see more stable economic activity in Haiti.

In my own case, I work in an industry that employs relatively small numbers
of people, but has a high value-add allowing for higher wage jobs.  My
smaller number of employees is offset by the statistic that one high wage
earner in Haiti may support 10 people in an extended family.  Thus the
community value of such jobs is high.  In a balanced economy, there needs
to be a mix of both high wage and low wage jobs, in order to get people
started 'climbing the ladder'.

I have worked for five years to start my venture in Haiti, and just when I
thought I had a strong U.S. industry partner, the last round of instability
hit, sinking that ship.  I am not giving up;  I am confident that I will
eventually succeed in Haiti.  But until Haiti shows solid progress toward
stability it is an uphill battle to attract investors and secure bank
loans.  Even affluent Haitians and Haitian Americans seem reluctant to
invest in Haiti.  The often predatory nature of Haitian business does not
help.

Personally -- and I do not mean to offend anyone or minimize problems -- I
find the pessimism that pervades every discussion about Haiti to be a huge
problem.  I blame this largely on the press; bad news sells more papers
than good news.  When do we read anything positive about Haiti in the
mainstream press?  The recent line in a New York Times article to the
effect that "things can always get worse in Haiti" did not help.  I heard a
recent National Public Radio interview with a prominent and intelligent
Haitian-American that expressed the same feeling.

Pessimists do not win in this world -- optimists do.  Positive thinking is
tremendously important.  A strong and proud people like the Haitians have
much to be optimistic about.  As a young lad, I remember when the Dominican
Republic was dismissed as a 'banana republic' and now the DR is doing
pretty well.  It's not a perfect place, but people are working, tourists
are not afraid to visit, and valuable resources are being intelligently
developed.

Back then (in the 1950's and 60's) Haiti was the 'Pearl of the Antilles'
and the favorite place my grandparents told me about from their travels in
the Caribbean.  They talked of the great variety of culture, and how Haiti
was so different and lively compared with other Caribbean tourist
destinations.  In the space of one or two generations, Haiti has changed
from fashionable haven to a place largely spurned by tourists and
investors.  But it can change again.  Haitians and foreign investors need
to take the long view of Haiti, recognizing the important value of Haiti's
geographic position, low population density compared to her Caribbean
neighbors, useful resources and other important facts.

Bob's list is an important piece of this.  The Corbett List represents the
most intelligent online community of Haitians and people interested in
Haiti that I am aware of, helped in no small part by Bob's willingness to
'herd cats' in running it.  (Thanks Bob!)  A well-moderated list is a rare
jewel in these days of automated listservs.

How about some more positive accounts of life and work in Haiti, instead of
rehashing past political failures?  Many of you have good stories, based on
your own experiences in this remarkable island nation!  I suspect your
accounts would be a great deal more compelling than tiresome and gloomy
press stories easily read elsewhere.  Should Bob chose to stop posting
those I would not miss them.

Kind regards,

John Walker