Haiti

Emergency response and preparedness in Haiti

Following the earthquake in 2010, GOAL launched an Emergency Response programme which saw the immediate distribution of food and emergency shelter, followed by the implementation of a $13.5M shelter, WASH and cash-for-work programme.

Since the earthquake, GOAL Teams have continued to meet the humanitarian needs of vulnerable populations in Haiti. As a country prone to natural disasters, we are committed to building community resilience so that people are better equipped to prepare for and withstand such shocks. This is done by providing technical assistance within communities and facilitating urban landscaping and planning at neighborhood level. GOAL is also working to strengthen early warning response systems through our Analysis of Resilience of Communities to Disasters (ARC-D) model.

Following the awarding of the combined grant of $12M in April 2023, GOAL Teams will focus on increasing access to safe drinking water, hygiene and sanitation services, train and equip communities to manage sanitation needs and infection control, ensure people infected with cholera are connected with treatment services, and distribute vouchers to families so they can buy food and protect the most vulnerable.

There will also be a significant focus on protection monitoring of abuse and violence in neighborhoods under gang control in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince.

An urgent need to build Resilient Health

GOAL is committed to saving lives during and after acute humanitarian crises.

Following the earthquake, GOAL's Haiti Team provided an integrated WASH programme to affected communities. Access to clean water sources in communities has improved the spread of deadly waterborne diseases.

The need to build a Resilient Health programme that improves health service access and addresses the threat of new disease outbreaks is however vast.

Since the cholera resurgence in late 2022, increased efforts have been underway to improve access to safe drinking water, hygiene and sanitation services and to train, educate, and equip communities to manage their own sanitation needs and control infection and to ensure that people infected with cholera are effectively connected with treatment services.

Investing in aquaculture and fisheries

In Haiti, GOAL works towards Sustainable Livelihoods through its 'Resilience of the Blue Economy' programme, which seeks to improve the incomes of coastal communities of the Atlantic zone through access valuable markets and the conservation of biodiversity.

In Haiti, this project aims to make fishery markets more inclusive and resilient, to increase access to job opportunities and self-employment.

Constraints however include: inadequate infrastructures, lack of access to capital/financial services, poor governance of natural resources, market coordination and limited adherence to market demand.

GOAL is committed to addressing these challenges and making fishery markets work for crisis-affected populations.

We would also like to support the development of economic incentives for responsible fishing practices around small-scale fisheries.