Haiti's Revolution - I

Time: 1960
Place: Haiti

This is the aftermath of the revolution, 1.5 centuries later. Haiti is a failed nation but why did it fail?



As a CPA in Atlanta, I had occasion to work on an American enterprise in Haiti. The American company started a rice processing plant in Haiti. The idea was to bring in rice from elsewhere, have Haitian workers at the plant process it into various foods for sale. The products could be used to earn foreign exchange for Haiti and jobs for Haitian workers, not to mention food for both Haitians and sales in the US and elsewhere.

It did not work for 2 principle reasons: 1) government corruption made the whole project unfeasable and 2) the workers hired did not work. My own dealings with the office staff via phone and e-mail was frustrating in the extreme. The US company closed the plant down.


More information: Haitian Revolution, Bob Corbett's Essay.