Country Strategy

Together, IDB staff and Haiti determine how Haiti’s priorities coincide with the Bank’s development strategies for the region. The product of that process is the IDB country strategy with Haiti, containing the Bank's expected program for Haiti from December 2011 through December 2015.

Country strategies include an overview of the country’s current economic situation. They draw on analytical work conducted by the Bank and other parties on a wide range of economic and social sectors, such as rural and urban development, health, education, government modernization, transportation, trade, and the environment, among others.

Country Strategy with Haiti 2011-2015

This Country Strategy (CS) comes at a time of enormous opportunity for Haiti. Nearly two years after the devastating earthquake of January 2010 the people of Haiti are anxious and ready to turn a page in its recent history.

Both the GOH and the international community agree the transition from emergency relief to sustainable recovery and growth will reveal additional challenges and that the years ahead are clearly the opening “to turn the earthquake into a window of opportunity.” There is a shared recognition that long-term, substantial targeted support is required to move Haiti onto a path of sustained development that delivers economic growth as well as solutions to enduring social and environmental problems. It is equally recognized that strong Haitian ownership is sine qua non for this long-term support to be effective.

The CS identifies six priority sectors that in the view of both the Bank and the Haitian authorities have the potential to transform substantially and sustainably Haiti’s economy and society: (i) education; (ii) private sector development; (iii) energy (particularly electricity), (iv) water and sanitation, (v) agriculture, and (vi) transport.

The CS anticipates the promotion of inter-sectorial coordination as well as enhanced national ownership particularly by those stakeholders outside Port-au-Prince, strengthened institutional capacity, a substantial participation of all private sector windows of the Bank and strategic donor coordination, integrated investments and partnership alliances. The CS calls for a technical cooperation and knowledge program consistent with the country’s priorities as well as complementary to and supporting of the Bank’s operations.