Clinton made some important points about his priorities and the directions he thinks NGOs working in Haiti should take as the reconstruction and development processes move forward. And I, of course, had some critiques and reactions.
(very poor quality pic of Mr. Clinton from my phone)
He emphasized a need to strengthen the government, and to allocate donor funds to government capacity building. This is absolutely true, a state needs leadership to coherently function and develop (See Beaudelaine Pierre and Jude Piquant's NGO, INHAL). Yet I also see why donors hesitate to invest in the state, following anecdotal/personal examples of high-level officials opting to drink or shop over discussing development plans; lack of communication between government sectors; and lack of commitment to do the daily grind that hypothetically accompanies government titles. Clinton, however remains optimistic, saying that following the Tsunami the corruption situation was even worse, and donors still were able to effectively monitor their contributions. Clinton is proposing an open website where all aid money coming into Haiti will be accounted for, and anyone can see how the money is spent.
He spoke also of the need for cooperation and coordination. I hear this call from most actors, but so far it seems that everyone is competing to be the coordinator, instead of submitting to an umbrella organization. He hopes that aid money will not overlap but that necessary programs will cover all the zones of the country through coordinated piecemeal NGO and government projects.
He also emphasized that the reconstruction and development process must be decentralized. 70% of Haitians live outside of Port-au-Prince, yet previously everything was centered in the capital, leading to overcrowding in PAP and brain/resource/labor drain in the rest of the country. Decentralization will allow for diversification of income generating activities throughout the country, and will ensure that any future natural disasters will not have such a massive economic toll on GDP.
Clinton echoed the need for self-sustainability and empowering Haitians locally and in the diaspora. The role of the diaspora is a continuing debate, and an interesting forum on this topic is on Katleen Felix's (Diaspora Liason for Fonkoze the largest alternative bank in Haiti) facebook page. The Haitian diaspora funds 30% of GDP through remittances, yet many diaspora members have expressed frustration at the lack of input they have on Haiti's internal affairs.
Finally, looking ahead at the rainy season, Clinton called urgently for the relocation of several camps that are vulnerable to flooding, saying that 20,000-30,000 people could die if they stay where they are. He recognized that the alternative locations may not be entirely ready to host them, but that leaving people next to hillsides and in valleys could lead to massive destruction from wind, land slides, or waterborne diseases. People are vulnerable to contracting cholera and diarrhea as flooding spreads water contaminated by waste in many cases (as the sanitation system is very weak). In some places bodies still trapped under rubble could poison water affecting people directly through drinking and bathing, and indirectly through permeating agricultural fields.
Haiti still has huge hurdles to overcome. Please continue to support organizations you TRUST as they engage with the long-term reconstruction and development efforts (look at the background of places such as the Red Cross before opting to support the organizations you see in commercials). I reccommend Haitian Women for Haitian Refugees!! Fonkoze, and INHAL (disclaimer: I work with INHAL). Zafen is an exciting new website similar to Kiva where individuals can contribute to small-scale loans for Haitian entrepreneurs. Grassroots organizations I respect, though know little about their financial regulatory mechanisms include: Friends of Petit Goave, and the Association of Peasants of Fondwa.
Experts who have ideas about how things ought to be organized, managed and carried out should contact the Clinton Foundation (if you can actually get through). Clinton has his hand on plenty of money and it was amazing to see how if he decides that something is the right idea, he immediately funds it (such as buying 30,000 tee-shirts for local security teams to wear to identify themselves as they organize in the IDU camps and then a second batch just for kicks in case the plan works--he also has much bigger investments, but the flippant way he spoke of picking up the tee-shirt plan emphasized to me his financial power). Amazing to have that level of confidence, power and access! This is why it is essential that top leaders such as Bill Clinton and Paul Farmer (who introduced Clinton at the event) stay in constant contact with the local community, local community leaders, the government, grassroots organizations and the diaspora. They have the power to make whatever decisions they want and it is an active, daily process to maintain solidarity and not take over.
All of this is to lead up to saying that it was a great idea for Clinton to address NGOs before the donor conference. But perhaps instead of talking at them he should have had a discussion? Furthermore only THREE Haitian NGOs made it to the event (according to the fabulous journalist Amy Lieberman in her article on IRINNEWS) emphasizing the lack of coordination and communication that people continue to discuss without resolution...
