Haiti

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Revision as of 01:18, 7 November 2010

History of the Peace Corps in Haiti

Peace Corps Volunteers have worked in Haiti over three periods: 1982 to 1987, 1990 to 1991, and 1996 to the present. From 1982 to 1987, Volunteers worked in agroforestry, early childhood education, fisheries, and vocational training. Political unrest and a congressional resolution led to a suspension of the program and the withdrawal of 75 Volunteers in 1987. In 1990, Volunteers returned to Haiti to work in agroforestry, child survival, preprimary education, and youth development. In September 1991, 59 Volunteers were evacuated from Haiti because of a military coup. The Peace Corps reopened its office in Haiti with about 20 Volunteers in 1996. In Februrary 2004, 87 volunteers were working in agriculture and environment, small businesses development and rural education.

History and Future of Peace Corps Programming in Haiti

The Peace Corps/Haiti program focuses primarily on income generation and capacity building. Current projects are in the areas of small enterprise development, agriculture and environmental education, and rural health education.

In 1996, as the Peace Corps was reestablishing its presence in Haiti, improving access to financial services to increase incomes among the rural poor was recognized as an important step. The purpose of the small enterprise development project is thus to strengthen the institutional and managerial capacities of existing microfinance institutions in order to create sustainable small business opportunities for the rural and semiurban poor. The Peace Corps' microfinance project collaborates with nongovernmental and rural organizations that promote and support financial services that in turn create grass-roots income-generating opportunities. Volunteers work in rural areas and small urban centers to build the capacity of local committee leaders and partner organizations in microfinance activities. In some cases, Volunteers are part of NGO teams that provide direct, community-level technical support to microfinance institutions.

Most Haitians depend on agriculture for their existence. At the same time, land use and the need for charcoal have led to extensive deforestation of Haiti's hillsides. The purpose of the agroforestry and environmental education project is to improve the standard of living of rural populations by providing viable, sustainable income-generating opportunities with an environmental focus, as well as to improve the institutional and managerial capacities of local organizations, rural schools, and communities. For example, Volunteers work with rural communities to introduce or improve the cultivation of fruit trees as a source of income and as an environmental conservation measure. Volunteers also work with these communities on collective marketing of agricultural products, creation of new microenterprises, improvement of agricultural production, increasing access to and nderstanding of credit, and improvement of animal-stock sales.

Peace Corps/Haiti recently began a new project in rural health education that aims to raise health conditions by teaching communities how to fight chronic malnutrition; by stressing the importance of immunizations, sanitation, and maternal health; and by providing options for preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS. Volunteers work primarily with women and children, who are the groups most affected by poor health and who can make the biggest changes in the health of a family and community. Volunteers provide education and resources in basic hygiene, sanitation, children's and women's health care issues, HIV/AIDS prevention, vaccinations, and sex education to youth, young adults, and women of childbearing age.

Currently, the program is in a suspended state since June 2005 and will be revaluated in Feb 2006.

The office is located at:

Peace Corps Office
115, Avenue Panaméricaine
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Working hours: 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Monday to Friday
Telephone: 256-3274, 256-4094, 256-4249
For all information regarding Peace Corps Program in Haiti please double click on the website address: mentioned below:
http://www.peacecorps.gov/

Peace Corps News

Current events relating to Peace Corps are also available by country of service or your home state

• Peace Corps Volunteer Dies In Ghana - News One (May 01)

External Links

Peace Corps Haiti U.S. Embassy

See also

• Volunteers who served in Haiti

External links

• Peace Corps Journals - Haiti