HAITI
by Jason Escareno
1. Population: 9,719,932
2. Capital City Port-au-Prince: 2,143,000
3. 60% of the land is too steep for agriculture. But is still cultivated, increasing soil erosion
4. 80% of students in primary and secondary schools are overage
5. Half of the electricity produced is stolen
6. 3.6 million cell phones
7. 1 million internet users
8. 40% of all aid benefits Port-au-Prince
9. Haiti’s elite has historically opposed democracy
10. 2/3’s of government revenue is expended in the capital city
11. Many justices of the peace cannot read or write
12. 80% unemployment
13. HDI (Life expectancy, education, standard of living): Haiti .40; Sweden .88; Namibia .61
14. Is Haiti two countries? The republics of Haiti and Port-au-Prince
15. New York City police force is five times the size/ nearly equal population
16. 21.4 is the median age
17. 52% of the population is literate
18. In 1980’s 150 U.S. firms operated tax free in Haiti
19. Haiti has virtually no natural resources
20. Haiti has 14 ports/1 large airport, 13 small unpaved airports
21. Haiti was the richest and most coveted colony in the 18th century
22. U.S. is Haiti’s largest trading partner
23. 45% of operating budget is from foreign sources
24. Ratios for 10,000 people: 1.6 physicians, 1.3 nurses, .4 dentists
25. Health services are: urban, inadequate, and private
26. Forests account for 2% of the land. Fuel wood accounts for 70% of energy.
27. 40% of the population is under age 15.
28. Only 20% of Haitians have toilets/latrines
29. Rugged mountainous land, with very few plains.
30. Only 25% of population receives vaccinations
31. Coastal waters are overfished, but deep-sea fishing is underdeveloped
32. Haiti 7.1 earthquake
33. Life Expectancy: 52.19
34. Only 33% of teachers have diplomas
35. Fertility rate: 4.8…regional average is 2.8
36. AIDS orphans: Haiti has 200,000-230,000
37. Haitians in the U.S. send 3 million per day to Haiti
38. Only 10% get electricity/ Blackouts are common/ Most industries have private generators
39. 1 million internet users
40. Urban dominance/ rural exclusion
41. Seasonal migration to Dominican Republic (sugar-cane)
42. 80% of prisoners are not sentenced
43. 67 tons of cocaine goes through Haiti from Columbia to U.S. per annum
44. Prisons have no toilets or beds, little food, overcrowded
45. The Gini coefficient (Measure equality of distribution): Haiti .59; Sweden .23; Namibia .70
46. Foreign assistance tends to exacerbate rural-urban differences
47. President Rene Preval’s 5 year term ends on May 14
48. 52% of population is urban
49. Ghost employees abound in the civil service sector
50. Farm animals act as a savings account for marriages, schooling, and medical expenses
51. Over 50,000 vehicles in Haiti
52. Taps-taps provide transportation
53. Prosecutors are afraid to investigate crimes involving military
54. Police corruption is high: unsolved, unpunished crimes
55. Haiti has child labor laws-Must be 15- but in rural settings children are expected to workew node
56. 80% of women give birth at home
57. An old erroneous myth claimed that AIDS came from Haiti
58. Rural woman have 5.9 children versus 3.0 for women in Port-au-Prince
59. It is not unusual for men to have extra-marital relationships or polygamous marriages, if they can afford it.
60. Only 43% of 1st graders make it to 5th grade. 38 out of 1000 students in primary school finish secondary school.
61. Land size: 27,750 square kilometers (roughly the size of Maryland. Maryland’s Population: 5,773,552)
62. 90% of urban children have access to school, 23% of urban children
63. Remittances from abroad account for 15% of GDP.
64. 14th poorest nation in the world, #1 in the western hemisphere
65. The rich pay the fewest taxes
66. New 25% consume no animal products: meat or dairynode
67. Variable and extreme weather.
