23864: Hermantin (News) crises take economic toll on impoverished Haiti (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Sun-Sentinel

Series of crises take economic toll on impoverished Haiti



By Doreen Hemlock
and Alva-James Johnson Staff writers

December 9, 2004

For a glance at how tough it is to do business in Haiti these days, look no
farther than apparel executive David Brown of Miami.

Brown was supposed to speak Wednesday at a top-level conference about how
his company, North Carolina-based Perry Manufacturing Co., is staying
competitive by making ladies sportswear in a factory in Haiti.

But he cancelled when a days-old strike by Haitian customs workers left his
fashions stuck in the Caribbean nation. Instead, he spent Wednesday trying
to get a charter plane to pick up the garments and get them into U.S. stores
soon.

Haiti has made headlines all year for political turmoil, floods and violence
and those problems also took a serious economic toll, participants said on
the final day of the annual Miami Conference on the Caribbean Basin.

Already the poorest country in the Americas, Haiti saw its economy shrink by
about 5 percent in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, its worst performance in
at least five years, according international estimates.

Plus, projections by the interim government for 3.2 percent growth this
fiscal year seem optimistic, now that political upheaval and strikes have
crimped business this quarter, said economist Jean Claude Paulvin, president
of Haiti-based consulting firm Ecosof SA.

Indeed, Haiti's economy lags even below 1991 levels, still not yet recovered
from losing about 25 percent of production capacity between 1991 and 1994,
Paulvin said.

Florida is trying to lend a helping hand, reaching out to a neighbor that is
a key source of illegal immigrants and could be a major trade partner.

But the problems are daunting. For example, Haiti's cash-strapped government
has trouble collecting taxes, including on shipments from Miami. One
proposal: To collect those taxes for the government in Miami before ships
leave, said Marie Bell, chairwoman of a Haitian American advisory group
recently set up by Gov. Jeb Bush.

Haiti emerged as a key concern at the annual confab on the Caribbean and
Central America, attended this year by more than 500 people and featuring
seven heads of government from the region.

Honduras President Ricardo Maduro opened Wednesday's session with an appeal
for quick passage of the U.S.-Central American Free Trade Agreement known as
CAFTA. He said the pact would not only reduce barriers to trade but also
raise Central American standards for labor and the environment and
anti-trust laws.

"CAFTA would be a good Christmas present for Honduras," Maduro said, noting
Central America plans to start drafting a similar pact with the European
Union next year.

Prime Minister Patrick Manning of oil-and-gas exporting Trinidad and Tobago
highlighted the need for reliable energy to fuel the region's economies.

"We have proposed the construction of a natural gas pipeline up the
Caribbean island chain to bring security, stability and sustainable
development to the region, " Manning told a luncheon crowd.

Port security also took center stage, as ports struggle to find funds to
implement a new international maritime security code that took effect July
1.

About 20 percent of Caribbean ports don't fully comply today, and about half
are using stop-gap measures to meet requirements, stymied mainly by
financing shortfalls, said Kim E. Petersen, president of Fort
Lauderdale-based consulting firm SeaSecure LLC.

"Funding to the Caribbean Basin [ports] is in the United States' best
interest," Petersen said, noting Washington pushed for the global code after
Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Meanwhile, the business advocacy group organizing the annual conference came
under fire Wednesday by free-trade critics for receiving a $700,000 federal
grant.

The Florida Fair Trade Coalition, which opposes CAFTA, alleged the grant
lets Caribbean/Central American Action essentially lobby for CAFTA's
approval.

"We cannot allow our government to pay a business group to lobby their
so-called free trade position in order to relocate our jobs overseas,"
charged Eric Rubin, state director of the coalition of labor, environmental
and civic groups. Rubin urged federal authorities to move quickly on a
request by some House Democrats to investigate.

But Federico Sacasa, a former banker who runs Caribbean/Central American
Action, defended the aims of CAFTA.

"The focus of the alliance is to raise standards in business, labor, and
environment in Central America and the Caribbean," Sacasa said in a
statement. "Their continued progress is crucial to fully insure U.S.
security."

The conference wrapped up Wednesday night, with speeches by Dominican
Republic President Leonel Fernandez and Haiti's interim Prime Minister
Gerard Latortue.

Doreen Hemlock can be reached at dhemlock@sun-sentinel.com or 305-810-5009.
Copyright © 2004, South Florida Sun-Sentinel