HAITI 2011- It’s just over a year since the quake, and I returned from my last visit on March 3rd.  It is still dusty.  By afternoon, the dust hangs in a light fog over the capital city, stirred by heavy traffic and ocean breezes.  The large NGOs are fatigued with the mundane necessities of recovery.  The well-off suffered a set-back, the middle class slipped down the economic ladder, the lower class are poor, and for the poor, the whispers of hope are silenced. Tent communities still dominate large open spaces.  People are slow to return to their homes as the fear of another quake looms.  At four in the morning, on the last day of February, a tremor gently rocked the landscape.  There is evidence this quake is not finished.  Those with means are rebuilding.  Collapsed homes are cleared, new construction is under way, security fences restored; for them life moves forward.  The majority are without means.

Inflation gnaws on the bones of recovery.  Though life is dictated by happenstance, they cling to the one thing under their control; dignity.  Well-groomed, well-dressed, they emerge to accept each day’s challenge, soldiering on in the face of an unknown future.

March 20^th is their presidential election day.  Only 20% of those eligible are forecast to vote.  Past elections’ promises have borne no fruit.  Haiti’s agrarian past holds the keys to its future.  Restoration of rice and cotton production will enable the country to feed and clothe itself, draw people back to the countryside and reduce dependencies on others.  Elimination of graft and nepotism would help restore confidence in government.

Pure Water for the World is more engaged than ever.  Employing 30+ Haitians, we are creating sustainable solutions for safe drinking water through our schools program.  A grant from our Canadian friends enables the implementation of water harvesting projects in schools in the poorest part of the largest slum.  We just completed the installation of two 10,000 gallons per day water purification systems at two hospitals.  The systems were donated by the DOW Corporation.  Future plans include a “homes” program, mobile educational unit, and a “WET” (Water Education Training) center.  Our ultimate goal is for a self-supporting operation in Haiti.

Your support helps create sustainable solutions.

Thank you.

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