To Rebuild Haiti After This Earthquake, We Must Empower Haitians
Inside Philanthropy Op-Ed
Pierre Noel and Karen Ansara, Guest Contributors
The tragedy of humanity is that we, at times, learn nothing from the past. But the stakes are too high to repeat our mistakes this time.
Haitians are again being cruelly tested by a catastrophic earthquake. The degree of devastation in the south of Haiti is immense. It is estimated that 130,000 structures—homes, schools, clinics, roads, water sources and agricultural infrastructure like mills, canals, sheds and pens—are damaged or destroyed. The lives of hundreds of thousands of already-poor farming families are even more precarious now.
Haiti needs help to rebuild, but as international aid arrives, we must learn from the mistakes made after the 2010 earthquake. Providing aid to Haiti without partnering with Haitians will fail to address Haiti’s most critical challenges.
As an American donor deeply committed to helping Haiti, and a Haitian American raised in rural Haiti, who today runs a nonprofit committed to Haitian-led institutions, we have seen firsthand the power of partnership to strengthen and empower Haitian leaders, organizations, government entities and communities.
How can the international donor community foster these partnerships?