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| Me, Elodie, Gary, Senateur Privert |
In order to identify the needs and opportunities of Miragoane, it's
necessary to meet with the people who know Miragoane.
Sunday morning, I was invited to join Senateur Jocelerme Privert at his home for a candid
conversation about the development needs of Miragaone, the Department des
Nippes and partake in some Haitian pumpkin soup.
Senateur Privert has served as the representative for the Department des
Nippes (this is equivalent to a
state) for the past two years. Miragoane is the capitol of the department and
the region has a population of about approximately 500,000 people. The department
consists of 11 cities divided in two parts, coastal and mountain range.
At its height during the 1960’s and 70’s, Miragoane was a burgeoning port
and processing hub for Reynolds Metal. However, disinvestment by the company in
the 1980’s coupled with disinvestments in agriculture caused by trade policies
lowering food import tariffs have since left the area desolate, absent some
minimal exporting, subsistence farming and local merchants in the informal
sector.
When asked about the development needs of Miragoane, the Senatuer shared
a comprehensive list: electricity, water, infrastructure, jobs, human
resources, housing, transportation, hospital and education facilitates, and
recreation. With few opportunities to maintain self-sufficiency, those who are
able to leave to region, do, in pursuit of better jobs, education and quality
of life.
A 2002 article in the Miami Herald, paints a very bleak picture of Miragoane. Then
Mayor, Gary Mazile, cites his frustration with the lack of basic needs and
disbelief that international aid dedicated to help pay for much needed
electricity and road infrastructure would ever reach the community. The
situation in Miragoane eventually reached a boiling point and residents took to
the streets demanding that a portion of tax dollars collected from import taxes
be reinvested in the region.
Eleven years later, the region is beginning to see some improvement. A
new road is under construction, money has been allocated in the budget to build
an electrical substation, and the proposed private development project at the
port has the potential to provide jobs, additional infrastructure improvements,
and much needed electricity.
Senature Privert is optimistic that the existing port, fertile land and
untouched beaches can be leveraged to create tremendous opportunities for
agriculture, trade and tourism.
Later this week I am scheduled to travel to Miragoane, which is about 60
miles south of Port-au-Prince.
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| Haitian Pumpkin Soup |
Now about the soup, I thought that soup for breakfast was a bit of an
odd choice. But to my surprise, pumpkin soup has special significance in Haiti. It was considered a delicacy and too sophisticated for
the Haitian slaves so the French forbade them from eating it.
Story has it that after the revolution of 1804, a large communal
pot of the soup was made to celebrate independence. Haitian pumpkin soup remains a tradition to celebrate the freedom of
Haiti and is served on New Year’s Day (which is also Haitian Independence Day)
to celebrate unity and good fortune.
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