Haiti | Caribbean

Strengthening the resilience of vulnerable populations and organisations | Haiti

Economic and political crises, gang violence and natural disasters determine the lives and everyday reality of the inhabitants of Haiti. A shortage of food and a barely existent health system mean that life is a daily struggle for survival. The project aims to support communities in the south and west of Haiti, which are particularly affected by the crises. The ASB provides clean drinking water, informs people about COVID-19 and teaches farmers how to get better harvests. The ASB also helps people to earn money on their own so that they can make their own living.

The project

Project title: Strengthening the resilience of vulnerable populations and organisations in the face of a very high disaster risk in the southern and western departments of Haiti
Project country: Haiti
Financing: Federal Ministry for Economic Development and Cooperation (BMZ) and ABS’s own resources. Partner organisations are the Coopérative Agricole de Saint Louis du Sud (agricultural cooperative of farmers from Saint-Louis-du-Sud, CAPSL), federation of organisations for the development of Tiburon and Unité Nord 3e section (UN-3).
Project volume: € 1,222,220.00
Duration: 01/10/2020 to 31/03/2023
Target group: 95,000 people from rural communities in Haiti (Saint-Louis-du-Sud, Tiburon and Petit Goâve)

Haiti’s political, economic and social situation has deteriorated massively since 2018. General strikes and gang crime have heightened the security situation and have dramatically affected economic life. The COVID-19 pandemic has further affected the lives of the inhabitants of Haiti, especially those of the poorest population groups. In 2020, more than six million Haitians lived on less than $ 2.41 a day. 3.7 million people have insufficient food supplies.

How the ASB is helping in Haiti

Water, sanitation and hygiene

Together with local partners, the ASB is educating the population about COVID-19 in order to prevent the pandemic from spreading further in the project communities. To this end, 40 volunteers will be trained to subsequently inform the population about protection measures.

In places such as markets, bus stops and churches, which are the most frequented by the population, 100 water systems were installed for washing hands. Public access to clean water has also been improved through the construction and replacement of water collection systems and the installation of water filtration systems. 80,000 people benefit from these measures.

Food security

The ASB is training farmers how to grow many different crops on one piece of land. This helps farmers to protect themselves against problems such as droughts, plant diseases and changes in the price of agricultural products. It adds nutrients to the soil for plants and helps the community to have enough food.

With the help of the ASB, the farmers grow vegetables, honey, plantains, yams, beans and sweet potatoes in their fields. At least 1,250 families (about 6,000 people) benefit directly from this food.

In addition, the ASB is building special places where farmers can store, buy and sell seeds – these are known as centres for drying. This helps to ensure that the seeds do not go bad during storage.

Rural development

At least 20,000 people benefit from the restoration of paths, roads or bridges in rural areas. These construction measures ensure that important connecting roads remain passable for passenger and goods traffic and in the event of evacuations, all year round.

Against the backdrop of the complex crisis in Haiti, the ASB supports social enterprises operating in the agricultural sector. These include entrepreneurs who keep bees or process corn. The ASB conducts training courses with them and advises employees on the creation of business plans, marketing, digitalisation and quality control.