Solution for Haiti: Teach them how to fish
The title of this article might at first appear harsh and it probably is. To witness the fallout of this incredible catastrophe for the past four weeks is heart-wrenching for anybody. Haiti, the country with a population of about ten million living mostly below or slightly above the poverty level with a national Gross Domestic Product of nearly twelve billion dollars or $1200.00 per person is poor and considered the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.
It should therefore be no wonder to rationally thinking people that besides buildings and other structures the country’s infrastructure nearly totally collapsed after the 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12. Not only were roads destroyed, the utility infrastructure together with the country’s communications system went down and the main airport was underdeveloped and inadequately equipped to take the help flown in from all over the world. All medical facilities and hospital were either totally destroyed or require substantial repair. The entire picture of Haiti is one of unbelievable despair and almost total hopelessness. As happens when catastrophes of this magnitude occur anywhere around the globe, the world wants to help and sends money, materiel things such as food items and other needed supplies or even rescue personnel and medical teams.
To us here at ‘Common Sense University’ the old adage comes to mind: ‘Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’ Why would we think this? It is very simple. If we just send money and needed supplies to Haiti, we are feeding them for a day, a week or a month which is not a desirable solution. The people will continue their lives as before once the situation is somewhat normalized and Haiti will remain the poorest nation in the western world.
To us this appears to be a point in time where the lives of Haitians could not only be changed but permanently improved. The tasks to rebuild Haiti are incredibly huge and will take considerable time, several years to say the least. The country’s leadership should take this opportunity and coordinate with world leaders a massive re-building of this island nation. We think this should be a two-prong project. First, provide immediate help for the people in terms of minimal shelter and life sustaining provisions such as food, medical support, clean water, sanitation, electricity and so on but the second and larger program should be the re-building of the country to bring it to higher living standards as enjoyed by most western countries.
This would mean master-planning of infrastructure construction, removal of earthquake damaged buildings and other structures including medical facilities. Not knowing what larger companies are existing in Haiti who could undertake such tasks, bring in firms from other countries as for instance Bechtel, Fluor or Parsons Corporations from the USA and allow them to bring in the management personnel required to undertake such work. But perform the actual work with locals! In other words, hire Haitians to do the physical work, they can learn the trades and earn money doing the rebuilding. This would help the local economy and provide higher living standards for them as well on a sustained level as Haiti could build the necessary tourism elements to vastly improve that industry which currently does not seem to even exist.
Once these plans would become known, it would entice developers from countries around the world to build hotels and the associated facilities that exist in other country’s resorts. If Haiti has one thing going for itself, it is the climate and tourism could boom in just a few years. This could be a lasting solution for this scenically beautiful country and it would help lift the population out of its previous economic doldrums and current misery. That’s what we mean when we call for this golden opportunity: “Teaching them how to fish!”
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