12 January 2010, the world shakes! A magnitude 7.3 earthquake destroyed Port-au-Prince, killing more than 280,000 people, injuring 300,000, and leaving 1,300,000 homeless. The government was on its knees, and the national palace and many public buildings could not withstand the might of Goudougoudou – the name given to the cataclysm in Haiti.
The humanitarian world and ASB to the rescue of the Haitian people
The international community quickly mobilized to deal with the emergency: treating the injured, helping to rescue survivors from the rubble, rehousing the homeless, and supplying the population with basic necessities. For its part, ASB, true to its mission to help here and now, joined the flock of organisations providing support to the Haitians in July. A dynamic team arrived in the town of Faustin Soulouque, 74 km from the capital, and in one year built 300 temporary shelters to rehouse families in various sections of Petit-Goâve. In 2013, ASB is working on more sustainable strategies. Activities were extended to the entire Palmes region and to Fonds des Nègres in Nippes. Thanks to funding from BMZ, we have initiated more sustainable activities such as training in Risk and Disaster Management in schools and communal sections, as well as training in earthquake- and cyclone-resistant construction methods. Other themes have also been included: food security and resilience. At this point, we knew that the emergency period was over. The time had come to build for the long term. In 2016, ASB extended its solidarity in Haiti. On 4 October 2016, the passage of Hurricane Matthew once again put solidarity to the test: the strongest storm to hit the country since Hurricane Cleo in 1964, and the third strongest Haitian hit ever recorded. Hurricane-force winds – 119 km/h or more – have affected around 1.125 million people across the country. The disaster affected 60 communes and 250 communal sections. Violent winds, heavy rain and deadly tides hit the Tiburon peninsula in southwest Haiti. ASB is extending its work to the south coast of Haiti, as far as Tiburon. “Helping here and now”: food security, school gardens, community resilience, water, land protection.
ASB has carried out the following actions
Construction/repair of 200 roofs for 200 families
Installation of 47 water points to stop the spread of cholera
The capture of a spring and construction of a 2-kilometer water network in Corail Henry to serve 5,000 people
Distribution of cash transfers to 600 families for 2 months
Distribution of agricultural kits to more than 400 families 20 school gardens and their management committees
Reinstallation of the roof of the only health center in Tiburon After Matthew,
we continued to support the communities where we work, in partnership with the Catalan Development Cooperation Fund (FCCD). From 2016 to 2020, we have: Rehabilitated the sites of the Sucrerie Henry where the Coopérative Agricole des Planteurs de Saint Louis du Sud (CAPSL) was able to set up its premises, seed bank and demonstration garden. Construction of impluviums in two schools Repair of 4.5 km of the Moussambee road Construction of the Dietre road, which remains ASB’s most significant project to date because it is a crossroads serving 2 departments, the south-east and the west, and 3 communal sections. But above all, because the two bridges built to protect it still speak for themselves today.
From transitional aid to institutional strengthening
Working with affected communities and supporting them on the road to resilience remains an arduous task. However, it remains the most sustainable option. That’s why, since 2020, we’ve been working to build the capacity of the 4 local organizations we work with. We are providing them with advisory support as their administrative capacity is strengthened so that they can become more self-sufficient. Union Nord 3ieme in Trou-Chouchou, Petit-Goâve (UN-3) Federation of Organisations for the Development of Tiburon (FéODTi) Société AUDUBON Haiti (SAH) Cooperative Agricole des Planteurs de Saint-Louis (CAPSL) ASB is involved in the fight against climate change. In 2020, the organization is implementing its first ecological resilience project in Tiburon in the Grand-Bois National Nature Park. Tiburon is a municipality in the south-west of Haiti, 250 km long. It borders the Jamaica Channel and runs alongside the Caribbean Sea. The commune is made up of the communal sections of Blactote, Nan Sevré, Loby (or Corie) and Dalmette (including the “La Cahouane” district). This project, of vital importance to the commune, is being carried out by FéODTi and SAH. By helping to protect this immense national heritage and our very rich but threatened ecosystem, this project also offers economic alternatives such as honey production. This is a project that should be continued over time, and why not duplicated in other nature parks? The assistance provided by the Organisation for over a decade is testimony to active international solidarity. “Helping here and now” is a mission that is close to the heart of every ASB employee and volunteer. We continue to support the Haitian people and in particular the beneficiaries, partners and organizations in each of our projects.
