USAID Administrator Visits Haiti: “Men anpil chay pa lou” (“Many hands lighten the load”)

August 11, 2009

The Acting Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Alonzo Fulgham, visited Haiti on August 10 and 11 to meet with senior Haitian government officials and review economic growth and hurricane reconstruction projects funded by the U.S. Government.   “Our government is firmly committed to assisting the people of Haiti,” said Mr. Fulgham, “Our collective investments must be focused on helping Haiti to move beyond assistance to genuine economic growth.  As the old Creole proverb goes: “Men anpil chay pa lou.”

In Port-au-Prince, Mr. Fulgham met with senior Haitian Government officials and members of the Parliament to discuss the U.S. Government’s continuing efforts to align U.S. assistance with Haiti’s national priorities.  On August 11, Mr. Fulgham visited Petit-Goave, where USAID has been funding road repair, irrigation for agriculture and school repairs.

Just prior to his arrival in Haiti, Mr. Fulgham also attended the Haitian Diaspora Unity Conference and urged the Diaspora to invest their money and expertise to create jobs in Haiti:  “The United States looks forward to working with the Haitian Diaspora to bring meaningful economic development.”  On July 31, the U.S. Agency for International Development launched the Haitian Diaspora Marketplace program, which is providing $2 million to support investments by members of the Haitian Diaspora in small and medium enterprises in Haiti and create jobs in manufacturing, tourism, agriculture, construction, information technology, and other areas.  The website for this project is www.fondationsogebank.org/hdm.  USAID’s Mission in Haiti has also launched a project to help Haitians use remittances sent from abroad for investment purposes, such as savings accounts, collateral for business loans, education loans and scholarships. 

Alonzo Fulgham is a senior USAID official with extensive experience in poverty reduction and economic growth.  He also was a Peace Corps volunteer in Haiti 1984-1986. 

This year, the United States will provide over $300 million dollars in assistance to directly support the national development priorities identified by the Government of Haiti.  (End of text)