In Haiti’s south, post-earthquake reconstruction efforts inch forward

The Haitian Times
By J.O. Haselhoef

DUCHITY — Across idyllic farmlands in the rolling mountains of southwestern Haiti, coconut palms wave in the breeze over a hamlet of concrete-block houses. One home, damaged eight months ago during the earthquake of August 2021, still has two-inch cracks across its face. At another, an orange tarp hangs where a wall once stood. 

“At the beginning the people saw a lot of mobilization about the earthquake — other countries promised some big amount. NGOs like UNICEF, Remodel, USAID said on social media they will stand with the Haitian people,” said Fritz-Gerald Polyte, a photographer in Duchity. “The people believed that NGOs and the government would help them rebuild their houses. Unfortunately, the NGOs helped them only with tarps — not building materials.”

Now, people have lost hope that real assistance will come.

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